Fire-stricken Car Carrier Abandoned and Adrift in the North Atlantic
A Panamanian-flagged car carrier is crewless and adrift in the North Atlantic Ocean after a fire broke out in a cargo hold on Wednesday.The Portuguese Navy said it coordinated the rescue of 22 crew members from the Felicity Ace about 90 nautical miles southwest of the island of Faial, in the Azores. The Portuguese Navy's ocean patrol vessel NRP Setúbal and four nearby merchant ships participated in the rescue.The mariners were transported by a Portuguese Air Force aircraft to Horta airport, and then to a nearby hotel.
Dozens of Migrants Rescued from Burning Rubber Dinghy
Dozens of migrants were rescued at the weekend after jumping from a rubber dinghy that had burst into flames as they tried to get to Spain across the Mediterranean Sea. A Portuguese Air Force plane spotted the boat and managed to save all 34 migrants with the help of the sea rescue service from the Spanish city of Almeria. Video taken from the plane on Sunday and released on Monday by the European border agency, Frontex, shows flames spreading from the dinghy's outboard motor. Thousands of migrants fleeing conflict and economic hardship in the Middle East and Africa have died in recent years trying to get to Europe by sea in overcrowded, unsafe boats. European authorities are still struggling to formulate an effective response. (Writing by Mark Hanrahan in London)
Coast Guard Concludes Response to Bulker Casualty
The two surviving crewmembers of the bulk-carrier Tamar explosion were medevaced at approximately 4:30 a.m., by a Portuguese aircrew along with three New York Air National Guard’s 106th Rescue Wing pararescuers to continue medical care. The aircrew arrived in Terceira Island, Azores at about 7 a.m. A Portuguese Air Force jet is scheduled to be waiting along with a medical team to bring the injured to Lisbon, Portugal for medical treatment. The captain of the Marshall Islands-flagged 623-foot bulk carrier Tamar contacted watchstanders at the Coast Guard command center reporting an explosion in the ship’s forward storeroom. New York Air National Guard’s 106th Rescue Wing pararescuers arrived on board the Tamar at about 9:30 p.m.…
Fishing Vessel Sinks
Seven Spanish crewmen were missing after a Spanish fishing vessel sank in rough seas off the coast of Portugal on Thursday, Reuters reported. The spokesman said that four other sailors, also Spanish, had been rescued from a life raft after the sinking but that the search was continuing for the remaining crew from the "Fatima" which went down in the Atlantic some 150 nautical miles (300 km) west of Lisbon. A Portuguese navy ship and two Spanish boats were involved in the search and a Portuguese air force plane would return to the area at first light, he added.
