Maritime Accidents and Safety

Ship Carrying 1,100 Porsches and Other Luxury Cars Is Burning and Adrift

A mammoth cargo ship believed to be carrying thousands of vehicles including 1,100 Porsches was on fire and drifting off the coast of the Azores on Thursday after its 22 crew members were rescued from the vessel. The fire broke out on Wednesday morning in the cargo hold of the ship, called the Felicity Ace, […]

In Congo, Floating Pastors Follow Mobile Flocks Along Busy River

MBANDAKA, Democratic Republic of Congo — The ebullient soukous music had been blasting from speakers since before dawn, but at 8 a.m., someone aboard the brightly painted boat docked along the Congo River pressed pause, and a pastor picked up a microphone and began preaching at a volume easily heard on shore. “You will go […]

Dozens Are Reported Missing After Boat Capsizes Off Florida Coast

The U.S. Coast Guard said late Tuesday that it would search through the night for 39 people who went missing days earlier after a boat carrying them from the Bahamas capsized off the Atlantic coast of Florida. Rescuers learned of the accident on Tuesday morning, when a boater, who was described as a “good Samaritan,” […]

French Adventurer Attempting to Row Solo Across the Atlantic Is Missing

On Jan. 19, Mr. Savin posted his last diary entry on Facebook. “I’ve run into some problems in the last 10 or so days,” he wrote. “The solar collector (which should recharge the battery of my water desalination system) has stopped working. I have been forced to use my manual desalinator, but that takes all […]

‘Our Boat Was Surrounded by Dead Bodies’: Witnessing a Migrant Tragedy

SULAIMANIYA, Iraq — The boat packed with migrants was about halfway across the English Channel when one of the passengers spotted two orange life jackets bobbing in the water. The seas were rough, and it was only when they got closer that Zana Hamawandani saw the vests contained dead bodies. Soon, other bodies started appearing. […]

Undeterred by Channel’s Perils, Desperate Migrants Still Plan to Cross

CALAIS, France — The lights on the opposite side of the English Channel were visible on Thursday, emboldening Emanuel Malbah, an asylum seeker who has been living in a makeshift camp on France’s northern coastline for the past week, dreaming of making a crossing. “I don’t believe that I’ll die,” he said. “I believe I’ll […]

27 Migrants Drown Trying to Go From France to U.K. by Boat

PARIS — At least 27 people drowned in frigid waters off the coast of France on Wednesday, after a boat carrying migrants trying to reach Britain capsized in the English Channel, one of the worst death tolls in recent years for migrants attempting the dangerous crossing. Gérald Darmanin, France’s interior minister, said that the dead, […]