Cargo Ship Loses Containers in Heavy Seas
The container ship Seaboard Voyager lost four of its containers approximately 18 miles north of Puerto de Tanamo, Cuba, Wednesday 2:18 p.m. Coast Guard Marine Safety Office Miami received the report from the ship's master at 11:30 a.m. yesterday that Seaboard Voyager encountered rough seas and bad weather off the Cuban coast and four containers became loose. The Coast Guard instructed the master to anchor the ship off the coast of Miami so safety inspectors could make sure the ship was safe to enter the Port of Miami. After an initial safety inspection of the containers onboard, it was decided by inspectors that Seaboard Voyager was safe to enter the port.
Coast Guard Finds Fake Mariner Documents
A combined effort led by the Coast Guard Investigative Service and Coast Guard Marine Safety Office Miami has resulted in the arrests of foreign mariners on ships visiting Miami for using fraudulent merchant mariner licenses and training certificates. One mariner was arrested yesterday for operating with a fictitious Columbian International Convention on Standards of Training, Certification and Watch keeping for Seafarers (STCW) certificate. The individual was further determined to be an illegal alien and was turned over to the Immigration and Naturalization Service. Another similar arrest occurred this morning and more are anticipated this afternoon. "Our primary concern is maintaining waterway safety.
Coast Guard and INS Team Up to Stop Fraud
Coast Guard Investigative Service, Coast Guard Marine Safety Office Miami and Immigration and Naturalization Service agents teamed up to crack two cases of merchant marine document fraud out of Miami July 3. The agencies served and executed search warrants at two locations on the Miami River, helping agents to collect evidence in support of an eight month CGIS investigation; resulting in a series of arrests. The documents seized during this operation included medical certifications, Standards for Training Certification and Watchstanders, employment letters that stated individuals were employees of maritime companies to help obtain U.S.
Disabled Tanker off Florida Coast
Coast Guard Marine Safety Office Miami is monitoring the progress of the Isarstern, a 529-ft. tanker disabled and adrift off the coast of Marathon, Fla. The Isle of Man-flagged ship was en route Houston from Quebec, Canada when it suffered an engine casualty about 13 miles off Florida around 2 a.m. The ship has lowered its anchor to both slow its rate of drift and anchor if it drifts into shallow waters. The vessel is currently 5 miles south of Sombrero Light and 2 miles outside of the Florida Keys National Marine Sanctuary. It is slowly drifting east-northeast, parallel to the FKNMS boundary, presenting no immediate threat to the sanctuary. A commercial salvage vessel from Tampa, Fla., is on its way to rendezvous with the tanker and is expected to arrive around 7 a.m. tomorrow.
