The Republic of the Marshall Islands (RMI) Maritime Administrator honors owners and operators who participate in rescues at sea. For centuries, vessel crews have protected human life at sea, and today we recognize this as one of our finest maritime traditions. Two thousand and twenty proved to be a busy year for such operations, with 13 successful rescues completed by RMI flagged vessels. It was a pleasure to recognize officers and crew of these vessels with a Certification of Commendation for their extraordinary assistance to those in distress.
Certificates of Commendation
Officers and crew of the following RMI flagged vessels protected human life at sea, bringing distressed individuals on board, offering food, water, provisions, and sometimes medical attention until those rescued could be safely transferred or disembarked.
AL SAMRIYA, managed by Nakilat Shipping (Qatar) Limited, participated in the rescue of ten individuals from a distressed vessel taking on water. The crew made several attempts to pass the messenger lines to the life raft and then participated in the search and rescue until successful completion. The rescue took two days.
Rescued sailing vessel brought aboard the BALTIMORE.
BALTIMORE, managed by Diana Shipping Services S.A., safely rescued a sailor from a distressed sailing vessel along with the sailing vessel approximately 973 nautical miles (NM) east of the Caribbean Island of Guadeloupe in the North Atlantic Ocean.
FRONT CASCADE, managed by International Tanker Management Limited, spotted and rescued two distressed individuals in the water, approximately 28 NM off the North Sumatra’s eastern shore at Batubara Regency in the Malacca Straight.
HARVEST FROST, owned by Archer Daniels Midland Company and managed by FML Ship Management Ltd., was notified, altered course, and rescued two distressed individuals, that were spotted in the water, from a sailing vessel that had lost its mast roughly 377 NM west of the Canary Islands.
The safe transfer of three individuals from LOWLANDS BEACON’s rescue boat to a Spanish Coast Guard Vessel.
IRENE, managed by Vrontados S.A., observed and then safely rescued two distressed individuals in the water approximately 78 NM from Cape Ca Mau, Vietnam in the Gulf of Thailand.
KINGFISHER, managed by Eagle Ship Management LLC, safely rescued two individuals from a distressed vessel, which had lost power in the Caribbean Sea, approximately 70 NM southwest of the Cayman Islands.
LMZ EUROPA, managed by LMZ Shipping SA FZE, safely rescued a distressed individual from a small personal watercraft in the Alboran Sea.
LOWLANDS BEACON, managed by Union Marine Management Services Pte. Ltd., while in the Mediterranean Sea, observed and safely rescued three individuals from a distressed jet ski approximately 26 NM off Cabo de Gata, Spain.
RIDGEBURY KATHERINE Z, managed by Fleet Management Limited, spotted a capsized boat approximately 1.5 NM from RIDGEBURY KATHERINE Z with individuals waving orange life jackets, and immediately rescued all eight individuals from the capsized vessel.
Presentation of the RIDGEBURY KATHERINE Z Certificate of Commendation to Ridgebury Tankers and Fleet Management Limited. From left to right: Bill Gallagher, President (International Registries, Inc. (IRI)); Steven Fitzgerald, Partner and Vice President Operations (Ridgebury Tankers); Clay Maitland, Managing Partner (IRI); David Burke, Vice President Engineering (Ridgebury Tankers); and Mohan Muppidi, Senior Vice President (Fleet Management Limited).
SEAWAYS REYMAR, managed by V. Ships UK Ltd., received a distress call from the sailing vessel HELENA, which was disabled and adrift in the Atlantic Ocean. The crew made contact the following day and safely rescued the sole individual on board the distressed vessel.
SEAWAYS YELLOWSTONE, managed by V.Ships UK Ltd., was anchored approximately 41 NM off the coast of Malaysia, when they spotted and rescued a fisherman in the water. The rescued individual notified the crew there were three more distressed individuals in the water. The Crew of SEAWAYS YELLOWSTONE launched their rescue boat towards the location of floating objects and were able to locate and rescue the three distressed individuals floating in the water.
SPRING, managed by V.Ships Limited, was notified of a distressed sailing vessel that had lost power. After changing course, the crew was able to locate and safely rescue 58 individuals from the distressed vessel over the course of two days.
YM SUMMIT, managed by Yamamaru Kisen Co., Ltd., spotted a capsized fishing vessel about 3.5 NM off their starboard bow in the Indian Ocean. The crew was then able to safely rescue all six distressed individuals.
Letters of Recognition
Six RMI-flagged vessels, their officers and crew, were recognized with a Letter of Recognition for situations where their vessel diverted and remained on standby to assist in a rescue.
LENI P. participated in a rescue of 12 distressed individuals with the Libyan Coast Guard.
NISSOS DELOS participated with a Spanish Naval Patrol Vessel in the rescue of eight distressed individuals in a rubber boat off the Gibraltar Straits eastern approaches.
SBI ATHENA participated in the rescue of 10 distressed individuals with an Algerian Naval Vessel in the Mediterranean Sea.
STAR IRIS participated in the rescue of a man overboard off the east coast of Brazil with a pilot boat from the Recalda Pilot Station.
STAR THETA received a request from Olympia Radio SVO and successfully coordinated a search and rescue operation for a man overboard with a Greek Naval vessel in close vicinity off the west coast of Turkey.
STI EXPERIENCE successfully participated with a Spanish Naval Patrol Vessel in the rescue of 16 distressed individuals from a wooden boat off the southern coast of Spain.
