Provincetown News

American Cruise Lines introduced its first new Coastal Cat, American Eagle, during a christening ceremony in at the Massachusetts Maritime Academy campus on Buzzards Bay last week.Carol Robertson, wife of American Cruise Lines’ founder the late Charles A. Robertson, served as godmother for the ship and christened the 100-passenger American Eagle with one of her handmade, ribbon-wrapped champagne bottles. The American Eagle is named after the first American Cruise Lines’ ship, which the couple launched in the 1970s.The ceremony began with remarks from Robertson…

New Year’s Eve is a time of celebration and remembrance. Three years ago, on December 31, 2019, as the new year was being rung in across the lower 48 states, a tragedy was playing out in icy Alaskan waters. The fishing vessel Scandies Rose, with seven crew members aboard, encountered severe icing conditions and high winds and waves as it transited from Kodiak to fishing grounds in the Bering Sea. The crabber tried to make it to Sutwik Island to shelter from the storm; however…

The Ferry’s second season this year presents permanent possibilities.The Cross Bay Ferry from Tampa’s Florida Aquarium dock to the dock at the North Yacht Basin in St. Petersburg, Florida is off to a rollicking start, with 3,000 more passengers in it’s debut month of November 2018 than its strongest month during the 2016/2017 test period, and with continued support from Tampa Bay area leadership.“We are very encouraged by the numbers we are seeing so far,” St. Petersburg Mayor Rick Kriseman said.

Service begins Nov. 1 with new dock at Florida Aquarium and Sparkman Wharf. Six-month season has lower ticket prices and more amenities. The hugely popular Cross-Bay Ferry service is returning to Tampa Bay in just a few weeks, with service starting Thursday, November 1 and six months of scheduled service through April 2019.This season, the ferry will have a new schedule, later evening runs and lower ticket prices: $8 for adults, $3 for children ages 5-18, and discounts for seniors, active/retired military and college students. In St.

Alison Nolan is General Manager and a fourth-generation owner of Boston Harbor Cruises (BHC), a company that moves more than 2.5 million passengers annually on its fleet of 60 vessels with more than 600 daily departures seven ports and more than 30 facilities. But the story of BHC and Alison Nolan transcends raw numbers; as the company and passenger vessel industry are in her DNA, more of a lifestyle than a career. She spoke with Maritime Reporter & Engineering News recently to address the rewards and challenges inherent in her position.

Domestic ferries adjust their business models to met regulatory pressures and exceed environmental standards with an eye towards improved service. And, not a minute too soon. In North America, stalwarts in the ferry business continue to shorten journey times compared to surface alternatives, while at the same time, bring accessibility to barrier and coastal islands that would otherwise be impossible to reach. Established stakeholders continually fine-tune their operations in a…

HMS Ferries, Inc. has begin a passenger only ferry pilot project in the Tampa Bay, Fla. area, called the “Cross Bay Ferry.” The six-month pilot project was launched on November 1, 2016 and will connect the cities of St. Petersburg and Tampa, and end on May 1, 2017. The pilot project is a unique, regional effort designed to demonstrate water transportation technology and service options to the residents and businesses of the Tampa Bay region. The Cross-Bay Ferry is a collaboration between St. Petersburg, Tampa, and Hillsborough and Pinellas County, and operates between the Vinoy Basin in St.

The Greater Boston Chamber of Commerce has named passenger vessels operator Boston Harbor Cruises (BHC) as the 2015 Small Business of the Year Awards top honoree. The Small Business of the Year Awards recognizes Greater Boston’s smaller for-profit companies, with annual gross revenues of more than $1 million, who display strong financial performance, achievement in management, workplace excellence, product innovation and community and social responsibility. BHC operates a fleet of 48 vessels on a seasonal daily excursion schedule that includes Boston Harbor sightseeing cruises…

U.S. Coast Guard crews from Southeastern New England conducted various evolutions with the Royal Canadian Navy to train and improve the inter-operability of the two nations’ militaries and surface search and rescue assets. Coast Guard Station Woods Hole, Station Provincetown, and Air Station Cape Cod and HMCS Summerside conducted homeland security, anti-terrorism, search and rescue, and medical evacuation operations. The training commenced in Buzzards Bay, Monday with a Coast Guard Station Woods Hole 29-foot Response Boat Small simulating a boat protesting against the Royal Canadian Navy. The attack vessel, represented by the Coast Guard small boat, approached HMCS Summerside prompting the ships crew to stand up their force protection measures to defend the ship.

Boston Harbor Cruises’ (BHC) Provincetown fast ferry, Salacia, has returned to service following an almost $3 million engine refit which saw the vessel in dry dock from January through May 2015. BHC commissioned the installation of four MTU 12V4000M64 engines from Stewart & Stevenson Power Products, LLC. The engines were manufactured by Rolls Royce Power Systems subsidiary MTU, and assembled in Friedrichshafen, Germany. The MTU engines will reduce Salacia’s diesel emissions while increasing efficiency and reliability.

Boston Harbor Cruises’ Provincetown Ferry, the Salacia will be drydocked from January thru March 2015 to undergo a $2.6 million dollar engine refit. Boston Harbor Cruises (BHC) has purchased four MTU 12V4000M64 engines from Stewart & Stevenson. The engines, manufactured by Rolls Royce Power Systems subsidiary MTU, and assembled in Friedrichshafen, Germany, have been completed and successfully tested and are currently on a container ship headed for Boston. According to BHC, the Salacia will be the first EPA Tier III Certified Emissions Level vessel operating in Boston Harbor.

A Coast Guard crew from Station Point Allerton, Massachusetts, assisted a disabled clam boat 11 miles northwest of Provincetown, Massachusetts, Friday. At about 8:30 p.m., Thursday, the four-person crew aboard the 40-foot Angel Fisher notified Coast Guard Sector Boston that their boat lost steering. Because of the deteriorating weather, with 5-foot seas and 16-knot winds, the Angel Fisher crew put on their immersion suits. On scene, air temperature was 37 degrees and water temperature was 49 degrees. Station Point Allerton launched a 47-foot Motor Life Boat crew who arrived on scene at about midnight, took the Angel Fisher in tow, and made way to Plymouth, Massachusetts. They arrived safely at the pier at about 5:45 a.m., Friday. There were no medical concerns reported.

Coast Guard rescue crews assisted the crew and passengers aboard the Provincetown IV Ferry, which was disabled near Scituate, Massachusetts, Wednesday. Watchstanders at the Sector Boston Command Center received notification at 4:06 p.m. that the ferry had suffered an engine failure and was unable to make way. A Station Point Allerton 47-foot motor lifeboat crew and the Coast Guard Cutter Flyingfish rushed to the scene to provide a safety zone and monitor, while another ferry arrived on scene to also assist. The Provincetown IV crew eventually repaired the engine and were underway, while the Flyingfish and Station Point Allerton crews escorted them to port. The ferry docked safely in Boston at about 7:40 p.m.

Coast Guard rescue crews medically evacuated a 70-year-old woman in Provincetown Harbor, Massachusetts, Friday.  Watchstanders at Sector Southeastern New England received notification at 9:06 p.m. from the woman's husband that she was bleeding uncontrollably from her mouth.  A Station Provincetown crew was training nearby aboard a 29-foot response boat small and diverted to assist.  The rescue crew took the woman aboard and transported awaiting EMS at the Provincetown Harbor Pier.  "We train constantly for at-sea medical emergencies," said Petty Officer 1st Class Andrew Stokes, a watchstander at Sector Southeastern New England.  He said because the crew was already in the area, they were on scene immediately and able to transfer care quickly.

When the 172-year old tall ship Charles W. Morgan sets out on its historic 38th voyage on June 14, it will benefit from safety enhancements that were unheard of at the time of its construction – including a pair of Xantrex Freedom SW 24V - 3000W/75A inverter/chargers that deliver a full 6,000 watts of continuous electrical power. Built in 1841, the Charles W. Morgan is the last of an American whaling fleet that once numbered more than 2,700 vessels. Over an 80-year whaling career, it embarked on 37 voyages, most lasting three years or more. Retired in 1921, the ship was used as a set for two Hollywood films (Down to the Sea in Ships, starring a young Clara Bow, and Java Head, with Ralph Richardson and Anna Mae Wong).

The Campobello Island Whale Rescue team disentangles whales caught in fishermen's gear and nets around the Bay of Fundy off the east coast of Canada. Campobello Whale Rescue Team began after Mackie Greene witnessed a fin whale wrapped in fishing gear while leading a whale watching trip. Since then he and his team have worked with over 20 whales, risking their lives driving a Zodiac up next to animals that can be 40 to 70 or more feet long, and cutting through the lines entangling them.

John (Jack) William Gilbert, PE, U.S. Navy Lieutenant, USNR, a world-renowned Naval Architect and Marine Engineer and President of John W. Gilbert Associates, Inc., Hingham, Massachusetts, died at the age of 80 years on July 26, 2010. Gilbert was born in Silver Creek, N.Y., on November 1, 1929, and was a resident of North Scituate, Mass., for more than 48 years. He graduated with a B.S.Nam. from the University of Michigan, Ann Arbor, in 1955. Gilbert founded John W. Gilbert Associates…

Wreckage from the fishing boat 'Foxy Lady ll', which lost 2 crew, snagged by trawlers, later identified by US Coast Guard. Coast Guard Sector Boston confirmed the discovery of the submerged wreckage of the 45-foot fishing vessel Foxy Lady II, reported missing with its two crew in December 2012. Massachusetts Marine Environmental Police received multiple reports of fishing vessels becoming entangled on an underwater obstruction while trawling in areas between Provincetown, Mass., and Cape Ann, Mass. Coast Guard Sector Boston investigators, along with assistance and equipment from Massachusetts Marine Environmental Police, began to assess the seabed. With the use of an underwater camera, the vessel was located and confirmed to be the Foxy Lady II.

1914-Pursuant to the Convention for Safety at Sea in London, President Woodrow Wilson directed that the Revenue Cutter Service undertake the task of manning the International Ice Patrol. Henceforth, the Revenue Cutter Service and then the Coast Guard, with brief respites during both World Wars, served in this capacity. 1942- Presidential order created the War Shipping Administration which assumed control over all phases of merchant marine activities. 1943-During a fierce convoy battle near Greenland, USS Ingham, CG, rescued 33 survivors from the torpedoed troopship SS Henry Mallory while USS Bibb, CG, rescued 202. Bibb then rescued 33 from the torpedoed SS Kalliopi.

Bay State Cruise Company, Boston, Mass., has taken delivery of a new fast ferry from Gladding-Hearn Shipbuilding, Duclos Corporation  to carry passengers between Boston and Provincetown, Massachusetts. Provincetown IV will operate daily on the 48 nautical mile, 90-minute run, along with its near sistership, Provincetown III, which the Somerset, Mass., shipyard built in 2004. Designed by Incat Crowther, the new 150-passenger ferry will allow Bay State Cruises to accommodate peak demands of the short summer season…

Incat Crowther announced the launch and delivery of the 30-meter catamaran passenger ferry, Provincetown IV to Bay State Cruise Company of Boston, Massachusetts. Gladding Hearn Shipbuilding of Massachusetts delivered the earlier vessel Provincetown III in 2004, and she has been operating for nearly a decade. When the operator planned an expansion in services, they asked that Provincetown IV bedeveloped based on the original design with an updated propulsion package for improved performance and efficiency.

Bay State Cruise Company has introduced their brand new fast ferry, the 'Provincetown IV' which now travels between Boston and Provincetown, M.A. The operators say that thisvessel will boast more power, less emissions and a smoother ride in rough weather when compared to Bay State’s currently-operating fast ferry, the 'Provincetown III'. The Provincetown IVis the fifth vessel that Bay State Cruises has dedicated to the Boston to Provincetown route since the company’s first vessel…

In this photo released by the U.S. Coast Guard, Captain Raymond Perry (center) looks on as Chief Petty Officers Paul Wells (left) and Jason Holm (right) salute each other during their change of command ceremony at Station Provincetown, Mass., Thursday, Oct. 8, 2009. During the ceremony Wells took command of Station Provincetown from Holm. (U.S. Coast Guard photo by Petty Officer 2nd Class Lauren Jorgensen)