The Trillium class laker Baie St. Paul made her Second call to Halifax, stopping at pier 9. the ship visited National Gypsum in June 2019.
So far she is the only trillium Class laker to make to Halifax, though the Trillium Class Bulkers are a more common site, with CSL Tecumseh calling last week, and CSL Tacoma and, Rt. Hon Paul E Martin also making calls in the past.
With the Cruise season set to begin in Halifax in a month, The Times Colonist is reporting that the Feds may ban cruise ship arrivals as early as next week due to Novel Corona Virus concerns. The federal government has already suggested Canadians avoid travel on cruise ships.
Infections seem to spread like wildfire aboard Cruise ships, and a ban seems like a prudent health measure. Recent incidents include:
Cruise Junkie is reporting details of all issues.
Carnival Corp, the parent of Princess Cruises, is obviously feeling the heat after some very public concerns about the virus on its ships. Carnival Brand Holland America Lines recently changed its cancellation policy, and tweeted that it was being inundated with requests. Holland America Calls (almost) weekly for the duration of the cruise season.
The RCGS Resolute sailed from Buenos Aires on the 5th, giving a destination of “For Order”, but an ETA of the 15th. The ship is currently making 6.1kn off the coast of Brazil. the ETA puts it around Rio De Janeiro if current speed continues. I have heard that Fred Olsen Cruises may be interested in Chartering the ship.
The ship was arrested in Buenos Aires, this past October over several unpaid bills.The ships owner stepped in to pay the outstanding amounts rather then risk loosing the vessel in a court ordered sale. The Ships Owners, BUNNYS ADVENTURE & CRUISE SHIPPING COMPANY is Privately held, and was registered in the Bahamas in 1993.
A source in Argentina told me that claims were settled for 2 bunkers suppliers (European), 3 agencies from Panama, Costa Rica and Argentina, and 22 crew members. There were some other claims that also settled with the ships owners.
Despite claims of entering some form of formal bankruptcy proceeding, One Ocean has yet to do so.
the Brand new fisheries science vessel CCGS Capt. Jacques Cartier arrived in Halifax Friday night, The ship was the second built by SeaSpan as part of the NSPS in Vancouver.
Sunday morning A welcome procession was held featuring a Sail past of CCGS G. Peddle S.C, CCGS Courtenay Bay, CCGS Cape Roger, and CCGS Capt. Jacques Cartier. The sailpast happened around 8am, and the vessels turned in the basin and headed for BIO by 8:45.
The CMA-CGM Thomas Jefferson is due at PSA Halifax on March 21. At 14,414 teu, she will set the record for largest container ship to call. The previous record was set last January by CMA-CGM Libra at 11,388. sister ship CMA-CGM Abraham Lincon is also scheduled, as is the 13800teu APL Sentosa.
Largest ship to call in Canada was the Cosco Himalayas at 14,500teu. It’s first call was in Prince Rupert in 2017, and still holds the record.
Both Records will fall this june when the 15072 teu CMA-CGM Panama arrives, beating both east and west records. the ship is currently Due June 6th.
All the Recent record beaters have operated on the CMA-CGM Columbus JAX service, which sails from asia to both the east and west coasts. 18 vessels provide weekly service, and 1 voyage takes 126 days.
This week in the Herald, I make the case to retire the name Edward Cornwallis from the coast guard ship that bears it when it emerges from a substantial refit next January. The minister of Fisheries and Oceans, Bernadette Jordan commented they haven’t had the discussion but are open to it.
The name Provo Wallis would be a good choice to re-instate, as the ship that carried that name was retired in 2011. Provo Wallis was born in Halifax, and died as the highest ranking Admiral in the RN with 96 years of service. Halifax Magazine featured The Amazing Career of Provo Wallis in June 2019
for those who viewed the removal of the statue as destruction of Heritage, in 2018 i wrote:
The removal of the Cornwallis statue was cited by many as the destruction of heritage. While the statue itself was integral to the original design of the park, and the lands surrounding it, Cornwallis was a dubious character in history, and despite being the “founder” of Halifax, doesn’t really warrant a statue on a pillar in the centre of town…
However, given the massive outcry over the loss of the statue as heritage, let me suggest a number of actual pieces of history that are being mishandled by various levels of government, and in many cases literally falling apart from neglect and in need of public outcry.
-In the neighborhood of Cornwallis Park, the Elmwood hotel needs the protection of the delayed Barrington South Heritage conservation district
-The Dennis Building sits empty and risks Facadism
-Georges Island is being neglected by the federal government
-York Redoubt’s WW2 defenses are crumbling
-Point Pleasant Park’s WW2 forts are falling into the ocean
-the Khyber is crumbling
-Lighthouses are being neglected EVERYWHERE
-Two heritage buildings at Bloomfield are falling apart
-McNabs Island is being neglected by DNR
-Young Avenue is being slowly destroyed
-Getting a Dartmouth heritage museum (really the entire city needs a proper museum)
-Better access to the cities archives (they’re in Burnside)
-Getting federal tax credits for heritage buildings (private members bill was voted down by the Liberal majority)
-Changes to the Province’s Heritage Act to disallow, as of right, demolitions of registered structures
The 2020 cruise season in Halifax will start on April 11 with the arrival of Norwegian Star, a Norwegian Cruise Lines vessel. The season will run until November 3.
for the 2020 season the Port of Halifax is expecting 203 vessel calls carrying approximately 350,000 cruise guests. For local tourism providers, planning for the upcoming season is well underway.
2020 Halifax Cruise highlights include:
A complete vessel posting can be found at the Cruise Halifax website at https://www.cruisehalifax.ca/our-visitors/cruise-schedule/
Recent rail blockages are beginning to severely effect the port of Halifax. Yesterday ACL announced they were no longer calling in Halifax as long as rail service is limited, routing traffic through New York instead. ACL has a contract with CERES until 2022, and calls twice a week with containers and RO-RO traffic.
Hapag-Lloyd, and the Alliance is still calling in Halifax, but is considering re-routing cargo, as is ZIM. Hapag-Lloyd released this statement Wednesday.
The blockades of key rail track and Port Infrastructure facilities throughout Canada continues and the Federal and Provincial Governments remain in dialogue as they seek a resolution with the Indigenous communities across the country.
There have been no material changes to the state of the blockades as communicated in our previous letter. CP Rail tracks remain comparatively clear.
Prince Rupert is now clear and the recovery is underway.
The blockade in Ontario remains in place, and CN’s Eastern Canadian network is more or less shutdown. A limited number of trains are operating in the Halifax/Montreal corridor. Various options to move /divert cargo out of Halifax are being explored.
It is not clear yet how long the protests could last and the disruption continues as the blockades enter their third week. There has been inevitable disruption to the Rail transportation of both domestic and International shipments for which we apologize.
This is a continuing situation and we will provide you with regular updates.
Hapag-lloyd Feb 19 Statement
Some trains working east of Montreal are moving, but as most cargo through Halifax is bound or from beyond the Belleville blockade, those services are affected. The port is stacking cargo bound for Toronto and points west.
Coastal gas link is attempting to build a Natural Gas pipeline in BC. CGL have signed benefit agreements with several indigenous tribes along the pipeline route, and the project has broad support among elected councils and hereditary chiefs. 5 Hereditary Chiefs oppose the pipeline route across Wet’suwet’en Territory, and were blocking progress in Protest.
The supreme court ruled that the Wet’suwet’en territory is unceeded – it is not subject to a treaty, and the people were not conquered, therefore the Hereditary chiefs have legal title to the land.
Those 5 hereditary chiefs are not against the pipeline. they are against the current routing of the pipeline across their lands. The chiefs have proposed alternative routeing, which is actually in use by other pipelines currently. CGL rejected the proposed new routing, claiming it would delay the project by a year, and Cost 700 million more to build.
CGL went to court, and the BC Court granted an injunction ordering the protesters away. they refused, citing sovereignty over their territory. The RCMP then moved in and enforced the injuction. The Legality of the BC court injunction is likely to be challenged, however that will take time to work out.
In the Meantime, Mohawks have blocked the CN mainline near Belleville in solidarity with the Wet’suwet’en. An injunction has been issued against this blockade by an Ontario Court, however the OPP have yet to enforce this.
The above are the facts. they are not open to debate.
This protest is not anti-pipeline, its not about the environment, or moving oil. some have latched on to the protest to advocate for those ideas, however that is disrespecting the purpose of the protest- which is about respecting indigenous title to the land, which in this case clearly exists.
The OPP have likely chosen restraint in dealing with the Mohawks, frankly its likely the interruptions could become much more severe were they to forceably remove this blockade. The Mohawks were participants in the Oka Crisis which featured blockaded roads bobby-trapped with incendiary devices. as bad as the rail blockade is, shutting down the 401 would be much worse.
while the Trudeau liberals are rightly getting criticism for the handling of this issue, Calls for the prime minister to order the police to do something are wrong. Politicians do not and should not directly control the actions of the police. Support and calls for Vigilantes, or other citizens to take it upon themselves to intervene is also not a sound approach.
Fundamentally CGL chose to go to court rather then being a good neighbour. CGL, wanting to save time and money is now costing the Canadian Economy millions per day in losses, and several thousand people are out of work until this is resolved. the rest of the country is an externality to getting this pipeline built how CGL want it, and frankly more anger should be expressed to at CGL, and Corporate Canada should be demanding CGL apologize, and change the routing.
The Alliance has been rotating vessels on its EC 5 service, with Mitsui O.S.K. Lines vessels coming into the rotation as of late. Other recent new callers have Included MOL Maxim, MOL Mission, MOL Maneuver and MOL Marvel. The ships are rated at 6724TEU and were built in 2010/2011, and carry the Marshall Islands flag.
MOL Paramount, MOL Partner,and MOL Paradise have been serving on the EC5 route for a while. Yantian Express, George Washington Bridge remain the only non MOL vessels on the Routes schedule.
MOL is part of ONE, formed as a merger of Nippon Yusen Kaisha (NYK), Mitsui O.S.K. Lines (MOL), and K Line’s container businesses.
The German Bundesstelle für Seeunfalluntersuchung or Federal Bureau of Maritime Casualty Investigation has completed the report into the fire onboard the Yantian Express. We covered the Fire and response to the Yantian Express as it happened, and Once it finally made Halifax with remaining Cargo.
the report has cleared up a few details. First the Crew was transferred to the tug Smit Nicobar, and then transferred to the Dalian Express for transport to Halifax. That cleared up the question of how they got to Halifax.
The Tug Atlantic Enterprise showed up in Halifax Jan 14. It turns out it was enroute to the scene, but was damaged by weather, and came to Halifax instead. the Smit Nicobar had to render some assistance to the tug.
The Fire began in a container of Coconut Charcoal in bay 11, row 7. Bay 11 would be the Forward 20′ container in Bay 12. since the ship turned stern to wind, the spread of the fire forward is not surprising. The container was misdeclared as Coconut Pellets. Charcoal can Self heat, and it is believed this led to the fire. Coconut pellets are basically balls of coconut fiber.
The report indicates Coconut-based pyrochar is characterized by the fact that it burns at a high temperature (600 °C to 650 °C) and produces a very low amount of smoke
