Thomas H Gilmour News

With Rear Admiral Thomas H. Gilmour of the United States Coast Guard looking on, the Passenger Vessel Association named Diana Jones of Wendella the 2003 recipient of the prestigious Roger Murphy National Safety Award. Nearly 500 association members, who were gathered in New Orleans, recognized Ms. Jones for rescuing three people from the Chicago River, in two separate incidents on the same day! On the morning of June 25, 2003 Ms. Jones, along with Captain Michael Mackey were working aboard the RiverBus Alpha when the screams of bystanders alerted them to two men struggling in the Chicago River. Racing to the rescue, Ms. Jones, despite being a biscuit under a hundred pounds, pulled both men to safety and rendered assistance until the arrival of the Chicago Fire Department.

In response to the release of the Sandia National Laboratories and Department of Energy report on liquefied natural gas (LNG), Rear Adm. Thomas H. Gilmour, Coast Guard assistant commandant for marine safety, security and environmental protection, said, "The Coast Guard appreciates the work of Sandia Labs to provide us additional information on the potential threats to LNG tankers and consequences of a large LNG release. "The Sandia study confirms that LNG tankers are very strong ships and that the site specific risk management activities that the Coast Guard already has in place can significantly reduce the possibility of a major loss of cargo from an accident or attack.

The United States Attorneys from five judicial districts with major ports today announced criminal charges against Evergreen International, S.A. (Evergreen), one of many Evergreen-related companies involved in the container ship business. Under the terms of a plea agreement, Evergreen will pay $25 million, the largest-ever amount for a case involving deliberate vessel pollution, and plead guilty to felony charges brought in Los Angeles; Newark, NJ; Portland, OR; Seattle; and Charleston, SC. Evergreen pleaded guilty today to 24 felony counts and one misdemeanor - five counts from each federal district involved in the case - for concealing the deliberate, illegal discharge of waste oil and for a negligent discharge in the Columbia River.

Christopher J. Wiernicki was elected to the ABS Board of Directors by the ABS Council following the Annual Meeting of the members of the international classification society. Wiernicki was appointed President and Chief Operating Officer of ABS on January 1. He is also an elected Corporate Officer of the society. Prior to his current appointment, Wiernicki served as President and COO of ABS Europe Ltd, the Division of the society responsible for activities throughout Europe, the Middle East and Africa. Wiernicki has also served as Executive Vice President and Chief Technology Officer for ABS and as President and Chief Operating Officer of ABSG Consulting Inc., an affiliate of ABS and the principal operating subsidiary of ABS Group of Companies, Inc.

By Steven L Herman, Auxiliary Public Information Officer, U.S. TOKYO - For the first time, ministers responsible for transportation security have made coordinated plans to prevent future terrorist attacks. Transportation ministers from 14 countries met in Tokyo (Jan. 12-13) and announced their unanimous commitment to greater international cooperation on transportation security and, in particular, to take all possible measures to thwart terrorism targeting public transport systems. Maritime security was high on the agenda of the first Ministerial Conference on International Transport Security and of particular focus were small cargo ships, fishing vessels, harbor tugs, and boats like the one used to launch the October 20, 2000 attack on the USS Cole in Yemen.