The CCS of Salvamento Marítimo in Tenerife coordinated the assistance for three cayucos on Nov 9. They werw carrying 74, 221 and 35 people. The 'Salvamar Acrux', 'Salvamar Diphda' and 'Salvamar Navia' took part in the response.
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MSC BALTIC III
The Resolve Marine was preparing for pulling operations for the final two portions of the stern of the ' MSC Baltic III', that remained in the water. The bow section of the 'MSC Baltic III' was fully ashore and removed from the beach. The one section of the vessel’s stern has been pulled ashore, deconstructed, and removed from the shoreline. Critically, the salvage operation reached six heavy fuel oil tanks, which were a priority to end the pollution risks. These tanks were cleaned and have been recycled. While intermittent oil sheening continued to be observed in Cedar Cove, it has significantly decreased since the bow section was removed from the water. The Canadian Coast Guard and Environment and Climate Change Canada continued to conduct shoreline, on-water, and aerial pollution surveillance and monitoring, weather permitting. To date, the Resolve Marine has removed 9,282 tonnes from the wreck. It equated to approximately 84 % of the vessel's total tonnage. After the vessel has been salvaged, there was to be a final clean-up of the sea floor and coastline in Cear Cove. The Resolve Marine has also committed to coastline restoration as the final stage of the salvage operation. Report with photos: https://maritime-executive.com/article/salvage-of-the-msc-baltic-iii-wreck-prepares-to-remove-final-stern-sections
SALVAMAR DIPHDA
The CCS of Salvamento Marítimo in Tenerife coordinated the assistance for three cayucos on Nov 9. They werw carrying 74, 221 and 35 people. The 'Salvamar Acrux', 'Salvamar Diphda' and 'Salvamar Navia' took part in the response.
SPIRIT OF TASMANIA V
The transport safety watchdog has expanded its probe into steering issues on the 'Spirit of Tasmania IV' after the primary system failed on Nov 4, 2026. The Australian Transport Safety Bureau (ATSB) was already investigating an incident involving the 'Spirit of Tasmania V' during a trial voyage on Oct 24. During that incident, steering problems involving the autopilot briefly caused the ship to move outside the charted shipping channel limits off Geelong. The 'Spirit opf Tasmania IV' suffered its own steering issue, that resulted in a tug escorting the vessel to Geelong as a precaution, where the ferry berthed with a four-hour delay. When steering control was changed from the autopilot to manual mode (follow-up), the steering wheel did not respond to helm commands. Control was then changed to emergency non-follow-up to embark the pilot while the ship's engineers attempted to correct the fault. Once the pilot was on board, the ship aborted the entry to Port Phillip Bay to further investigate the issue. Further attempts to transfer steering to manual mode were unsuccessful. Subsequently, steering control was transferred to the bridge wing and central steering levers from where the ship was then steered. TT lines assured that all of the backup systems and procedures kicked into place, all of the protocols were followed, and the captain was always in control of the ship, and at all times passengers and crew were safe. It was not yet known if the steering issues on both vessels involved the same root cause. The TT-Line appointed an independent investigator to assess both incidents. The ATSB said the incident would now be included in a wider probe of the Oct 24 incident. The expanded investigation involved the download of both ships' vessel data recorders for the relevant voyages, examining the ships' equipment, interviewing involved crew and other relevant personnel, and analysing records and documentation, in line with the ATSB's highest investigation priority in the marine transport mode being occurrences involving Australian-flagged passenger vessels. The ATSB was s also investigating a third incident, in which the master of the 'Spirit of Tasmania I' was forced to abort the entry into Port Phillip Bay due to a position error on the ship's electronic chart display on Oct 15.
CAROLINE BEZENGI
An offload operation appeared to be imminent from the 'Caroline Bezengi', which remained firmly stuck on the rocks off the southwestern tip of the island of Jazirat Al Qibliyyah, Oman. The appointed salvor Ambrey Salvage had first monitored the condition of the tanker, identifying that it was settling and developing a further list, and also worked to reduce oil leakage. Leaks were stopped up about two weeks ago, likely as a consequence of pumping oil from leaking to intact tanks. The work was facilitated by the end of the Khareef monsoon season. With wave and wind conditions now relatively calm and stable, and likely to remain so for the next week, emptying the remaining tanks could now commence. The effort was to protect the Hallaniyat Islands Marine Buffer Zone with its endangered species of Arabian Sea humpback whale, spinner and Risso’s dolphins, unique seabirds and loggerhead turtles from further oil pollution. It could also recover what could be as much as 650,000 barrels of crude that, once dewatered, could be worth about $50 million. As of Nov 9, the Maltese-flagged Aframax tanker 'Hydra' (IMO: 9294551) was visible west of the island in satellite imagery. A second tanker may also be present, as were two tugs and an MPSV. If and when the oil transfer is completed, the salvor may still be considering whether the tanker was lightened enough to be floated off. Otherwise the disposal of a heavily polluted wreck would be a residual problem that the Omani government will need to consider. Report with photo: https://maritime-executive.com/article/oil-offload-imminent-for-wrecked-tanker-caroline-bezengi

