Clipper Macau, Currently sits at anchor in the Basin, after unloading the second load of a Cement plant. She Arrived at Pier 30 Febuary 29th, and moved to the basin Mach 1. The Hold Photo below was provided. Note the TweenDeck segments being removed
BBC Louisiana, who arrived on February 18, delivered the first load of the plant, which was built in china, and is bound for Quebec.
The province is accepting recommendations from an engineering review of the steering system of Bluenose II. You can find the reports Online
The report recommends replacing the steel rudder with either a wooden rudder or a composite made of fiberglass with a carbon stock. Work is underway to design a new rudder, including determining which is the better material to use. The 2016 sailing season will take place as scheduled with work on the rudder being done during the fall and winter.
The province has also resolved the outstanding delay claims with the Lunenburg Shipyard Alliance with a settlement of five million dollars of which one-point-eight million had already been paid prior to the final settlement agreement. The settlement brings the total cost of the project to $23.8 million, which includes the cost of the steering system review.
The cost of the rudder is not expected to push the final total beyond the allocated capital budget of $25 million for the project.
The 2016 cruise schedule is out. Looks to be another Good Year. Veendam Kicks things off April 30, and is back every 10 days or so. AidaMar wraps things up October 28.
Highlights include Eight inaugural calls.
Anthem of the Seas is notable, as she (And her classmates) are the largest Cruise Ships in Existence. Carrying 4905 passengers + crew . Norwegian Breakaway also makes several appearances – her construction was the subject of a 2 part episode of Mighty Ships
There may be 2 more however – I have no record of Carnival Sunshine (Glory and Splendor have been the past carnival Ships) Appearing in Halifax also Serina Changed hands and was refurbished, She has previously called as Ocean Princess.
Disney Magic is back in the fall, after an inaugural run in 2014, and then not appearing in 2015.
Last night brought the arrival of the Slotergracht to Pier 27. She is loaded with containers and a Fishing vessel on deck. (and presumably something else in her holds.
Both Vessels are part of Spliethoff’s Fleet. The S Class Features three 120ton cranes – two (Aft and Midship) to the Port Side and the Forward one to Starboard. and 5 Side loading Elevators, Which stick up on the port side, and allow the holds to be loaded without opening the hatch covers – which is useful for loading products like paper that must remain dry.
Zim Shanghai arrived this morning for Pier 41. She is a regular caller in Halifax.
This morning brought the arrival of SPS Patiño, a Spanish replenishment ship. She is on loan to the RCN, to allow the continued training of crews with Replenishment at Sea Duties.
She has the Distinction of having been attacked by Pirates in 2012
Photo above by
Combi-lifts ship Palmerton tied up at pier 9 Last Night. Part of Combi-Lift’s CL900 class each crane is rated to 450tons, or 900tons combined lifting power. She is also Ice Class E3. Built by the Kouan Shipyard in China she and her 6 classmates were built between 2009-2010 (She is First of Class)
No word on what she’s offloading, though its likely some sort of project cargo.
ARROW was an enlarged version of the standard American wartime tanker design. She was one of the oldest tankers in the fleet of Aristotle Onassis, owned by the holding company Sunstone Marine Panama. At only 11379 Tons, she is about the size of AlgoCanada, one of the many products tankers that frequent Halifax.
On February 4, 1970 ARROW was approaching Port Hawkesbury under charter to Imperial Oil Limited and just about to complete a voyage from Aruba. She was carrying 10 million litres of Bunker “C” oil bound for a paper company near Point Tupper. Entering Chedabucto Bay, the tanker encountered severe weather and gale force winds. She ran aground on Cerberus Rock, a well-known navigational hazard that lies in wait just below the surface of the bay. While it initially appeared that there was no threat of fuel leakage, the heavy weather continued to pound the stricken tanker.
Imperial Oil issued an oil spill alert and the crew were evacuated. By the next day, an oil slick one mile long had formed and on the 8th, the ship finally split in two, with the stern sinking in deeper water. Attempts to take off the cargo were not successful nor were the attempts to recover her stern. In all, about 10,330 tons of fuel were spilled, coating 75 miles of the shoreline with thick black sludge threatening wildlife and the fishery.
Shore cleanup was a long difficult process as was the transfer of what was left of the oil aboard ARROW to the barge, IRVING WHALE (Ironically the IRVING WHALE became an another environmental concern a few months later when she sank off Prince Edward Island with oil and PCBs which had to be recovered in 1996.) The final retrieval of oil from the ARROW wreck was completed on April 11 and pioneered many clean-up techniques used in later tanker disasters.
