The Most Recent Ship Report Podcast:
Archive Podcasts:
The anniversary of the grounding of the Ever Given
Mar 24, 2022Today is the one-year anniversary of the grounding of the mega containership Ever Given in the Suez Canal. Now, one year later,, one of her sister ships is aground off Baltimore. We’ll talk about these big vessels.
Podcast: Play in new window
An indepth look at who’s on the river today
Mar 23, 2022A look at who’s coming and going on the river today, with a deeper dive into cargoes.
Podcast: Play in new window
The Ever Forward is not going anywhere
Mar 22, 2022The story of the very public grounding of another mega containership last week in Chesapeake Bay on the East Coast. This one, unlike the similarly-named Ever Given, which ran aground about a year ago in the Suez Canal, this ship is solidly aground along her entire keel. It will take some doing to get her free.
Podcast: Play in new window
Ukrainian sailors and their important role in the merchant fleet
Mar 21, 2022Today we look at the important role Ukrainian officers and sailors play in world trade and shipping, and a look back at an unforgettable trip I took on a cargo ship, where my gracious host was the ship’s Ukrainian captain, who treated me as an honored guest.
Podcast: Play in new window
The risks sailors take
Mar 18, 2022Today we’ll talk about a harrowing story of a sinking ship, and the risks mariners take every time they go to sea.
Podcast: Play in new window
Flags of convenience, and what they mean about where a ship is from
Mar 17, 2022We see a lot of ships here with countries like Panama, Liberia and the Marshall Islands painted on their sterns. What does that mean? Today we’ll talk about flags of convenience, and why the concept of a home port for cargo ships may be outdated in this modern age.
Podcast: Play in new window
Scientists discover undersea sinkholes in Arctic as permafrost melts
Mar 16, 2022Disturbing news from the Arctic – as scientists discover recently formed giant sinkholes in the ocean floor, which they believe have been caused by the melting of undersea permafrost.
Podcast: Play in new window
Marine pilot support staff help make it all happen
Mar 15, 2022We talk a lot about marine pilots on the Ship Report. Alongside those accomplished professionals works a cadre of skilled support professionals – from boat operators to deckhands to helicopter pilots and winch operators, to dispatchers and office staff. These folks together make this amazing matitime work possible on the river every day.
Podcast: Play in new window
More on shiphandling: outbound ships and low tide
Mar 14, 2022A look at another facet of the fine art of shiphandling: most of our ships here on the Columbia enter the river light and leave loaded.
That means they have to negotiate low tide somewhere along their journey to the sea, when they have less water under their keels than when they arrived. Pilots do a lot of careful planning to insure that ships are safe at all points along that outbound trip.
Podcast: Play in new window
Lithium ion batteries and ship fires
Mar 11, 2022A look at the problematic lithium ion battery, which seems to be the culprit in an increasing number of fires on board car carriers.
Note: image courtesy of Wikimedia Commons. The Sincerity Ace, sister ship to the Felicity Ace, which sank in the north Atlantic this month after a fire on board that experts believe was likely caused by lithium ion batteries.
Podcast: Play in new window