Prayer Corner
Please keep in prayer:
All the Mariners and Fishers on National Maritime Day
All mariners traveling in pirate infested waters. May God safely pilot them to safe harbors.
Fr. Eduardo Pinzon, AOS USA Cruise Ship Priest who suffered congestive heart failure while flying back from a cruise onboard Azamara Quest. He asks for the prayers of the AOS family. |
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Saying a Prayer
for Maritime Workers
Courtesy: Catholic News Service
Posted on May 22, 2009 by Julie Asher
Today is the National Day of Prayer and Remembrance for Mariners and People of the Sea.
The day was established by the U.S. bishops in November 2005 to encourage U.S. Catholics to support, pray and remember those who work in the maritime world. Recent stories about piracy remind us all how dangerous that work can be.
Today's observance also highlights the Catholic Church's Apostleship of the Sea ministry. The apostleship is a worldwide Catholic ministry that provides spiritual help and practical assistance to seafarers, their families and all people of the sea. According to the U.S. bishops' conference, there are apostleship chaplains and their ministry teams in 49 dioceses in 61 maritime posts.
Bishop J. Kevin Boland of Savannah, Ga., promoter of the apostleship, called on all dioceses to mark the special day of prayer "for the well-being and safety of maritime personnel, the vital role maritime workers play in the transport of goods by the waterways and the lives that have been lost at sea."
The day of prayer falls on the National Maritime Day observance, which commemorates the first transatlantic crossing by the steamship Savannah in 1819.
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Tenders of Mule-drawn Barges to get TWIC Cards
By: FREDA R. SAVANA
Bucks County Courier Times
It's difficult to know where to begin when it comes to
listing the obstacles that stand in the way of mule-drawn
barges meandering along the Delaware Canal again, as
they did for decades.
For starters, there's no water in the canal. Secondly,
the
man who bought the mules doesn't own the barges. And
there are a number of bridge repair projects that may
interfere.
But if that isn't enough, the Homeland Security
Department
now is requiring mule tenders to have the same federal
security clearance as port workers.
According to the Maritime Transportation Security Act of
2002, the mule barge operators are in the same category
as merchant mariners and now will need the same license,
a Transportation Worker Identification Credential, also
known as TWIC.
Mule tenders have had to be licensed by the Coast Guard, as
they work along a national waterway, but the TWIC was
added after the terrorist attacks of Sept. 11, 2001.
At the National Canal Museum in Easton, where mule-drawn
barges are a staple attraction on the Lehigh Canal, four
employees are in the process of getting security cards.
It costs the nonprofit about $500 to meet the requirement,
said Sarah Hays, director of operations at the museum. Each
license cost $105 and the workers had to travel to
Philadelphia
twice to be fingerprinted and photographed.
"We're not fighting the law. We understand the
need, but how
do we fit in? We have no reason to be in secure areas of
ports,"
said Hays.
U.S. Rep. Charles Dent, R-15, a member of the House
Committee on Homeland Security, attempted to get an
exemption for the mule tenders. It's being considered,
but
for now the workers need to comply.
Gregg Bortz, a spokesman for the congressman, said Dent
is "hopeful there's some remedy; either
administratively or
legislatively." Including mule tenders "is an
unintended
consequence, as far as the congressman's
concerned."
But getting permits for mule tenders seems to be the least
of
the hurdles the beleaguered New Hope tourist attraction is
facing.
For the past two years, the barges, owned by Jerry Horan,
have been in storage and a collection was taken up to keep
the mules from leaving town. New Hope businessman
George Fernandez bought the animals and is boarding
them at a farm north of Washington Crossing.
"They are going to be part of New Hope for as long as
I own
them," he said recently.
He is negotiating with the state park to operate the
barges,
said park director Rick Dalton.
"We want it to be aesthetically pleasing and a safe
trip," he
said of the sightseeing ride.
A series of devastating floods damaged portions of the
60-mile
waterway that runs from Easton to Bristol, closing several
sections. Repairs are under way to restore the canal and
allow
water to flow again.
A Pennsylvania Department of Transportation bridge project in the center of New Hope is interfering with progress to
bring
the barges back.
The Bridge Street Bridge spans the canal and water
can't be
pumped in until the replacement is done.
Officials said that should be by mid-June.
Another bridge project, the Rabbit Run Bridge over the
canal
at the north end of town, is scheduled for November. That
would mean draining the canal again in the fall.
"We're thrilled George could purchase the
mules," said Sharyn
Keiser, New Hope Council president, adding, "he has a
lot on
his plate."
Freda R. Savana can be reached at 215-345-3061
or fsavana@phillyBurbs.com.
� 2009 Copyright Calkins Media Incorporated. All rights
reserved.
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Philippines upholds decision over seafarer disability rights
Courtesy: Lloyd's List
Marcus Hand - Friday 8 May 2009
THE Philippines court of appeals is upholding decisions that a seafarer is permanently disabled after 240 days of continuous treatment, rather than 120 days.
For three years, the Philippines crewing industry has fought Supreme Court rulings that declared a seafarer automatically 100% permanently disabled after 120 days of treatment, entitling the seafarer to compensation ranging from $50,000-$250,000, depending on the employment contract.
Last October, the industry won a concession from the courts when Associate Justice Arturo Brion ruled that the 120-days ruling did not hold in all cases, and treatment could be continued for a further 120 days before permanent 100% disability was declared.
The court of appeals has now started to uphold this ruling.
In the case of seafarer Eusebio Malvar and the National Labour Relations Commission, Del Rosario Pandiphil president Ruben Del Rosario said in a client circular: "The court disregarded [the] seafarer's argument that his sickness went beyond 120 days and thus he should be considered permanently disabled."
The court upheld the decision by the company-appointed physician that the seafarer was fit to return to work within a 240-day period treatment.
In the case of seafarer Eduardo Cortez and the NLRC, the court of appeals upheld the new ruling on 240 days, declaring the seafarer was permanently and totally disabled as his disability went beyond 240 days.
The seafarer was granted grade eight disability benefits of $16,795 and not the permanent disability benefit of $120,000 under the collective bargaining agreements.
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MAIB Releases Fishing Safety Digest
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Cruise industry faces further downturn
Courtesy: Lloyd's List
Julian Macqueen - Thursday 7 May 2009
THE cruise industry might have delayed the impact of the financial crisis - international tourism was robust in the first five months of last year - but it has since succumbed, according to a new report.
DVB Bank report, The Secret to Dancing with the Waves 2009-2013, said that since the first half of 2008 "forward bookings have dropped significantly".
While people are good at sticking to their annual vacation, whatever the economic conditions, there has been a change in consumer behaviour, the report said.
"Tourist statistics [for this year] are expected to show that people choose destinations closer to home, or where their currency has not weakened," it said. Customers were also likely to want to spend less time away from home and spend less than they had in the past.
Companies had met the sharp drop in bookings by discounting fares and raising travel agent commissions "in an effort to maintain reasonable occupancy levels in 2009".
The industry's main market has 37 ships on order over the next three years, bringing some 25,000 lower berths into the market annually.
For the smaller cruiseship segment, about 38 older ships will leave the market in 2010, pushed out by new Safety Of Life At Sea regulations.
The report said that several cruise lines folded in the 2001-2002 downturn. It was usually the smaller companies that struggled to keep their heads above the water line when conditions became tough.
"Smaller cruise lines could well be forced to drop prices to unsustainable levels given that they lack the economies of scale of some of their competitors," the report said.
This could pave the way for a round of bruising mergers and acquisition in the sector.
The report sees little prospect for improvement in the near future. "It will take until the second half of next year before there is a visible shift in consumer sentiment and with it, the fortunes of the cruise lines," the report added. |
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Cruise sector facing 'very challenging times', says Royal Caribbean boss
Courtesy: Lloyd's List
Sandra Speares Friday 8 May 2009
THE cruise industry is in the middle of "very challenging times," according to Royal Caribbean International president and chief executive Adam Goldstein.
Recessionary market conditions and more short-term problems like the outbreak of flu that affected some of the company's itineraries to Mexico were all affecting profitability.
Although the strengthening dollar had proved positive as it encouraged US citizens to travel to Europe, this had been offset by the downturn, creating a "neutral situation overall", Mr Goldstein said.
Bookings tended to be made closer to the date of departure and there was a tendency for US citizens to travel closer to home, he said. There had been a drop in the number of US citizens on European cruises with a corresponding rise in numbers of European passengers.
"The European cruise market is very meaningful for us," Mr Goldstein said.
Royal Caribbean has five offices in Europe, covering the UK, the Nordic countries, Germany, Italy and Spain.
In the UK the brand was providing strong competition to home-grown brands like P&O, as it was in the Nordic region.
The market share in the other three markets was smaller but the intention was to continue to grow these markets, he said.
Mr Goldstein was speaking in Dubai, where the company has just announced a strategic joint marketing partnership with Dubailand, the world's largest tourism, leisure and entertainment destination.
Royal Caribbean is planning to introduce seven-night sailings from Dubai next year, with a four-night holiday extension to explore the UAE in more depth.
The seven-night itinerary on Brilliance of the Seas will include calls in Fujirah and Abu Dhabi in the UAE, Mina Sulman in Bahrain and the Omani capital Muscat.
In 2011 there will be two 12-night Dubai and India round-trip voyages, including calls at Mumbai, Goa and Cochin.
The Royal Caribbean group operates a number of cruise brands, including Pullmantur, TuiCruises, CDF Croisieres de France, Azamara and Celebrity. Celebrity has also been pushing hard into the UK market, Mr Goldstein said.
The group overall provided "a very globally oriented cruise brand proposition", he said.
Royal Caribbean was expanding its operations in China, Australia and Brazil. He acknowledged that Spain had been going through a difficult patch economically but that Royal Caribbean had upgraded the Pullmantur fleet.
While times were challenging, he said that the group now had a highly professional international network to grow the business.
Mr Goldstein said that much attention had been focused on the funding of Oasis of the Seas, due to come into service in December, and Allure of the Seas, which will be delivered next year.
This was understandable given the credit crunch, but financing for the vessels had been achieved more quickly than in the past as the company wanted to be responsive to the desires of the financial community.
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