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Yucatan Peninsula News

24 Aug 2021

One Dead, Five Missing as Fire Erupts on Pemex Offshore Platform

For Illustration; Pemex's platforms offshore Mexico - Image by BoH/Wikimedia Commons - CC BY-SA 3.0

One person died and five went missing after a fire broke out Sunday on a Pemex offshore platform in the Campeche Bay, Mexico.The fire broke out at the E-Ku-A2 platform at Pemex's Ku-Maloob-Zaap oil field at 3:10 pm Sunday and was brought under control an hour later.Pemex said that one person died, six people were injured, and five went missing. Pemex said it was conducting a search and rescue operation, as well as working damage assessment and stabilization of the integrity of…

23 Aug 2021

VIDEO: 'Eye of fire' Near Offshore Platform in Mexico Extinguished

Photo / Screenshot from video originally shared by Manuel Lopez San Martin on Twitter

A fire on the ocean surface west of Mexico's Yucatan peninsula early on Friday has been extinguished, state oil company Pemex said, blaming a gas leak from an underwater pipeline for sparking the blaze captured in videos that went viral.Bright orange flames jumping out of water resembling molten lava was dubbed an "eye of fire" on social media due to the blaze's circular shape, as it raged a short distance from a Pemex oil platform.The fire took more than five hours to fully put out…

07 Oct 2020

Mexico Closes Oil Ports Ahead of Hurricane Delta

© Adobe Stock

Mexico's naval authorities on Tuesday ordered the closure of oil, cargo and passenger ports in the Gulf of Mexico and Caribbean ahead of Hurricane Delta, expected to sweep the Yucatan peninsula overnight.Ports shuttered to large ships included Dos Bocas in Tabasco and oil installations in Campeche.(Reporting by Lizbeth Diaz; Writing by Frank Jack Daniel; editing by Drazen Jorgic)

06 Oct 2020

US Gulf Platforms Shutting as Hurricane Delta Strengthens

(Photo: NOAA)

Energy companies were securing offshore production platforms and evacuating workers on Tuesday, some for the sixth time this year, as a major hurricane took aim at U.S. oil production in the Gulf of Mexico.Hurricane Delta, the 25th named storm of the 2020 Atlantic Hurricane season, was churning in the Caribbean with sustained winds of 140 miles per hour (225 kph), already a dangerous Category 4 storm that is expected to scrape across Mexico's Yucatan peninsula and re-enter the…

21 Aug 2020

Two Storms Head for US Gulf in Rare Hurricane Season Event

(Image: NOAA)

A pair of tropical cyclones forecast to become hurricanes early next week are headed for the U.S. Gulf Coast and will spin over the Gulf's warm waters simultaneously, a rare weather event that could cause massive disruption as they make landfall.The last time two cyclones entered the U.S. Gulf of Mexico was in 1959, according to meteorologists interviewed by Reuters, and there have only been a handful of other occasions when two storms entered the Gulf simultaneously. In 1933, a Category 3 hurricane and moderate tropical storm hit the U.S.

09 Aug 2019

APM to Modernize Progreso Terminal, Mexico

The international container terminal operating company APM Terminals announced that APM Terminals Yucatán, operator of the Port of Progreso, Mexico, will invest to expand and modernize the Progreso container terminal, supporting trade growth and economic development in the Yucatan peninsula.The Netherlands-headquartered the terminal has seen tremendous growth, having doubled its volumes from 80,000 to 140,000 TEUs throughput over the last two years, as the region’s economic activities expand. This year alone the terminal expects 20-35% further growth in volume.The terminal provides the region with unparalleled connectivity through 5 vessels a week, including direct connections with the US and Europe.

16 Apr 2019

Carnival Fantasy Helps Rescue 23 People

Photo by Petty Officer 3rd Class Brandon Giles  (U.S. Coast Guard courtesy photo/Released)

Carnival Fantasy assists the Coast Guard in Rescuing 23 Individuals on the High Seas.The Coast Guard and the crew of the cruise ship Carnival Fantasy rescued 23 individuals on the high seas, 130 nautical miles off the Yucatan Peninsula, The Coast Guard received a report at 1:15 a.m. from a Cuban national stating his brother and 22 other individuals were adrift aboard a disabled sports fisher. It was reported that 22 Cuban nationals started their voyage from Cuba to Mexico on a…

04 Jan 2018

Coast Guard Searching for Missing Aircraft in GoM

© paulfell / Adobe Stock

The U.S. Coast Guard is searching for an unresponsive aircraft that went missing in the Gulf of Mexico approximately 118 nautical miles north of the Yucatan Peninsula, Thursday. The Coast Guard said its watchstanders at the Eighth District command center in New Orleans received a report from the North American Aerospace Defense Command, Wednesday evening that one person aboard a privately owned Cirrus plane was unresponsive likely due to hypoxia. The pilot flew from Oklahoma City and was reportedly headed to Georgetown, Texas.

06 Oct 2017

T/S Nate Kills 22 in Central America, Bears Down on U.S. GoM

Tropical Storm Nate killed at least 22 people in Central America on Thursday as it pummeled the region with heavy rain while heading toward Mexico's Caribbean resorts and the U.S. Gulf Coast, where it could strike as a hurricane this weekend. In Nicaragua, at least 11 people died, seven others were reported missing and thousands had to evacuate homes because of flooding, said the country's vice president Rosario Murillo. Emergency officials in Costa Rica reported that at least eight people were killed due to the lashing rain, including two children. Another 17 people were missing, while more than 7,000 had to take refuge from Nate in shelters, authorities said.

03 May 2017

Royal Caribbean Will Return to New Orleans

Vision of the Seas (Photo: Royal Caribbean International)

Royal Caribbean International announced it will return to New Orleans with a seasonal home-based cruise ship in late 2018. The 915-foot Vision of the Seas will sail seven-night itineraries to destinations across the Bahamas and Yucatan Peninsula from the Port of New Orleans’ Julia Street Cruise Terminal. The ship will sail on Saturdays. “The Port of New Orleans is thrilled to welcome back Royal Caribbean. We look forward to working productively together for many years to come,” said Brandy Christian, Port President and CEO.

07 Aug 2016

Six dead in Mexico as Earl Triggers Landslides

Six people died in eastern Mexico on Saturday after they were buried in landslides caused by intense rainfall from the remnants of now-downgraded Tropical Storm Earl, an emergency services official said. The six deaths involved two separate families in eastern Veracruz state, emergency services spokesman Manuel Escalera said. He added that local authorities were continuing to monitor rising rivers and saturated soil that could trigger additional landslides. Earl's maximum wind speed dropped to 30 mph (48 kmh) by Saturday afternoon, according to the Miami-based National Hurricane Center. It was located approximately 105 miles (169 km) east of Mexico City, after pounding portions of Central America and crossing Mexico's Yucatan Peninsula over the past couple days.

06 Aug 2016

Tropical Storm Earl moves inland over southeastern Mexico

Tropical Storm Earl moved inland early on Saturday over southeastern Mexico where torrential rains could produce deadly flash floods and mudslides, the U.S. National Hurricane Center said. The storm with winds of 50 mph (80 kmh) was about 30 miles (50 km) southwest of Veracruz, Mexico as it headed west at 9 mph (15 km), the Miami-based center said in an advisory late on Friday night. The center said Earl would weaken as it moved inland throughout the day on Saturday, but could produce rainfall up to 12 inches (30 cm) and might produce 18 inches (45 cm) of rain in some areas in the Mexican states of Veracruz, Hidalgo, Oaxaca, Guerrero, Puebla, Tabasco and Campeche. The rains could result in life-threatening flash floods and mudslides, the center said.

04 Aug 2016

Storm Earl lashes Belize, Heads for Mexico

Tropical storm Earl whipped Belize with wind and heavy rain as it weakened, moving into Guatemala toward southeastern Mexico on Thursday after hundreds of people took shelter overnight. The U.S. National Hurricane Center (NHC) said at 1200 GMT that Earl had maximum sustained winds of 65 miles per hour (105 km per hour) as it churned about 90 miles (145 km) west of Belize City. Earl had been a hurricane overnight. Late Wednesday, over 1,000 people were in shelters in Belize City, according to Philip Willoughby, who is in charge of the city's emergency management. Dozens of people were also evacuated in Honduras on Wednesday, the government said. As it moves west, Earl is expected to weaken to a tropical depression later Thursday or by Friday morning, the NHC said.

10 Oct 2015

Cutter Diligence to Return

The crew of the Coast Guard Cutter Diligence is scheduled to return to their homeport in Wilmington Saturday following a 45-day patrol in the Caribbean Sea. During their patrol, the Diligence crew conducted search and rescue operations off the west coast of Cuba and conducted drug interdiction operations in the vicinity of Columbia and Panama. In anticipation of Aviation Standardization, a three-day assessment of the Diligence crew's flight operations capabilities scheduled for early October, the crew practiced flight operations their first evening underway. An MH-65C Dolphin helicopter crew from Coast Guard Air Station Savannah in Savannah, Georgia, met the cutter crew to conduct deck landings, helicopter in flight refueling (HIFR) and vertical replenishment (VERTREP) exercises.

11 Dec 2013

Mexican Navy Orders Fifth Damen Stan 4207 Patrol Vessel

Damen Stan Patrol 4207. Photo: Damen

In November 2013 the Mexican Navy (Secretaría de Marina) and Damen Shipyards Group (the Netherlands) signed another contract for a Damen Stan Patrol 4207. The Mexican Navy already operates two similar Patrol Vessels and has currently two ships under construction in their shipyard Astillero de Marina Numero 1 in Tampico, which is situated on the coast of the Gulf of Mexico. The vessel is the fifth one of the Tenochtitlan-class and will be constructed by the Mexican Navy, while Damen will supply a partial material package and technical assistance.

16 Aug 2013

Hurricane Condition Report from Gulf of Mexico

Photo: NOAA

It has been informed by the Louisiana Maritime Association that Disturbance 33 has become less organized during overnight hour. All of the showers and storms that were present yesterday dissipated. The disturbance is located near the eastern Yucatan Peninsula and is moving to the northwest near 13 mph. A turn to the north is expected during the next 24 hours. As forecasted, the main part of the disturbance will move toward the northern Gulf Coast by Saturday or Sunday, bringing heavy rainfall to the southeast United States, and could remain to the south in the Bay of Campeche.

10 Jan 2005

Electronic Notes

Petroleos Mexicanos (PEMEX) and Norcontrol IT entered into a three-year maintenance contract that covers the offshore VTMIS system at the Bay of Campeche oilfield located in the Gulf of Mexico off the Yucatan Peninsula. The Bay of Campeche is the largest oilfield in Mexico and the world's largest offshore oil development project. The VTMIS system installed by Norcontrol IT consists of two control centers and seven radar sites, all of which are covered by the maintenance contract. A large capacity, flexible and reliable VTMIS system is required at the Bay of Campeche for several reasons. The coverage area contains between 200-300 vessels per day, all of which have to be monitored to protect the pipelines: Especially important as the bay is only 40-50 m deep in most areas.

19 Oct 2007

Vulcan Christens New M/V H.A. Sklenar

Vulcan Materials Company christened the M/V H.A. Sklenar at the company’s Blakely Island sales yard at the Port of Mobile recently. The vessel brings Vulcan’s fleet of Panamax-Class self-unloading vessels to three. The Sklenar and its sister vessels W.H. Blount and Bernardo Quintana, transport high quality limestone aggregates from Vulcan’s Sac Tun quarry on Mexico’s Yucatan Peninsula to markets along the U.S Gulf Coast, the east coast of Florida and the Caribbean. “We are pleased to honor our former chairman and CEO, Herb Sklenar, by naming our third vessel after him,” said Don James, Vulcan’s chairman and chief executive. James said long-term population growth and market demand in the region are expected to continue to increase at levels above the national average…

21 Aug 2007

Offshore Rigs Evacuated

According to reports, U.S. and Mexican oil and natural gas producers evacuated some offshore Gulf of Mexico platforms and rigs, curtailing output as Hurricane Dean whipped past Jamaica heading towards the Yucatan Peninsula. Six of the 834 manned oil and natural-gas platforms along the U.S. Gulf Coast have been evacuated, the U.S. Interior Department's Minerals Management Service said Sunday in a statement. That's shut about 1.8 percent of the Gulf's 1.3 million barrels of daily oil production and 0.7 percent of the region's natural gas. Royal Dutch Shell Plc evacuated 380 workers Saturday, the company said in a statement. Shell has shut production in the Gulf by 23,000 barrels of oil and 47.5 million cubic feet of natural gas per day.

16 Dec 2005

Radiance Shipping Purchases RoLo Cargo Vessel

Radiance Shipping Line, Inc., a newly formed shipping and transportation logistics company based in Palmetto, Florida, is proud to announce the purchase of the ROLO LUZ B. This roll-on, roll off / load on, load off cargo vessel has 740 lane meters of capacity, enabling the transportation of up to 50 freight containers or a combination of freight and vehicles, as well as many other types of cargo. Additionally, the vessel will have the capacity for an additional 132 containers (Lo-Lo). The LUZ B will also have a minimum of 50 refrigeration spaces, further enabling the ship to maximize capacity. vehicles, rolling stock, heavy machinery, agriculture equipment, refrigeration containers, trailers, rail vans and pallets. Additional details regarding cargo capacity are available upon request.

21 Jul 2003

RCCL’s Explorer of the Seas Assists in Hurricane Tracking

Explorer of the Seas, which is reportedly the world's only cruise ship equipped with state-of-the-art ocean and atmospheric science laboratories, continues to make important contributions of meteorological data to assist the National Hurricane Center. The 142,000-ton Royal Caribbean International ship recently provided the NHC with valuable 15-minute updates of surface winds on Hurricane Claudette as it grew from a tropical storm. The data was mentioned by NHC as a factor in locating the center of Claudette as it interacted with the Yucatan Peninsula. In readings taken east of Cozumel early on July 11, Explorer of the Seas recorded 50-knot surface winds when reconnaissance planes were unable to get a more reliable indicator that flight-level winds of 40 knots.

20 Nov 2002

Building Candies High-Performance Boats

One of the first companies to offer offshore supply services in the Gulf of Mexico was Otto Candies. His vision has endured and today the company is expanding its fleet rapidly through a second and a third generation of Candies executives. In the new millennium, Otto Candies LLC, Des Allemands, La., has embarked on a very aggressive new building program that has seen the delivery of three 150-ft. by 50-ft. anchor handling tugs, three state of the art 240-ft. diesel/electric supply boats and now a series of six 185-ft. by 42-ft. supply boats also with diesel electric propulsion and dynamic positioning capabilities. The three 150-ft. tugs and the three supply boats were built by Bender Shipbuilding and Repair, Mobile, Ala. For five of the six 185-ft.

20 Aug 2001

Chantal Not Expected to Threaten U.S. Offshore Production

Tropical Storm Chantal is unlikely to threaten U.S. offshore oil and gas production in the next 72 hours but could cause problems for Mexican offshore oil output, according to the U.S. National Hurricane Center (NHC). AT 10:00 a.m. EDT on Monday Chantal was moving across the Caribbean toward Mexico's Yucatan peninsula. NHC forecasters said they expect the system to make landfall late Monday or early Tuesday in the southern Yucatan or neighboring Belize. Data issued by the NHC showed that Chantal was expected to reemerge into the oil-rich Campeche Sound area of the southern Gulf of Mexico within 48 hours and gain hurricane strength as it heads for land again between Veracruz and Tampico in Mexico. That would keep Chantal about 300 miles south of the main U.S.