Gravesend Bay News

The unified command consisting of the Coast Guard, New York State Department of Environmental Conservation, New Jersey Department of Environmental Protection, New York City Department of Environmental Protection, New York City Office of Emergency Management, and Monmouth County Department of Health, received oil sample lab results from the Coast Guard Marine Safety Laboratory Friday, linking together oil spill cleanup efforts in both New York and New Jersey.Vane Brothers Company, as represented by Gallagher Marine Systems, has been identified as the responsible party.

Committed to providing tugboat and towing vessel operators with a platform to meet regularity requirements and collaborate with local resources, the annual event also reminds us that Proper Planning Prevents Poor Performance.On September 28 2018, American Marine Associates, LLC (AMA) coordinated and hosted the 3rd annual Green Apple Spill Response Exercise in Bayonne, NJ. The Green Apple Spill Response exercise was established specifically for the tugboat and towing vessel industry operating in New York Harbor.

A fire has broken out aboard the motor vessel Grey Shark at Homeport Pier in Staten Island, New York, Wednesday, The U.S. Coast Guard (USCG) reported. The USCG, FDNY, NYPD and the ship’s owners are working together to extinguish the blaze that ignited Sunday aboard the 360-foot Panamanian-flagged roll-on/roll-off vessel. The fire has been contained by the onboard firefighting system but has continued to smolder since the initial ignition. Grey Shark departed New York for the Caribbean Sea on March 11 with 13 crewmembers aboard. On Saturday, one of the vessel’s two engines had ceased to operate, forcing the ship to return to New York for repairs. On Sunday, at approximately 4 p.m., the vessel experienced difficulty with its second engine, causing the fire to break out.

The Port of New York is open to all tug and barge traffic carrying petroleum products. New York waterway ferries and taxi service are fully operational on the Hudson and East Rivers. Gravesend Bay anchorage south of the Verrazano Bridge as well as the anchorage north of the bridge is now open. The Hudson River is open to all vessel traffic north of George Washington Bridge. Tugs and barges are permitted to precede along the Arthur Kill waterway from the south with permission by VTS the Caption of the Port. All inspected passenger vessels are authorized to operate except within the noted exclusive zones. Anchorage Ground 21-C in Bay Ridge Flats is open to approved vessel traffic. Port Jersey Channel is open.

A concerted response by a member of the American Salvage Association (ASA), technical experts from the U.S. Coast Guard (USCG) and New York City Fire Department (FDNY) averted the risk of a toxic material release from a chemical carrier anchored in Gravesend Bay near Brooklyn, N.Y. during the week of Feb. During operations with a barge alongside to transfer ethanol cargo, the 443-ft chemical carrier Sichem Defiance sustained an implosion on board. The main deck over a cargo tank collapsed and adjacent bulkheads were breeched. The ship’s cargo consisted of benzene LAB and ethanol, a dangerously volatile liquid. Following the violent event, the ship’s captain immediately notified Federal and port authorities.

The Coast Guard is continuing to investigate the circumstances surrounding a tanker ship in Gravesend Bay that ruptured a tank around 9 a.m, Jan. 10. The tank was overfilled in the process of on-loading ethanol, which resulted in the rupture, according to Coast Guard marine inspectors. “Our paramount concern is for the safety of the crew still onboard the vessel and they will not commence any nighttime operations,” said Cmdr. David Flaherty, Coast Guard Sector New York’s incident commander. “The vessel is currently listing at about six degrees, and the vessel’s crew will not attempt to correct the issue until there is enough light tomorrow.

Panagiotis Stamatakis, the chief engineer on the Cyprus-flagged M/V Myron N, and the second engineer, Dimitrios Papadakis, both citizens of Greece, pleaded guilty in U.S. District Court in Trenton, N.J., to using falsified records that concealed improper discharges of untreated bilge waste from the cargo ship, the Justice Department announced. District Court Judge Peter G. Sheridan for the District of New Jersey scheduled sentencing for Sept. 8, 2009. Stamatakis and Papadakis each faces up to six years in prison, to be followed by three years of supervised release and a $250,000 fine. The government's investigation began in September 2008, when inspectors from the U.S. Coast Guard conducted an examination of the M/V Myron N, following the ship's arrival in Gravesend Anchorage, N.Y.

The Federal government will commit $450,000 in funding to protect against Coney Island beach erosion, thanks to a successful funding request by Rep. Jerrold Nadler (D-NY). The Army Corps of Engineers received the funding in the FY03 Omnibus Appropriations Bill for the construction of "T-Groins" (rock jetties) along the beaches of Sea Gate. These T-Groins are the permanent solution recommended in an environmental assessment report, just recently released by the Army Corps. The rock jetties that will be built will present a long-term permanent solution to the erosion of ocean beaches and the build up of sand on the Gravesend Bay side. "My first introduction to the erosion problem occurred soon after I won the 1992 election.