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Ryuku Islands News

22 Nov 2010

This Day in U.S. Coast Guard History – November 22

1906-At the second International Radio Telegraphic Convention, which was held in Berlin, the attendees agreed to adopt the wireless signal "SOS" as the internationally recognized signal for distress at sea. Their thinking was that three dots, three dashes and three dots could not be misinterpreted. 1953-A great boon to ocean navigation for aircraft surface vessels was the completion of four new LORAN stations in the Far East. The stations were built at Mikayo Jima, Ryuku Islands; Bataan and Cantanduanes Islands, Philippines; and Anguar, Palau Island in the Carolinas chain. Now replaced by the more accurate LORAN-C network, these stations on sparsely-populated, remote and typhoon-battered islands.

14 Jun 2002

Smit Provides Salvage Assistance

During May, SMIT Salvage dealt with casualties in Japanese waters and in the Red Sea. On May 1, the 260,619 dwt tanker Front Tobago was making for Japan when her main engine failed while proceeding off the Ryuku Islands, Japan. This 1993-built VLCC was carrying 240,00 tons of crude. An inspection revealed that the tanker’s crankshaft was damaged. The owners awarded SMIT a contract on May 2. The SmitWijs Singapore was mobilized to tow the Front Tobago to an anchorage outside the Economic Exclusion Zone, off Taiwan. On arrival, the cargo was discharged by ship-to-ship transfer. SMIT then mobilized the tug De Yue to tow the vessel from Taiwan to Singapore. The vessel arrived on May 23.