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AOS USA Maritime Updates 

The Professional Association of Catholic Mariners, Cruise Ship Priests and Catholic Maritime Ministers.

 

October 4, 2015

In This Issue
Emergency Prayer Request for US Crew of EL FARO!
PrayingHands
    Prayer Requests:
 
For Deacon Derek Skelton, AOS Canada, who will celebrate 58 years of Marriage with his Anchor of Life, Marjorie on October 5, and 36 years ordained to the Diaconate!

God Bless you Both!



For all the Cadets, Faculty and Staff at our Maritime Academies throughout the USA, as they begin a new school year.



For all seafarers who are just starting their careers, especially those who are struggling to find work in the current economic climate.



 




 
Prayer for Hurricane Season
By: Bishop Maurice Schexnayder

 (2nd Bishop of Lafayette)




O God, Master of this passing world, hear the humble voices of your children. The Sea of Galilee obeyed your order and returned to its former calmness; You are still the Master of land and sea. We live in the shadow of a danger over which we have no control: the Gulf of Mexico, like a provoked and angry giant, can awake from its sleep, overstep its conventional boundaries, invade our land and spread chaos and disaster.
During this hurricane season we turn to You, O loving Father. Spare us from past tragedies whose memories are still so vivid and whose wounds seem to refuse to heal with passing of time. O Virgin, Star of the Sea, Our Beloved Mother, we ask you to plead with your Son on our behalf, so that spared from the calamities common to this area and animated with a true spirit of gratitude, we will walk in the footsteps of your Divine Son to reach the heavenly Jerusalem where a stormless eternity awaits us. Amen.
  



A Seafarers' Prayer



O God, I ask you to take me into your care and protection along with all those who sail ships.
Make me alert and wise in my duties. Make me faithful in the time of routine, and prompt to decide and courageous to act in any time of crisis.
Protect me in the dangers and perils of the sea; and even in the storm, grant that there may be peace and calm within my heart.
When I am far from home and far from loved ones and far from the country that I know,
help me to be quite sure that, wherever I am, I can never drift beyond your love and care.
Take care of my loved ones in the days and weeks and months when I am separated from them, sometimes with half the world between them and me.
Keep me true to them and keep them true to me, and every time that we have to part, bring us together in safety and in loyalty again.
This I ask for your love's sake.
-Amen-
 

 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 


AOS PRAYER 
Sacred Heart of Jesus, have mercy upon all Seafarers.    
(1 Our Father)
(Hail Mary)
  
Our Lady, Star of the Sea, pray for us.
  
St. Peter, pray for us.
  
St. Andrew, pray for us.
  
Lord save us,  
or we perish.
 
 
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Some went down to the sea in ships,

doing business on the great waters; 

they saw the deeds of the Lord,

his wondrous works in the deep.

(Psalm 107:23-24)





Continued Prayers Needed      


Dear Friends,



Search efforts for the El Faro have turned up some objects, but there is still no sign of the crew. Please continue to keep the crew, their families, colleagues and those searching for them.



Our Lady Star of the Sea Pray for them,



Doreen M. Badeaux

Secretary General
 


  Search and rescue efforts continue for crew of El Faro 

Courtesy: Tote Maritime Media Release

4 October 2015 
 
MV El Faro.

Photo Courtesy of MarineTraffic.com/Capt. William Hoey
  
Jacksonville, FL (October 4, 2015) - At 12:00 EST Tim Nolan, President of TOTE Maritime Puerto Rico issued the following statement regarding ongoing efforts to locate and communicate with the El Faro and her crew.



"This morning TOTE Maritime Puerto Rico's second ship, the El Yunque, and a contracted tugboat reached the area between the last known vicinity of the El Faro and the location that the Coast Guard recovered a life ring yesterday and carried out a visual survey.



The two vessels discovered a container, which appears to be from the El Faro, and observed what appears to be an oil sheen.



At this time there has been no sighting of the El Faro or any life boats.



TOTE Maritime Puerto Rico and the Coast Guard remain focused on the continuing  search for the crew.  The contracted tugs as well as other vessels transiting the area are also keeping a lookout for any sign of the ship.
Our thoughts and prayers remain with the 33 individuals aboard the ship and their families.  They are our number one priority."



The dedicated media information line is (866.890.6763) and the incident website is  www.ElFaroIncident.com. TOTE Maritime Puerto Rico continues to work closely with the Coast Guard and all activated resources in the search and will make timely, accurate updates via the website and phone line as they are available.
 


 'Multiple Objects' Found in Search for Missing Cargo Ship El Faro

Courtesy: GCaptain.Com

4 October 2015 


The U.S. Coast Guard says search crews have located 'multiple objects' in the water in the search area for the American cargo ship El Faro with 33 crewmembers near the Bahamas after the ship went missing in Hurricane Joaquin on Thursday.



Life jackets, life rings, containers and an oil sheen have been located by Coast Guard aircrews, the Coast Guard said in an update Sunday morning. The objects have not been confirmed to be from the El Faro at this time, the Coast Guard added.



"The debris is scattered about over several miles," said Coast Guard Chief Petty Officer Ryan Doss. "It's going to take some time to verify. The items would appear to be consistent with the missing ship."



Late Saturday, the Coast Guard said that search crews had found a life ring that was confirmed from the El Faro approximately 120 nautical miles northeast of Crooked Island, Bahamas, near the ship's last known location.



The Coast Guard Cutter Charles Sexton and the Coast Guard Cutter Resolute were en-route to assist with the search as of Sunday. Other Coast Guard assets involved in Sunday's search included two HC-130 Hercules airplanes, the cutter Northland and an MH-60 Jayhawk helicopter. The search also involved the U.S. Air Force, the U.S. Navy and several tugboats contracted by the El Faro's owner, TOTE Maritime.



Sea and weather conditions during Sunday's search include one-foot seas and 15 knots winds with unrestricted visibility, the Coast Guard said.



The El Faro, a 790-foot roll-on/rolloff cargo ship, departed Jacksonville, Florida on September 29th en route to San Juan with 391 containers, 294 trailers and cars. The last communication from the ship was a Inmarsat satellite notification stating received Thursday morning (Oct. 1) at 7:30 a.m. stating that the El Faro was beset by Hurricane Joaquin, had lost propulsion and had a 15-degree list. The crew reported the ship had previously taken on water, but that all flooding had been contained.
The crew of the El Faro consists of 28 U.S. citizens and five Polish nationals.



As of Saturday night, search and rescue crews had covered more than 30,000 square-miles since Thursday, however any attempt to reestablish communications with the vessel and crew proved unsuccessful. Sea conditions in the search area Saturday were reported to be 20 to 40-feet with winds in excess to 100 knots, hampering search efforts.



The El Faro is owned and operated by TOTE Maritime Puerto Rico, a division of TOTE, Inc. It is one of three TOTE ships serving the Jones Act trade route between the U.S. and Puerto Rico and the Caribbean.



"This morning TOTE Maritime Puerto Rico's second ship, the El Yunque, and a contracted tugboat reached the area between the last known vicinity of the El Faro and the location that the Coast Guard recovered a life ring yesterday and carried out a visual survey," Tim Nolan, President of TOTE Maritime Puerto Rico, said in a statement Sunday morning.



"The two vessels discovered a container, which appears to be from the El Faro, and observed what appears to be an oil sheen.



"At this time there has been no sighting of the El Faro or any life boats," Nolan added.



Hurricane Joaquin hammered the Bahamas for two days beginning Thursday with maximum sustained winds of 130 miles per hour, a Category 4 storm on the Saffir-Simpson hurricane wind scale. Joaquin strengthened on Saturday as it moved northeast towards Bermuda, but as of Sunday it was downgraded to a Category 2 storm with winds of 110 miles per hour.



Earlier this year, TOTE Maritime celebrated the launch of the world's first LNG powered containerships, the Marlin-class ships Isla Bella and Perla Del Caribe. Both ships will service the Jones Act Puerto Rico trade route sailing between Jacksonville, Florida and San Juan, Puerto Rico, with deliveries scheduled for late 2015 and earlier 2016.



Since Thursday, many have raised questions related to the condition of the El Faro, the ship's open-top lifeboats and the ship's passage plan, which seemingly took the ship directly into the eye of Hurricane Joaquin.



El Faro has two lifeboats, one of each side of the ship. The boats are open type, each certified to carry 43 people. One is propelled by manual power and the other by a small diesel engine. The ship also carries five life rafts that normally need to be manually launched.



According to TOTE, the last full American Bureau of Shipping annual hull and machinery inspections of El Faro were completed February 13, 2015. The last US Coast Guard annual inspection was completed on March 5 and 6, 2015.
El Faro Specs:
  • Capacity: 600 FEU
  • Length: 790 ft.
  • Max Speed: 22 knots
  • Year Built: 1974
  • Updated: 1992/2006
  • US-built at Sun Shipbuilding in January 1975
  • US-flagged, American crew.
  • 790 feet long

    Star of the Sea Statue

 Join AOS-USA in saying the AOS Prayer each day!

  

Please take the time to say this pray with us each day:
 
Sacred Heart of Jesus, have mercy upon all Seafarers
 

(1 Our Father)

(Hail Mary)

 

Our Lady, Star of the Sea, pray for us.

St. Peter, pray for us.

St. Andrew, pray for us.

Lord save us, or we perish!

Important Upcoming Events for

AOS-USA Members




 

World Fisheries Day 
November 21, 2015



Houston Maritime Ministry Training School 
February 21 - March 3, 2016

Houston School Application



May God Bless you with Smooth Sailing throughout your day!

Contact Info

Doreen M. Badeaux
Secretary General
Apostleship of the Sea of the United States of America
1500 Jefferson Drive
Port Arthur, TX  77642-0646
PH:  409-985-4545
FAX:  409-985-5945


Apostleship of the Sea of the U.S.A. | 1500 Jefferson Drive | Port Arthur | TX | 77642