A look at marine pilots on the river

Today we take a look at something that goes relatively unnoticed here on the river every day: the work of marine pilots on ships here on the Columbia River. They are part of a network of marine professionals who work behind the scenes to ensure safe transit of vessels from the ocean to ports and back again.

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The oft-misunderstood but essential lifejacket

In most drowning accidents, the victim was not wearing a PFD,  or lifejacket. It’s a sad and somewhat bewildering statistic that most people don’t wear a lifejacket when boating or otherwise in the water. Today we talk about some of the misconceptions about the lowly PFD. It’s an often-ignored piece of ordinary gear that could save your life.

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Drought at the Panama Canal

The Panama Canal region is in the midst of a drought, and there simply is not as much water in the canals and lakes as ships are accustomed to. Starting this week, they’ll have to load less cargo. This will have a ripple effect through the shipping industry that will cause costs to rise for some goods.

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Where exactly is the Columbia River Bar?

This “simple” listener question sent me down an interesting path of research and talking with experts. The answers show the wide influence the power of the river has in our lives.

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A look at ship running lights

We’ll take a look back in the Ship Report Archives today, and learn about ship running lights, those essential lights that ships have on at night.

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Mystery ship revealed as USNS oiler heads for Portland

So there was this ship in the ocean off Cannon Beach this week that had a lot of people wondering… and well, today – the mystery is solved. That ship came into the river and headed to the ship yard at Swan Island. We’ll talk more today about her, why she seemed a bit mysterious, and why sometimes things that may confuse us as the public may just be part of the regular work day for the maritime professionals here in our region.

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USNS Mercy heads out to sea after major shipyard refit in Portland

Cool ship alert: the USNS Mercy heads downriver this morning from the shipyard in Portland after a major upgrade that took months. She’s a US Navy hospital ship with 1,000 beds, 12 operating rooms, and lots of other services on board.

Image courtesy: Jim Bedient, Public domain, via Wikimedia Commons

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Out of place ship tells a story of skill in an emergency

There’s a ship anchored in an unusual place on the Columbia near Puget Island. Occasionally ships have problems that cause them to stop in places they normally would not. Luckily, we have an abundance of skilled mariners to solve problems and get things back to normal quickly.

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Recruitment changes could open up Coast Guard opportunities

Recruitment of their usual demographic in the Coast Guard is down: 18-year old high school grads are not choosing to sign up as much as they once did.

So the agency is making plans to open up recruitment to older people with work experience and education, and possibly part time opportunities as well.

It’s part of an effort to get the personnel they need for their mission, and also to diversify their workforce in a changing world.

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Tragedy at the beach

It was a weekend of rescues, missing kids, and a lost life at the beach. One more time, let’s talk about how the ocean is more powerful than any of us, and how it needs to be respected. And the ripple effect that beach tragegies have on the people involved, their rescuers and the personnel who conduct often fruitless recovery efforts. Not to mention anyone on the beach when a tradedy happens. The effect is profound and long lasting. And it’s so preventable.

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