The fishing vessel Run Da was detained by the crew of the Coast Guard Cutter Alex Haley on June 23rd after the vessel was suspected of illegal fishing activity in international waters 860 miles east of Hokkaido, Japan. A total of 80 tons of chum salmon and one ton of…
A crabber working in the Alaska Bering Sea aboard the TIME BANDIT (the vessel made famous by the popular Discovery Channel reality series “Deadliest Catch”), was awarded $1.35 million by a Seattle jury for injuries sustained in a fireworks related explosion aboard the vessel. According to court documents, David Zielinski…
We are pleased to report that the Coast Guard has named Tara Dodd 2016 active-duty enlisted person of the year and Nicole Cimino 2016 reserve enlisted person of the year for the 13th Coast Guard District. Tara Dodd, Petty Officer 1st Class, is an active-duty culinary specialist assigned to the…
The third and final EL FARO hearing has been scheduled for February 6, 2017 in Jacksonville, Florida. The Coast Guard Marine Board of Investigation will focus on crew witnesses, TOTE company officials, Coast Guard officials as well as the contents of EL FARO’S voyage data recorder (VDR). The transcript of…
The Canadian Transportation Board has issued a report criticizing American Seafoods Company for a lack of safety preparedness in a 2013 allision between AMERICAN DYNASTY and Canadian Frigate HMSC WINNIPEG. AMERICAN DYNASTY is a 272-foot American factory trawler run by a crew of up to 150 crewmen which experienced an…
Many maritime employers require their prospective crewmen to answer a preemployment health questionnaire. These health questionnaires are rarely used in the hiring process and are instead utilized as weapons by maritime employers to attack the seaman’s credibility in cases where the seaman later becomes injured and seeks compensation under the…
Laws regarding saving human life are not always cut and dry. According to federal law, 45 USC Section 2304, the master of a vessel must aid anyone at sea who is in danger of losing their lives, as long as such rescue can be performed without serious threat to the…