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© February 2005 by Tim Akpinar - All Rights Reserved
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Little Neck, New York 11363

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Little Neck, New York 11362

www.mycounsel.us
April 2007
On April 19, 2007, the U.S. Coast
Guard reported that Air Station
Humboldt Bay assisted local
agencies with the recovery of a
male diver in the vicinity of Point
Arena, California. The Coast
Guard received a call at
approximately 8:00 a.m. to
assist the California Department
of Forestry and other local
agencies with a diver in distress.
Several people had been
abalone diving along the
shoreline, when they lost sight of
one of the divers. The report
indicated that the man had been
pushed into a ravine
approximately 70 feet deeper
than the surrounding area. A
Coast Guard HH-65 Dolphin
helicopter was launched to
assist the agencies already on
the scene of the accident. While
enroute, the helicopter crew was
notified that the rescuers on the
shoreline risked being trapped
on the beach due to the rising
tide, and that the victim had been
pronounced deceased at the
scene. Once at the scene of the
accident, a Coast Guard rescue
swimmer was lowered to the
beach to recover the diver.  The
victim was transported to nearby
emergency crews. The Coast
Guard reported that its helicopter
crew returned to the scene to lift
the rescue swimmer and one
firefighter who had remained
behind to assist the Coast
Guard.  All but one of the
rescuers had been able to climb
off the beach.
April 2007
The cruise ship Sea Diamond
sank on April 6, 2007 after she
ran aground on a reef near
Santorini, a group of volcanic
islands in the Aegean Sea. Two
passengers were reported
missing and four passengers
sustained injury. Greek Navy
divers later dove on the ship to
search for the missing
passengers. The captain of the
cruise ship, who was indicted on
charges of negligence, attributed
the accident to strong currents.
April 2007
On April 17, 2007, The U.S. Coast Guard reported that it
was assisting in the rescue of a baby Baleen whale
stranded today in the Gowanus Canal in Brooklyn.
Baleen whales are an endangered species. The New
York Department of Environmental Conservation learned
of the baby whale, described as very young, possibly
pre-juvenile or neonatal, surfacing near merchant
vessels in the Gowanus Canal earlier in the day. The
Coast Guard diverted a 41-foot rescue boat crew on
routine harbor patrol nearby to provide the New York
Department of Environmental Conservation access to the
whale. Doctors from the Riverhead Foundation for Marine
Research and Preservation in Riverhead, New York
arrived to assess the calf's health using underwater
listening devices before attempting any type of physical
rescue. In its report, the Coast Guard reported that its
boat crew remained on scene until being relieved by New
York City Police marine units.
The U.S. Coast Guard reported that on April 13, 2007,
one of its 47 foot motor rescue lifeboats had taken a
sailing vessel with two people onboard in safe tow near
Fire Island following a daring rescue in 10-foot seas and
25-knot winds. In its report, the Coast Guard said the
47-foot motor lifeboat rescue crew from Coast Guard
Station Fire Island, a rescue helicopter crew from Cape
Cod, and Suffolk County Police boat and helicopter crews
responded immediately following relayed MAYDAY calls
from a barge operator stating that a sailing vessel was in
distress near Fire Island. An initial search of the area by
the helicopter rescue crew did not locate the vessel in
distress. A third distress call was received by Coast
Guard Sector Long Island Sound and using the area
where the barge range ring and the Fire Island hi-sight
intersected as a commence search point, the helicopter
located the distressed sailing vessel OUTRAGEOUS in
the vicinity of Fire Island. The report added that a Coast
Guard rescue swimmer was lowered from the helicopter
onto the sailing vessel to check on the condition of the
people on board and confirm they placed the distress
call. One of the people onboard sustained an arm injury
caused possibly by a heavy roll in the 10-foot seas. The
Coast Guard strongly urges all boaters to have an EPIRB
on board their vessel to aid in
locating vessels in distress.
March 2007
Celebrity Cruises announced the March 17, 2007 keel
laying for their newest cruise ship, the Celebrity Solstice.
The 600-ton keel was laid in place at Meyer Werft
shipyard in Papenburg, Germany. The company
announced that later in the year, it will reveal a
compelling feature that will make the 122,000 ton
cruiseship, which launches in October 2008, truly
unique in the industry.
March 2007
On March 27, 2007, Holland
America Line announced a
keel-laying ceremony at the
Fincantieri Marghera shipyard in
Italy for the new Signature-class
premium cruise ship ms
Eurodam. Holland America Line
expects delivery of the
2044-passenger ship in June
2008. The company described
the ceremonial keel laying as
lowering the first modular
section of the cruise ship onto
the construction dock after which
other modules are put into
place. The $450-million
Eurodam will have 11
passenger decks and will
feature a new class of stateroom
with floor-to-ceiling windows on
the top two decks.
February 2007
On February 28, 2007, Carnival Cruise Lines announced
that it took delivery of a new 110,000 ton cruise- ship,
Carnival Freedom. Built at the Fincantieri shipyard in
Marghera, Italy, the 110,000-ton cruise-ship is the 22nd
vessel in Carnival’s fleet. After an official naming
ceremony in Venice March 4, 2007 that was presided
over by godmother Kathy Ireland, Carnival Freedom was
set to sail on a 9 day Mediterranean inaugural voyage,
departing Venice on March 5.
November 2006
On November 17, 2007, USA Today reported that Holland
America accidentally sold cabins at below cost. The
article reports that Holland America will not honor the
lower priced tickets and that it has required that
passengers who purchased the lower priced cruise ship
tickets either pay the difference or be denied boarding.
February 2007
On February 11, 2007, The
Times-Picayune reported that a
barge struck a cruise ship on the
Mississippi River near New
Orleans on Saturday morning,
leaving a 30-foot gash in its hull
and forcing the cancellation of a
five-day cruise. The paper
reported that the Carnival Cruise
Lines' cruise ship Fantasy was
returning to New Orleans from a
Caribbean cruise when one of six
rice barges being pushed by the
towing vessel Repentance struck
the 2,100-passenger ship's port
side. In a press release, the
Coast Guard said the collision left
a gash in the hull, near the rear of
the port side about 5 feet above
the water line.
July 2006
The Crown Princess, a 951 foot cruise ship operated by
Princess Cruises, went into sudden list on July 18, 2006.
The condition resulted in injury to passengers.
Passengers and non-secured objects reportedly fell as
the cruise ship leaned to one side. The cause of the
accident is believed to be operator intervention through
an attempt to correct what was believed to be a severe
turn while on autopilot.
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