The entire crew of 19 was evacuated after their ship, the 2006-built general cargo vessel Lintas Belawan, caught fire on 18th February off Masalembu Islands in Indonesia, according to the Indonesian National Search and Rescue Agency. The fire broke out in the engine room and spread throughout the ship. Despite the efforts of a passing ship, the 5,806gt/2006 built Lintas Belawan was consumed by the fire causing an explosion aboard and the subsequent sinking of the vessel. The ship, operated by Indonesian shipping company Lintas Kumala Abadi, was on her way from Jakarta to Makassar at the time of the incident.

The 32,322gt/1999 built container ship Olf, which was involved in a hit-and-run incident with two other vessels, was arrested in Malaysian waters on 23rd February. The incident, which occurred some five days earlier off Batu Ayam in the Singapore Strait, caused damage to tanker vessels Tina 7 and Straits 3 while they were anchored off the coast. After the accident, the 40,000 dwt Olf sailed away without contacting the vessels. At the time of the incident the vessel was reportedly on her way from Hong Kong to a scrap yard in India, carrying sixteen crew members of Indian and Sri Lankan nationalities.

On 24th February P&O Maritime’s Aurora Australis (above) broke her mooring lines during a blizzard with 130km/h gusts and became grounded on rocks on West Arm in Horseshoe Harbour at Mawson Station in Antarctica. The ship was refloated on 26th February following the transfer ashore of 37 expeditioners from the 67 persons aboard. The P&O Maritime crew used a combination of internal ballast transfers and work boats to refloat the ship during a rising tide. The 6,574gt/1990 built icebreaker then remained in the vicinity of Mawson research station where crew conducted a thorough assessment of damage to the ship.

The 85,590gt/1997 built Panamanian flagged Capesize bulk carrier New Katerina ran aground on 25th February in the Suez Canal having lost her steering gear. The canal remained open to traffic but there were delays to the convoy movements. The ship was en route from Yuzhniy, Ukraine to Qingdao, China when the incident occurred. The 53,833gt/1991 built Kalliopi R.C. (above) became disabled off Le Havre, France on 1st March after a total power failure. The vessel dropped anchor and attempted to carry out repairs. The following day authorities sent an emergency team who were lowered to the deck by helicopter. The tug Abeille Liberté arrived from Cherbourg and towed the ship back into Le Havre. On 3rd March the 88m coaster

Amadeus Amethist became disabled in the English Channel near Fécamp, France. The ship was headed to Fécamp from Antwerp in ballast when she suffered engine failure in rough seas. The crew dropped anchor and requested assistance. Tugs were dispatched to assist as the cargo vessel was being pushed by the strong winds and heavy seas. As the risk of the vessel going ashore increased, a helicopter was dispatched to the scene to airlift personnel to the ship who assisted in the restoration of power.