quote:

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De Da:
Towing of the barge "H-627" (in ballast), from Port Gentil to Flushing, Etd: 01/05.
Next: Rendez-vous with SW Rotterdam/H-851 and take over tow from SW Rotterdam.
Towage of pass. vessel "Norway" from Bremerhaven to Port Kelang/Singapore.

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Note 1: SW = SmitWijs, prefix
Note 2: H-627 and H-851 = barges of Heerema Marine Contractors
Note 3: Etd 01/05 = Estimated time of departure, in contrary has to be Eta [= Estimated time of arrival] because DE DA is expected to arrive in Flushing [= Vlissingen, Holland] tomorrow May 1 to deliver barge H 627
Note 4: after this delivery as stated DE DA returns to the southern North Sea for rendez-vous with tug SMITWIJS ROTTERDAM to take over barge H-851 and to deliver this one also in Flushing.

As the original tow with the 'Rotterdam' was expected in Flushing about May 11 and maybe the take-over of the barge will take some extra time, the DE DA will arrive in Flushing the second time about May 11-12, and will then sailing to Bremerhaven, so she will arrive there about May 14-15.

Source: News page of SmitWijs website.

So it means NORWAY will not leave tomorrow! (may 1st). Alright CT'ers, lets plan on visiting the Blue Lady one last time...

One thing I would have liked to see is the SMITWIJS ROTTERDAM towing the NORWAY to Port Klang . After all, she towed her from Miami to Bremerhaven and she will rendevous with the DE DA.

P.S. On the SmitWijs site that Piet linked, there are some wallpapers of the NORWAY and the SMITWIJS ROTTERDAM:
link

[ 04-30-2005: Message edited by: Keitaro ]

History of boiler problems found

By Tom Stieghorst
Business Writer
Posted April 30 2005

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Click here or call 1-877-READ-SUN.

Almost two years after a boiler explosion killed eight seafarers on the cruise ship Norway, the National Transportation Safety Board on Friday released documents from its investigation, but still has no final report on the accident.

The safety agency said its investigation is continuing. The material made public Friday included no analysis.

It did release scores of "factual reports," including interviews with crew members, boiler maintenance logs, memos about possible repairs to the boilers, manuals, metallurgical test records, shipyard specifications and service bulletins.

On the morning of May 25, 2003, the Norway was docked at the Port of Miami when one of its four boilers exploded, releasing superheated steam. The steam breached crew areas on two decks and blew out doors and door frames.

In addition to the eight dead, another 17 crew members were injured. The ship has not sailed since. Its owner, Norwegian Cruise Line, recently said the Norway would be moved to a Malaysian shipyard for a use not yet disclosed.

One theme that runs through the documents released on Friday is the history of boiler problems dating back three decades to when the 2,032-passenger ship provided trans-Atlantic liner service as the S.S. France.

Blisters and pitting in the area of weld seams on key parts of the boiler were discovered in 1970, according to a 1985 engineering report by the firm Deutsche Babcock. Cracks in the lower drum of one of the boilers were discovered in 1973 and more corrosion blisters were found in 1974, the report said.

The cracks were ground out, leaving the welds free from defects, the report noted. But the grinding produced "marked weld thickness reductions," the report said.

Between 1974 and 1979 the France was mothballed, before it was purchased by Norwegian and converted to a cruise ship.

The NTSB emphasized in a statement that it is not drawing any conclusions yet about the probable cause of the accident.

Efforts to reach a spokeswoman at Norwegian Cruise Line for comment were unsuccessful.

[As can be seen her white livery is changed for a black one. COESS = China Ocean Engineering Services Shanghai, see COESS website]

Later that night DE DA departed and headed south for the above mentioned rendez-vous with Dutch tug SMITWIJS ROTTERDAM (believed to be somewhere in the Atlantic Ocean west of Gibraltar) to take over Heerema barge H-851 (after which SMITWIJS ROTTERDAM returned and headed for Singapore) and to tow this barge also to Vlissingen Roads.

This second tow is now entering the Dover Straits and is scheduled to arrive at Vlissingen Roads tomorrow, May 15, about 18.00 hours. Again the barge will be taken over by local tugs, but now DE DA will not enter Vlissingen harbour, instead she proceeds to Rotterdam, where she is scheduled to arrive at about midnight and is destined for the Waalhaven. For what reason I don't know.

Assumably DE DA will later proceed from Rotterdam to Bremerhaven to collect NORWAY for the earlier announced tow to Port Kelang. So arrival of DE DA in Bremerhaven is at the earliest on May 16/17.

For the arrival at Vlissingen follow the Schelde Nieuws page of the Tugspotters website, for the arrival and whereabouts in Rotterdam see the Maasmond Nieuws page of this site. Both are in Dutch, but easy to understand with some fantasy (anyway: aankomst = arrival, vertrek = departure).

[ 05-14-2005: Message edited by: Piet ]

you can download "De Da's" fact sheet here.

Best,