January 2015 – The Shipping Law Blog

Emerging Incident: Fred Olsen Cruise Ship “Boudicca” on fire off the coast of Spain (25 January 2015)

January 25, 2015

Early reports are outlining an incident onboard the cruise ship “Boudicca”, which appears to have gone on fire whilst sailing off the coast of Spain as part of a Mediterranean cruise.

Vessel: Cruise Ship “Boudicca” (IMO No. 7218395)

P & I Club: Skuld

GT: 28,551

Build: 1973 (42 years old)

Flag: Bahamas

Operator: Fred Olsen Cruise Lines Ltd.

Numbers Onboard: up to 850 passengers potentially onboard.

Voyage: Unknown.

Incident: Further details are awaited on the extent of the incident. At present there are reports from passengers that a fire began in the Engine room at 4am, whilst the vessel was sailing off the coast of Morocco. The ship took on a list, and passengers were awoken and told to put on emergency life jackets. The vessel is now thought to be operating under auxiliary engines and sailing towards Lanzarote.

Emerging Incident: ” Hoegh Osaka ” Vessel Grounded near Southampton (4 January 2015)

January 4, 2015

In what seems to have been a disastrous few weeks for the Scandinavian P&I Clubs the huge 51,770 GT “Hoegh Osaka” car carrier, which we understand is entered with Gard, has run aground on a sand bank whilst leaving Southampton for Bremerhaven.

When there are cars onboard it is common for the manufacturer’s to refuse to honour the warranty, so they often have to be destroyed. As a result the insurance claim could be huge, even if she is refloated successfully.

How such a modern, advanced ship, with such a high-value cargo onboard, can run aground on a fairly routine voyage to the UK, is not yet known. Thankfully all the 25 crewmembers have now been safely rescued.

Vessel: Car Carrier “Hoegh Osaka” (IMO No. 9185463)

P & I Club: Gard

GT: 51,770

Build: 2000 (14 years old)

Flag: Singapore

Operator: Hoegh Autoliners AS

Numbers Onboard: 25 crew

Voyage: Southampton, UK to Bremerhaven, Germany.

Incident: The vessel was laden with a mixed cargo of vehicles and departed Southampton around 8pm on Saturday night (3 Jan. 2015). Whilst navigating Bramble Bank she appears to have veered towards portside and grounded on the sand, taking on a 45 degree list. All crew were safely disembarked eventually and salvage efforts are understood to be underway.

Emerging Incident: ” Cemfjord ” Vessel Capsized off nr Orkney Islands (3 January 2015)

January 3, 2015

News is now being reported of a cargo ship found abandoned and upturned in the Pentland Firth (between Mainland Scotland and the Orkney Islands). The vessel is the “Cemfjord” and she was spotted capsized by the passing Orkney ferry.

She appears to have been carrying cement from Denmark to the UK, and voyages of cement from Scandinavia appear to have been the mainstay of her operations; hence the name. Given the recent press about liquefaction there will be questions about whether the cement cargo mixed with, or turned to, water which brought her down.

(“Cemfjord” at sail last year)

(Capsized “Cemfjord” spotted 3 January 2015)

Vessel: Cement Carrier “Cemfjord” (IMO No. 8403569)

P & I Club: Skuld

GT: 1,850

Build: 1984 (30 years old)

Flag: Cyprus

Operator: Brise Schiffahrts GmbH

Numbers Onboard: 8 crew

Voyage: Aalborg, Denmark – Runcorn, UK.

Incident: It is not yet clear what happened, other than some sudden and unexpected event which seemingly gave no notice for the crew to take to lifeboats, nor allow the Captain to issue a distress call. If the incident had been in say Indonesia, liquefaction may come to mind as a possible cause, but given the stringent controls in place in Denmark this seems less likely. As there does not appear to have been a distress call and as the sailing conditions at the time of loss have been described as ‘pretty, pretty awful’ by the local RNLI, a rogue wave seems the more likely explanation.

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