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Navigator

Navigator

Navigator
Photo: x.com

On the morning of July 16, the 48 foot long fishing vessel Navigator caught fire in the Monterey Bay off Pleasure Point near Capitola Beach, California. The Navigator had dropped anchor in the early morning and the 2 crew on board went asleep. The plan was to awake in the morning and fish for squid. Instead the crew woke up to a cabin filled with smoke. The vessel’s generator had malfunctioned starting a fire.

A nearby vessel alerted authorities of the vessel fire. The harbor patrol was first to arrive to assist in the fire fighting effort with the United States Coast Guard and the Monterey Fire Department assisting. Unfortunately, the fire quickly grew making it impossible to extinguish with the equipment on hand. The Navigator was evacuated and later taken under tow headed for Monterey. Before the fishing vessel reached the harbor, the vessel sank. Authorities are monitoring the area, but no oil pollution has been found at the site.

Reports state one of the harbor patrol staff had been injured from the incident. The person had suffered smoke exposure and taken to hospital for treatment.  Reports state the vessel will not be recovered as it is a total loss. One crew member stated the vessel may be rebuilt.

Towboats Capsize On The Ohio

Towboats Capsize On The Ohio

Jackie Lee Anderson
Photo: wsiltv.com

On the morning of July 1, the 82 foot long towboat Jackie Lee Anderson (MMSI: 368926691) and another towboat capsized on the Ohio River near the Olmsted Locks and Dam in Illinois. Details of the incident have not been released to the public, but one of the towboats completely turned over while another capsized onto its port side.

Authorities from multiple local agencies and the United States Coast Guard responded to the incident. News reports state all the crew were rescued. Accounts do not state there were any injuries or any medical treatment was required. The incident is under investigation. The name of the other towboat is suspected to be the #775 workboat, but no details about this vessel could be confirmed.

The Jackie Lee Anderson was launched in 2023 for the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers Louisville District. The vessel was assigned to the Olmsted Locks and Dam as a workboat.

Morning Midas Sank

Morning Midas Sank

Morning Midas
Photo: USCG

SINKING

On June 23, the the 183 meter long, 12250 dwt car carrier Morning Midas (IMO: 9289910)  sank in the Pacific Ocean some 450 miles southwest of Alaska’s Aleutian Island of Adak after being on fire for nearly 3 weeks.  The salvage company Zodiac Maritime stated the vessel had suffered water ingress from the fire damage causing the vessel to finally sink. The car carrier sank to a depth of 16,404 feet.

POLLUTION

There was no reports of visible pollution at the site of the sinking. The United States Coast Guard reported they have vessels on scene ready to respond to any pollution released. Currently, the salvage vessels 47 meter long Garth Foss (IMO: 9070266) and 69 meter long Salvage Worker (IMO: 9250024) were onsite and equipped with pollution response equipment. Additionally, the 57 meter long offshore supply vessel Endeavour (IMO: 8623468) had departed from Dutch Harbor with oil pollution containment equipment and will be on site of the wreck by June 26.

Morning Midas
Photo: USCG

The Coast Guard nor the Zodiac Maritime have no reported if any oil pollution had been released between June 9 through June 23. The Morning Midas may still have 1,530 metric tons of fuel oil along with 350 metric tons of gas oil (MGO) within its fuel tanks. Even if the fire onboard burned some of the fuel, there will be a significant amount of fuel that maybe released. This may not result in any oil pollution reaching the surface due to the depth of the wreck. In research after the Deepwater Horizon disaster (Fisher, C.R., P.A. Montagna, and T.T. Sutton. 2016. Oceanography 29(3):182–195), oil pollution can remain on the ocean bottom rather than appear on the surface as an oil slick.

INVESTIGATION

There has been no press release if the incident will be investigated any further.  Some news accounts stated the Morning Midas was already unsalvageable before the Zodiac Maritime vessels arrived on site. Due to its location and great depth (the Morning Midas is nearly 3/4 of mile deeper than the wreck of the Titanic), the investigation may not include any underwater surveys using ROVs. It is also doubtful any voyage data recording devices survived the fire prior to the sinking.  Additionally, the car carrier sank in international waters and may not require any US Coast Guard or other United States authorities to investigate.