Maritime Law
Jones Act Attorneys Represent New Hampshire Fishermen, Maritime Workers
New Hampshire is located in the New England region of the United States. The Granite State is the fifth-smallest state in the country and its 18-mile long shoreline is the smallest of all coastal states. The New Hampshire State Port Authority oversees the Port of New Hampshire in Portsmouth. According to the National Marine Fisheries…
Read MoreUSCG Rescue Crewmember of Tugboat In Waters Off Portsmouth
The Portsmouth Patch reported that the Coast Guard rescued an unidentified male crewmember from the tug NAVIGATOR in the waters off Portsmouth. The rescue happened on Tuesday, July 9 at approximately 6:15 a.m., according to a Coast Guard news release. The crewman had to be medically evacuated from the tugboat, which was near Gunboat Shoals.…
Read MoreWill Bigger Vessels Mean Bigger Problems for Container Ship Workers?
This past January, the Washington Post reported that the $5.25 billion expansion of the Panama Canal was officially half-complete, but Reuters reported last month that Chinese company HKND Group won a concession to design, build and manage a $40 billion canal in Nicaragua. Why build a canal only a few hundred miles from one that…
Read MoreDramatic USCG Medevac Rescue of Injured Crewmember Near Massachusetts
Cape Cod Today reported on July 1 that the US Coast Guard performed a very difficult medical evacuation of a 50-year-old crewmember from the OCEAN PROWLER fishing vessel after the man was reportedly suffering from chest pains and had been going in and out of consciousness for 15 minutes. The rescue was complicated by heavy…
Read MoreConnecticut Vessel Sinking Results in No Injuries, But One Dies in North Carolina Sinking
Connecticut Vessel Sinking Results in No Injuries, But One Dies in North Carolina Sinking The Hartford Courant reported that a 63-foot boat sank in Long Island Sound off of Harkness Memorial State Park in Waterford, Connecticut, on June 22. Goshen Fire Department Chief Donald Chapman Jr. told the Courant that the vessel struck something the…
Read MoreNew Hampshire Drunk Boating Accident Injures Four, Demonstrates Importance of Staying Sober on Water
The maritime attorneys at Latti Associates LLC want everybody to have a happy and safe holiday tomorrow for Independence Day. For those who plan to celebrate on the water, designating a sober vessel operator needs to be a top priority. Last week we discussed Operation Dry Water, the national three-day campaign against boating under the influence…
Read MoreJones Act Lawyers Look at Maritime Accidents in Maine
Maine is the northernmost and easternmost state in the New England region of the United States. The Atlantic Ocean borders Maine to the east and south, and the Pine Tree State is known for its lobster, clam and groundfishing industries. Maine has 44 ports, including: Port of Eastport, Port of Portland, Port of Searsport, Bangor…
Read More90-Year-Old Maine Lobsterman Ready to Get Back to Work After Jumping Off Sinking Vessel
90-Year-Old Maine Lobsterman Ready to Get Back to Work After Jumping Off Sinking Vessel Lobsterman Philip Tuttle left his wife a note on June 8 that said he was heading out to check a trap and would be right back. When the 90-year-old failed to return in time for dinner, his family knew something was…
Read MoreGreenwich Police Among 200 Agencies Nationwide Looking for Drunk Boaters This Weekend
The town of Greenwich in Fairfield County is located in southwestern Connecticut. Greenwich is bordered on the south by the Long Island Sound. The median household income of $112,493 in 2005 placed Greenwich first on Money magazine’s “Biggest Earner” category of its annual “100 Best Places to Live in the United States.” Additional smaller bodies…
Read MoreLongshoreman Killed in Port of Camden Forklift Accident
The Port of Camden is situated on the Delaware River in southern New Jersey with access to the Atlantic Ocean. The Port of Camden consists of the Beckett Street Terminal and the Broadway Terminal. According to the South Jersey Port Corporation (SJPC), it receives hundreds of ships moving international and domestic cargo every year, and…
Read MoreHyannis Harbor One of Many Upcoming Dredging Projects
Hyannis Harbor is a small natural harbor in the largest of the seven villages located in the city of Barnstable, Massachusetts. Hyannis is an important link for passenger ferries and cargo to Nantucket Island, and the harbor is a place of refuge for coasting vessels and pleasure crafts. Hyannis is one of the largest recreational…
Read MoreBiscayne Bay Boating Accident Injures Multiple People
Biscayne Bay Boating Accident Injures Multiple People Biscayne National Park is a United States National Park that is 95 percent water located south of Miami in southern Florida. The park is over 170,000 acres and includes Elliott Key, the northernmost island of the true Florida Keys. It is a popular destination for boaters. However, over…
Read MoreJones Act Lawyers React to WWF Shipping Accident Study
In conjunction with World Oceans Day on June 8, the World Wildlife Fund (WWF) released finding from a study it commissioned into shipping accidents over the past 15 years. “Since 1999 there have been 293 shipping accidents in the South China Sea and east Indies, home of the Coral Triangle and 76 per cent of…
Read MoreAll Sorts of Vessels, Injuries on ‘Old Man River’
All Sorts of Vessels, Injuries on ‘Old Man River’ The Mississippi River is the largest drainage system in the United States, as the more than 2,500-mile long river extends from northern Minnesota southward to the Mississippi River Delta at the Gulf of Mexico. It is the fourth-longest and 10th-largest fiver in the world, bordering or…
Read MoreVessel Owner Disputes Coast Guard’s Description of Tanker Accident
In January, the US Coast Guard reported that it conducted a medevac rescue of two crewmen who sustained injuries on the United Kingdom-flagged tank vessel, ENERGY CONQUEROR. According to the Coast Guard, the crewmen sustained their injuries when a cable split while the vessel was 130 miles southwest of San Diego. A 55-year-old crewman sustained…
Read MoreJones Act Attorneys Consider Fatigue’s Role in Abandoning of Fishing Vessel
Last week, we discussed the Bridge Navigational Watch Alarm System (BNWAS) automatic system that sounds an alarm if the watch officer of a vessel falls asleep, becomes incapacitated or if absent from the controls for any extended period. The “Consequences” section of the June 2013 issue of National Fisherman features another story demonstrating some of…
Read MoreUS Coast Guard Still Investigating Research Vessel Sinking in Gulf of Mexico
A public affairs office for the US Coast Guard’s Aviation Training Center Mobile told Professional Mariner that the January 17 sinking case involving the 170-foot SEAPROBE about 141 miles south of Pensacola, Florida, remains under investigation. “The cause … may never be fully known,” Daniel Knauss told Professional Mariner. “It sank in four to five…
Read MoreBoston Maritime Trial Lawyers Examine BNWAS Mandate
Boston Maritime Trial Lawyers Examine BNWAS Mandate A recent Professional Mariner story discussing the Bridge Navigational Watch Alarm System (BNWAS) mandate began by recalling the so-called “I-40 Disaster” that occurred southeast of Webbers Falls, Oklahoma, on the Arkansas River in May 2002. After towboat captain Joe Dedmon lost consciousness due to a heart-rhythm episode, the…
Read MoreFerry Crew’s Failure to Test Propeller, Follow Procedures Led to 2011 Crash, TSB Says
On Friday, we discussed the June 2011 barge accident that caused substantial damage to the Queensborough Railway Bridge in British Columbia. While an investigative report from the Transportation Safety Board (TSB) of Canada said fatigue and inexperience were factors in that incident, Professional Mariner reported that the TSB determined that the bridge team’s lack of…
Read MoreTSB Report Blames Fatigue, Inexperience for 2011 Barge Accident
The Transportation Safety Board (TSB) of Canada said in an investigative report that fatigue and inexperience were factors in the EMPIRE 40 barge striking and causing substantial damage to the Queensborough Railway Bridge in British Columbia in June 2011. Professional Mariner reported that the TSB said the 202-foot barge was being pushed by the F.W.…
Read MoreStaten Island Ferry Accident Evokes Memories of Fatal 2003 Crash
This past January, 57 people were injured when the SEASTREAK WALL STREET commuter ferry crashed into a pier in lower Manhattan. On May 17, THE SPIRIT OF AMERICA ferry lost power and crashed into several pilings while attempting to dock at the St. George Ferry Terminal. The Staten Island Advance reported that several passengers aboard…
Read MoreJones Act Attorneys Encourage Boaters to Have Safe, Sober Memorial Day
We concluded our posts relating to the National Safe Boating Council’s 2013 National Safe Boating Week last week by discussing the role that alcohol plays in many fatal boating accidents. With today being Memorial Day, the federal holiday also marks an occasion when several people across the country take to the water for the first…
Read MoreNational Safe Boating Week Ends Today, But Drunk Boating Needs to be Avoided All Year
The Austin American-Statesman reported that 54-year-old John Russell Roy died in a boat accident at the Double D Ranch in Rosanky, Texas, on May 3. Roy was out on a lake on the ranch with David Fentress when they hit a concrete water intake. Fentress was transported to University Medical Center Brackenridge with serious injuries,…
Read MoreVessel Safety Checks Save Lives and Money
The Perryville News reported that a 51-year-old United Parcel Service delivery driver was killed in a “fluke accident” on Kentucky Lake on May 12. Timothy Clippard died when the motor of the fishing boat he was riding in dislodged, flew up into the boat and struck him. He and the boat operator had participated in…
Read MoreJones Act Lawyers Talk About National Safe Boating Week
KOKI-TV reported that two University of Arkansas students were killed in a boat collision on the Grand Lake o’ the Cherokees in Oklahoma on May 14. Preliminary reports from the Grand River Dam Authority (GRDA) Police indicated that a 22-foot boat carrying multiple passengers collided with a 100-foot docked house boat. Rachel Swetnam and William…
Read MoreCoast Guard Rescues 14 Duck Boat Passengers After Vessel Catches Fire
Coast Guard Rescues 14 Duck Boat Passengers After Vessel Catches Fire The US Coast Guard rescued 14 passengers near San Francisco Bay on May 5 after their tour boat caught fire, according to an agency press release. The Coast Guard received a call from a San Francisco Duck Tour boat after smoke was spotted coming…
Read MoreSix Hurt After Fishing Trawler Smashes Into Warship
This video from Canada’s CBC News discusses the American fishing trawler that smashed into the HMCS Winnipeg near Canadian Forces Base (CFB) Esquimalt on Vancouver Island in British Columbia. According to the Toronto Star, the British Columbia Ambulance Service confirmed six civilians were taken to hospital following the incident. Larry Edwards of the Esquimalt Public…
Read MoreJones Act Attorneys Look at Barge Explosions in Mobile, Alabama
This WALA-TV video shows footage of a fire that resulted from a series of explosions on a pair of oil barges on the Mobile River in Alabama on April 24. According to Reuters, the blasts forced officials to evacuate nearby shipyards and the CARNIVAL TRIUMPH cruise ship. As we mentioned last week, three workers were…
Read MoreBoston Maritime Attorneys Help Families Get Answers When Loved Ones Go Missing
Boston Maritime Attorneys Help Families Get Answers When Loved Ones Go Missing On Monday, we discussed the tragic accident that took the life of David C. McAuliffe, the lead captain for Sea Tow Services Inc.’s Atlantic City franchise. His body was found on an Ocean City beach last week and mourners gathered for two viewings…
Read MoreTugboat Sinks Four Months After Latti Associates LLC Obtains $2.25 Million Settlement for Injured Crewmember
The Baltimore Sun reported that a 102-foot tugboat, the KALEEN MCALLISTER, sank late at night on May 4. Mike Reagoso, the vice president of Mid-Atlantic operations for McAllister Towing, told the Sun that the tugboat struck a submerged object and began taking on water. A US Coast Guard spokesman said that efforts to pump water…
Read MoreSunken Boat Salvaged, But Captain Remains Missing
In this video from the Press of Atlantic City, the wife and father of 35-year-old David C. McAuliffe respond to the US Coast Guard’s April 24 decision to suspend its search for the missing tow boat captain. The comments of both Lynsey McAuliffe and David R. McAuliffe in this video reflect the extraordinary pain that…
Read MoreJones Act Lawyers Review ICS, IMO Concerns About Casualty Reports
The International Chamber of Shipping (ICS) issued a press release on April 22 stating that the organization made a joint submission with the International Transport Workers’ Federation (ITF) to the International Maritime Organization (IMO) to comment about “the apparent failure of some flag states to submit maritime casualty reports to IMO.” The press release stated…
Read MoreMaster Mariner Discusses Nine Common Towing Vessel Deficiencies
Captain Peter Squicciarini, a licensed master mariner and marine safety specialist whose resume includes working as a safety manager for an East Coast tug and barge company, recently contributed an article to the marine industry website WorkBoat.com containing a list of nine common towing vessel deficiencies. He said the Towing Vessel National Center of Expertise…
Read MoreHundreds of Barges Break Free in Multiple Incidents Before Three Hurt in Alabama Explosions
This video shows some of the seven barges that came to rest against the Marseilles Dam in central Illinois after they broke free from the DALE A. HELLER, a 128-foot towing vessel, on April 18. According to a press release from the US Coast Guard, the vessel was on the Illinois River approaching the Marseilles…
Read MoreTugboat Captain Dies From Burn Injuries in Louisiana Explosion
Last month, we discussed the fire and explosion near Bayou Perot about 30 miles south of New Orleans after the 47-foot tugboat SHANON E. SETTOON struck a liquefied natural gas pipeline. This video from the Taiwanese graphics service Next Media Animation shows how the fire broke out in the Louisiana waterway, but the Times-Picayune reported…
Read MoreSafety Precautions Can Prevent Recreational Boating Tragedies
Last week, we discussed the role of alcohol in some recent recreational boating accidents, and this 2012 PSA from the US Coast Guard makes the important point that accidents happen fast on the water. The PSA stresses two other dangers that boaters need to keep in mind this summer: operator inattention and life jackets. A…
Read MoreJones Act Attorneys Help Amputation Victims
The US Coast Guard said in a news release that it had to medically evacuate a 23-year-old fisherman on April 10 after he severed his middle finger while working with fishing gear on board the 52-foot F/V SEA SMOKE. The vessel was about 39 miles southeast of Montauk Point when the injury occurred, and a…
Read MoreNTSB Issues Recommendations Following Four Deaths in 2011 TRINITY II Accident
This Latin America News video shows footage from the rescue of seven individuals who had to abandon the 78 ½-foot long liftboat TRINITY II about 15 miles offshore in the Bay of Campeche, Gulf of Mexico, on September 8, 2011. According to the National Transportation Safety Board (NTSB), four US crewmembers and six non-US contractors…
Read MoreBoston Maritime Trial Lawyers Encourage Safe Summer Boating
Boston Maritime Trial Lawyers Encourage Safe Summer Boating This Asbury Park Press video shows New Jersey State Police discussing the 17-foot Boston Whaler that was struck by what was at the time an unknown vessel in August 2008. The Whaler’s operator, 49-year-old Robert Post, was killed in the accident, and four other passengers sustained injuries.…
Read MoreFamilies Suffer When Loved Ones Disappear on the Water
The CARNIVAL TRIUMPH was involved in yet another maritime accident on April 3 when high winds caused the cruise ship and several other barges to break loose from their moorings and collide with an adjacent pier, causing it to collapse. The story has not garnered the national attention that the TRIUMPH received when more than…
Read MoreBoston Maritime Attorneys Stress Importance of Drowning Awareness
Boston Maritime Attorneys Stress Importance of Drowning Awareness This WCVB-TV segment from last April discussing a new technology that could help prevent drowning deaths. The video notes that with the weather becoming more favorable during this time of year, drowning is the second leading cause of death among children nationwide. As Tom Healey, the owner…
Read MoreFatal Consequences to Going Full Speed Ahead on Water
This WALA-TV video discusses a speedboat accident in Florida’s Santa Rosa Sound that killed one person and sent four others to the hospital. The Florida Fish and Wildlife Commission said 61-year-old Gary Lowry was killed after the 42-foot cigarette style boat went airborne and shattered into pieces after traveling at high speed in the waters…
Read MoreCoast Guard Rescues Hypothermic Overboard F/V STELLA Crewmember
Coast Guard Rescues Hypothermic Overboard F/V STELLA Crewmember This video shows the US Coast Guard medevac rescue of a 35-year-old crewmember who was exhibiting signs of hypothermia after falling overboard from the 58-foot F/V STELLA on March 15. According to a Coast Guard news release, the man was exposed to 37.6 degree Fahrenheit water in…
Read MoreJones Act Lawyers Discuss Three Tugboat Accidents in Three Days
Last week, we discussed the four crewmembers who sustained injuries including a captain who suffered second- to third-degree burn injuries in a March 12 tugboat accident near New Orleans. Just a little over a week after that pipeline and oil barge explosion, there were multiple tugboat accidents separated by a matter of days. On March…
Read MoreBoston Maritime Trial Lawyers Earn Significant Court Decision in Ferry Accident Case
Boston Maritime Trial Lawyers Earn Significant Court Decision in Ferry Accident Case This December 2009 WMTW-TV video discusses the concern that city leaders in Portland, Maine, had when Bay Ferries Ltd. announced it canceling its ferry service between Bar Harbor in Portland and Yarmouth, Nova Scotia. The decision was made the same year that one…
Read MoreCARNIVAL 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…
Read MoreFour 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…
Read MoreOne 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.…
Read MoreVideo Shows Harrowing Rescue of Man with Serious Chest Injuries on HORIZON TRADER
The first 20 seconds of this video showing the 780-foot cargo ship HORIZON TRADER rocking in the water should give everybody a better idea of the difficulty and risk involved in helicopter medical evacuations from these types of vessels. The US Coast Guard medevaced a 47-year-old man from the HORIZON TRADER approximately 200 miles east…
Read MoreCoast 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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