A look at marine pilots and their work on board ships

Today I’m answering a listener question about what pilots do when they are on board a ship. It’s a big topic and I thought it would make a good show. So today, a quick glimpse at the complicated and demanding job that marine pilots do daily here on the Columbia River.

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Man overboard incident highlights maritime job risks, especially in fall and winter

This week, a crewmember on a ship approaching Boston harbor fell overboard. He was rescued and died at the hospital.

This incident highlights the risky nature of maritime work, especially in fall and winter months. A similar incident happened here on the Columbia a number of years ago. We’ll talk about why rescues like this can fail despite everyone’s best efforts. And how maritime work is hazardous year round.

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Repositioning cruises visit Astoria as fall arrives

With cruise ships in town the past two days, you might be wondering what cruise ships are doing coming to Astoria in the fall, especially with the weather being a bit of a issue the past few days. Aren’t cruises a summer thing? Turns out they can also be an off season thing. That’s thanks to the concept of the “repositioning cruise.”

For folks who like a slower paced, perhaps longer cruise, that’s cheaper than one you might take in the summer – and if you like the idea of spending more time at sea than in port – this could be the cruise for you.

Photo: The Majestic Princess is visiting Astoria today on a repositioning cruise. Photo credit: Joanne Rideout

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Ship traffic moves through as weather eases

We’ve got one fast moving storm to deal with today and then a break in the weather (we hope!). We’ll look at who’s here on the river today, and why it’s good to see ships in the anchorage on stormy days like this. (Hint: tired mariners need a rest from storms at sea.)

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Weather drama continues, and we’ll talk about forecasting

“If you don’t like the weather, wait a minute” – that’s an old saying. But some folks get mad when they don’t like the weather, and blame the forecasters. We’ll talk about why weather prediction, especially on the coast here, is part art and part science. And sometimes the weather itself couldn’t give a hoot about our ideas about what should happen.

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Some days it’s all about the weather

Today’s stormy weather is a great opportunity to talk about how weather can affect ship traffic, and what it means when the Columbia River Bar is on Yellow, or even Red, status. All part of fall and winter on the mighty Columbia.

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The autumnal equinox happens Saturday

Today we’ll talk about what the autumnal equinox really is and why it affects everything so much on our planet. Kind of a refresher of what we learned in school, but we probably haven’t thought about it much lately. So we’ll talk about equinoxes, seasons, and – what’s an equator, and where is it exactly?

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Ballast water: complex and critical issue for ships and ecosystems

Today I’ll be answering a listener question about ballast water: what is it, how is it handled, and why it’s such a problem for world ecosystems despite ongoing efforts to make it safer.

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The dangers of being far out to sea in a vessel when something goes wrong

Today we’ll talk about an emergency at sea in the Ocean Globe Race, the round the world race that started just 10 days ago in the UK. A crew member on one of the sailboats suffered an injury that was so severe he needed to be rescued. The incident shows the limits of rescue at sea, and also the dangerous environment mariners take on when they go far offshore.

Image Caption: The crew of French OGR entrant Triana (66) FR assisted Stéphane Raguenes into the liferaft before being winched onboard the helicopter and flown to Madeira for medical attention. Credit: OGR 2023 / Margault Demasles

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A listener question, in light of our wave warning: what conditions cause sneaker waves?

Yesterday the National Weather Service in Portland issued a sneaker wave warning for Oregon and Washington beaches for Monday and Tuesday. That prompted a listener to ask: how do we know that sneaker waves are coming?

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