CARNIVAL LEGEND is Cruise Line’s Fourth Ship to Have Issues at Sea

CARNIVAL LEGEND is Cruise Line’s Fourth Ship to Have Issues at Sea As this video from Canada’s Global National newscast notes, the CARNIVAL LEGEND became the cruise line’s fourth ship in less than a month to experience problems while at sea when it was forced to cancel a port of call to Grand Cayman on…

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Four Injured, One Seriously, in Pipeline and Oil Barge Explosion

This video shows a fire burning near Bayou Perot about 30 miles south of New Orleans after the 47-foot tugboat SHANON E. SETTOON struck a liquefied natural gas pipeline on March 12. Four crewmembers sustained injuries, including the captain who sustained second- to third-degree burn injuries. While there were reports of oil in the shallow…

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One Dead, Five Rescued After Sailboat Accident in Southern California

This video shows the US Coast Guard rescue of UNCONTROLLABLE URGE crewmembers after the 32-foot sailboat lost its steering capability and broke apart after drifting toward San Clemente Island in Southern California. Five crewmembers were saved, but 36-year-old Craig Thomas Williams died. He was unresponsive in the water when the Coast Guard reached the crew.…

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Coast Guard Seeking Public’s Help in Locating Missing Boat Captain

Coast Guard Seeking Public’s Help in Locating Missing Boat Captain The US Coast Guard released the photo above as part of a March 8 press release asking for help from the public in gathering information regarding the 49-year-old Venezuelan national whose body was discovered amongst wreckage about 22 miles east of the entrance to the…

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USCG Investigation Shows ‘Human Error’ Caused Tugboat Sinking

This WMTW-TV video shows the 55-foot BENJAMIN BAILEY tugboat capsizing and sinking in Portsmouth, New Hampshire, on October 21, 2012. Two crewmembers were able to escape from the vessel after it became pinned against a barge at the Memorial Bridge construction site. On February 28, Foster’s Daily Democrat reported that an analysis by the US…

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Boston Maritime Attorneys Review Effects of Sequestration Cuts on USCG

Boston Maritime Attorneys Review Effects of Sequestration Cuts on USCG This video is United States Secretary of Homeland Security Janet Naplitano’s third annual State of Homeland Security Address, delivers on February 26 at the Brookings Institution in Washington DC. After her remarks, the first question that moderator Elaine Kamarck asks Napolitano is what impact sequestration…

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Tankers Collide in Texas Days After Tugs Collide in Alaska

Nobody was injured but many eyes may have been opened after there were two ship collisions in less than a week. According to KTUU-TV, two of the three tugboats that were supposed to tow the damaged Shell drilling rig Kulluk collided on February 15. US Coast Guard spokesperson Petty Officer 1st Class David Mosley told…

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Coast Guard Suspends Search for Overboard MV ICE RIVER Crewmember

Coast Guard Suspends Search for Overboard MV ICE RIVER Crewmember On February 20, the US Coast Guard suspended the search for a crewmember who reportedly fell overboard from the MV ICE RIVER approximately 50 miles east of Cape Hatteras, North Carolina. The master of the 478-foot merchant vessel contacted Coast Guard watchstanders to report that…

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One Man Dies After Ferry Collides With Motorboat in San Francisco Bay

At the beginning of the month, we wrote about two people who had to be rescued after their sailboat collided with a tugboat and then sank into the San Francisco Bay. On February 16, one man was killed and another man remained hospitalized with severe injuries after a 22-foot motorboat collided with a Golden Gate…

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Man Dies After Being Pinned Between Barge and Morgan Bridge

Michael McQuade was killed after he became pinned between a barge and the wall of the Morgan Bridge in Sayreville, New Jersey, on February 17. Coast Guard spokesperson Jetta Disco told the Courier News that the incident involved a barge and a tugboat, although the 34-year-old McQuade was not a crewmember of either of the…

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Boston Maritime Attorneys Examine Coast Guard Medevacs on Cruise Ships

Boston Maritime Attorneys Examine Coast Guard Medevacs on Cruise Ships During the four days that it took to tow the disabled CARNIVAL TRIUMPH to Mobile, Alabama, the US Coast Guard provided valuable assistance. On the evening that the fire in the cruise ship’s engine room resulted in the loss of power that left the TRIUMPH…

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Five Crewmembers Killed in Lifeboat Drill Accident on THOMSON MAJESTY

On Monday, we discussed the passengers who were stranded at sea following a fire in the engine room of the Carnival Triumph. It is important to remember that maritime law also protects the crew of cruise ships as well, and this BBC News video discusses five crewmembers who were killed on February 10 during a…

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CARNIVAL TRIUMPH Fire Leaves Thousands Stranded at Sea for Days

CARNIVAL TRIUMPH Fire Leaves Thousands Stranded at Sea for Days This video is Carnival Cruise Lines President and CEO Gerry Cahill speaking at a news conference on February 12. It was the first time that a company representative spoke publicly since a fire had erupted in the engine room of the CARNIVAL TRIUMPH while the…

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Coast Guard Rescues Injured Worker, Crew on Sinking Fishing Vessel

Coast Guard Rescues Injured Worker, Crew on Sinking Fishing Vessel On Wednesday, we discussed the US Coast Guard report in which the agency accepted responsibility for a fatal 2009 accident. However, we noted that the Coast Guard’s uncharacteristic negligence in that incident contrasted to the many lives that the agency saves on a daily basis.…

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Coast Guard Report Says Crew Responsible for Fatal 2009 Crash

Coast Guard Report Says Crew Responsible for Fatal 2009 Crash Two weeks ago, we noted that the US Coast Guard has saved 56,511 lives since 2000. The Coast Guard estimates that it saves 10 lives and assists 192 people in distress on an average day. While the men and women of the Coast Guard provide…

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Four Crewmembers Taken to Hospitals with Burn Injuries

The StarNews reported that four crewmembers aboard THE STAR FRASER had to be taken to a hospital with chemical burns after the 614-foot freighter docked the state port in Wilmington, North Carolina. The individuals suffered the burns during a chemical leak aboard the ship while it was at sea. THE STAR FRASER was en route…

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Boston Maritime Attorneys Take Closer Look at Florida Inner Tube Accident

Boston Maritime Attorneys Take Closer Look at Florida Inner Tube Accident WSVN-TV reported that a 14-year-old girl and a 5-year-old boy were injured in a boating accident on January 27. The girl was caught in the propeller of a boat after she fell off an inner tube in northern Biscayne Bay off the Julia Tuttle…

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Sailboat Sinks After Being Struck by Tug and Barge in San Francisco

Two people had to be rescued after their sailboat collided with a tugboat near the Golden Gate Bridge and sank into the San Francisco Bay on January 26. KGO-TV reported that it was not clear how the two vessels collided or why they were so close. One of the people rescued was suffering from hypothermia.…

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Fisherman Likely Drowned, But Foul Play Not Suspected

A construction worker discovered the body of 56-year-old commercial fisherman Carl Lewis that washed ashore north of the drawbridge in Chincoteague Island, Virginia on January 22, 2013. WITN-TV reported Lewis was last seen during dinner at a local restaurant the previous night. He was last working aboard the SUSAN ROSE, a privately owned fishing boat.…

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Coast Guard Airlifts Two Workers Injured on UK Tanker

Coast Guard Airlifts Two Workers Injured on UK Tanker The US Coast Guard issued a news release that stated its San Diego station conducted a medevac of two injured crewmembers from the ENERGY CONQUEROR, a United Kingdom-flagged tanker, on January 18, 2013. The two crewmembers, both Russian citizens, were injured when a cable split. According…

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Tugboat Crew Still Stranded, Experienced Inspector Calls Unseaworthy Vessel ‘Worst By Far’

This December 2012 video from Canada’s Global News discusses the eight crewmembers of a Bolivian-flagged, American-owned tugboat who were stranded in the Novia Scotia city of Halifax after rough weather conditions. The Globe and Mail reported that Transport Canada inspectors refused to let the 69-year-old CRAIG TRANS leave Halifax because of “poor living conditions and…

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Boston Maritime Attorneys Emphasize Investigation in Recreational Boating Accidents

Boston Maritime Attorneys Emphasize Investigation in Recreational Boating Accidents A 35-year-old woman died after being crushed between a boat and the MacArthur Causeway on the Intracoastal Waterway in Miami, Florida. WTVJ-TV reported that Janette Africano was on an 18-foot vessel being operated by 35-year-old Javier Lorente on January 12, 2012. The boat was southbound when…

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Two Bridges Struck by Tanker, Tow Boat on Same Day

Vessels struck bridges in two separate incidents on January 7, 2013. This video shows some of the damage after an empty oil tanker sideswiped a tower of the San Francisco-Oakland Bay Bridge in California. The US Coast Guard warned the 752-foot OVERSEAS REYMAR that it was off course before the ship scraped a 30-to-40-foot section of…

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Boston Maritime Trial Lawyers Review Recent Fishing Accidents

Boston Maritime Trial Lawyers Review Recent Fishing Accidents The Star-News reported that the North Carolina Wildlife Resource Commission’s Division of Law Enforcement investigators are calling the January 5, 2013, death of 34-year-old Wilmington resident Jeremy Myers a commercial fishing accident. Myers was net boat fishing off the coast of Oak Island when he became entangled…

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Feds Allege Employee Who Attacked Captain Put Towboat, Crew at Risk

The St. Louis Post-Dispatch reported that federal prosecutors said a towboat worker’s attack on his captain on the MIRANDA PAIGE put the towboat traveling up the Mississippi River and its crew at risk. An affidavit filed by Coast Guard Investigative Service Special Agent Roger St. Germaine Jr. said that 30-year-old David Donnell Roberts pulled the…

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SEASTREAK Ferry Accident Injures 57 Passengers, One Critically

This New York Post video discusses the SEASTREAK WALL STREET commuter ferry that crashed into a pier in lower Manhattan on January 9, 2013. The New York Police Department said 57 people were injured, one of them critically. A spokesman for the New York Fire Department told the New York Times that the cause of…

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Jones Act Attorneys Look at Drilling Ship Running Aground in Alaska

This video is a montage of the United States Coast Guard (USCG) rescue of crewmembers aboard THE KULLUK, a conical, Arctic-class drill ship weighing nearly 28,000 gross tons. Reuters reported that the ship owned by Shell Oil Company broke away from its tow lines on New Year’s Eve and ran aground just off Kodiak Island…

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Man Pinned Between Forklift and Loading Dock Suffers Serious Leg, Foot Injuries

Messenger Post Newspapers (MPN) reported that 36-year-old Jeremy Bittner sustained major injuries to his lower right leg and right foot in a loading dock accident that occurred the day after Christmas. Police told MPN that Bittner works for Admar Supply Company in Rochester, New York, and was returning a forklift to SwiftLift in Victor, New…

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‘Challenging Rescue’ of Seaman Injured on Bulk Freighter

‘Challenging Rescue’ of Seaman Injured on Bulk Freighter The Canadian daily newspaper The Province reported that a seaman injured on a ship off the coast of British Columbia was rescued December 13, 2012, in a “challenging” operation by a Royal Canadian Air Force (RCAF) helicopter rescue team. The crewmember was performing maintenance below deck on…

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Coast Guard Suspends Search for Two Fishermen Presumed Lost at Sea

Coast Guard Suspends Search for Two Fishermen Presumed Lost at Sea This video from WCVB-TV discusses a rescue capsule discovered in a Saugus marsh. The Gloucester Times reported that the pod, marked Foxy Lady II on the side, was found around the same time that the US Coast Guard (USCG) called off the night’s search…

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Boston Maritime Trial Lawyers Encourage All Boaters to Celebrate Responsibly

Boston Maritime Trial Lawyers Encourage All Boaters to Celebrate Responsibly During the holiday season, numerous advocacy groups and public service announcements call attention to the dangers of drunk driving. However, with tonight being New Year’s Eve and alcohol being consumed on boats as well as on land, it is important to remember that boating under…

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Boston Maritime Attorneys Examine Crushed Arm Accident, Dock Worker Dangers

Boston Maritime Attorneys Examine Crushed Arm Accident, Dock Worker Dangers A dock accident in Western Australia on December 15, 2012, calls attention to some of the extraordinary dangers maritime workers face on a daily basis. The Maritime Union of Australia (MUA) told the Brusselton-Dunsborough Mail that a man’s arm was crushed while working at the…

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‘How Long Will It Take to Settle My Jones Act Case?’

‘How Long Will It Take to Settle My Jones Act Case?’ Many clients have an understandable concern about how long it will take to settle their Jones Act cases. Because a variety of maritime injuries and circumstances are involved in a Jones Act case, resolution times vary. Some Jones Act cases can be settled in…

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Crewmember Injured Because of Poor Communication with Machinery Operator

An article in the January 2013 issue of National Fisherman magazine provides a detailed account of an accident this past February in the Bering Sea. The story demonstrates one of the most common causes of maritime accidents: a machinery operator on deck failing to make sure an area is clear and no crewmember is in…

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One Man Killed in Recreational Boat Accident on Atlantic Ocean

One man died in a recreational boat collision on December 8, 2012, in the Atlantic Ocean about a mile and a half south of Long Branch, New Jersey. The Princeton Patch reported that 31-year-old Eric Kim died after his 18-foot pleasure craft was struck by the NO SURRENDER, a 36-foot pleasure craft piloted by 44-year-old…

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Jones Act Lawyers Explain How Federal Law for Seamen Differs from Workers Compensation

If seamen or maritime workers sustain injuries because of slip and falls, line breaks or other accidents resulting from employer’s negligence while working on a vessel, the Jones Act and general maritime law allows these individuals to pursue compensation that can be more substantial than workers’ compensation. The Jones Act and general maritime law not…

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Drunk Boating Accidents Cause Damage Across Country

Earlier this month, we discussed the role that alcohol can play in some cruise ship injuries, but it is important to remember that operating under the influence is also a common cause of recreational boating accidents. Two recent stories in separate areas of the country demonstrate how piloting a private vessel while intoxicated not only…

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Crewmember Falls to Death on Cargo Ship in Thunder Bay Port

A crew member on the bulk carrier TECUMSEH died in the early morning hours of December 1, 2012, while the grain ship was docked in Thunder Bay, Ontario, Canada. Sources told the Chronicle Journal that it appeared the man slipped and fell into one of the boat’s grain holds. CBC News reported that the man…

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Maritime Amputation Victim? Jones Act Attorneys Have Recovered Millions

Suffering an injury on the water which requires the amputation of any part  of your body is devastating. For the injured party, not only does the person have to deal with the physical pain but with the psychological aspect of losing a part of your body which can be overwhelming.  It is very important with…

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Boston Maritime Trial Lawyers Discuss Spate of Florida Boating Accidents During Thanksgiving Weekend

Boston Maritime Trial Lawyers Discuss Spate of Florida Boating Accidents During Thanksgiving Weekend This video from ABC News discusses the large wave that hit the CORAL PRINCESS on Thanksgiving day, capsizing the 45-foot catamaran and throwing 21 passengers and two crewmembers in to the waters off Pompano Beach, Florida. The Sun-Sentinel reported that 54-year-old Nina…

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