disaster

A look into marine salvage in the ’80s

FreightWaves Classics is sponsored by Old Dominion Freight Line — Helping the World Keep Promises. Learn more here.

FreightWaves explores the archives of American Shipper’s nearly 70-year-old collection of shipping and maritime publications to showcase interesting freight stories of long ago.

In this week’s edition from the November 1984 issue, we take a look at the tumultuous industry of marine salvage.

Marine salvage

You are informed of the emergency late on a Friday night when the rest of the...

https://www.freightwaves.com/news/a-look-into-marine-salvage-in-the-80s

River Pilots: Navigating Ship Safety

Credit: Matheus Guimarães/Pexels

As Scott Aldridge approaches the sea buoy, located seven miles off Oak Island, he is thankful for the early morning sunshine, which hasn’t yet brought the usual unbearable July levels of heat and humidity. The weather seems promising with clear skies and calm seas, as published on Star News Online.

Ship guiding 

The passage describes the experience of Aldridge, a Wilmington Cape Fear River Pilot, as he boards the San Americo, a cargo ship, to guide it to the Port...

https://mfame.guru/river-pilots-navigating-ship-safety/

The worst rail disasters in freight history

The ongoing crisis in Ohio from the Norfolk Southern train derailment reminds the industry of the critical importance of safety. However, as devastating as this accident is to the area, its environment and its wildlife, damage from some earlier derailments has been immeasurably worse. While technology and regulations have dramatically improved safety and saved lives, there is still a long way to go.

Here are some of the most impactful freight train derailments in world history.

Lac-Mégantic,...

https://www.freightwaves.com/news/auto-draft

Negligent supply storage led to tragedy in 1919 Great Molasses Flood

On Jan. 15, 1919, the city of Boston experienced a unique and horrifying disaster when a tank that stored molasses for a distilling company collapsed, flooding parts of the town. The incident became known as the Great Molasses Flood and caused the industry to rethink how to store supplies.

According to Britannica, a storage tank fermenting molasses initially to create ethanol for World War I weapons collapsed, sending more than 2 million gallons into the city. The accident caused 21 deaths, 150...

https://www.freightwaves.com/news/negligent-supply-storage-led-to-tragedy-in-1919-great-molasses-flood

[FAQ] What Happens When A Huge Ship Sinks?

Credit: Timur M/Unsplash

What precisely should you do in the event of a shipwreck, and how can you avoid catastrophic pollution? 

What happens next?

At 3:24 am in the Atlantic Ocean, a catastrophe unfolds across the moonlit waters.

The coastguard receives the distress call.

Helicopters lift the flailing crew members to safety, while support boats unload any cargo that hasn’t already tumbled into the sea.

If a fire breaks out, the vessel will become a giant pressure cooker.

Although our MS Seascape is...

https://mfame.guru/faq-what-happens-when-a-huge-ship-sinks/

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