On October 9, the 133 meter long, 4125 dwt tanker Volgoneft 255 ran aground on the Volga River near Volgograd, Russia. The tanker had been blown aground by strong winds. No reports of injuries or pollution released. Reports state the Volgoneft 255 was en route from Samara to Kavkaz in the Azov Sea with 2751 tons of heavy fuel oil. The vessel will require lightering before it can be refloated.
The 48 meter long fishing vessel Norma Mary caught fire in the Barents Sea north of the Finnmark coast of Norway. The fire started in one of the trawler‘s freezersand the crew was able to isolate the blaze, but the heavy smoke prevented the crew from determining if the fire had been extinguished. The Norma Mary requested assistance with two helicopters from Svalbard along with a patrol boat and two fishing vessels headed to the scene. The helicopters arrived several hours later and lowered fire fighters to the trawler. They were able to penetrate the smoke and found the fire had been extinguished. The fire had done significant damage and the vessel suffered some minor water ingress. No reports of injuries to the 19 crew on board. A pump was put on board the Norma Mary as it proceeds to back to Iceland.
The 29 meter long high-speed ferry Cacilhas caught fire between Hong Kong and Macau. The ferry had left from the Sheung Wan terminal with 134 passengers when the fire broke out in the vessel’s engine room by a malfunctioning machine. Black smoke and fire erupted out of the starboard side funnel. All passengers were transferred to the lower deck while the local fire brigade responded. The fire was extinguished and the ferry was towed back to the Sheung Wan terminal. No reports of injuries or pollution released.