CMA CGM Boxship Saves Two Sailors Off Bermuda

CMA CGM's mid-course diversion between the Bahamas and Bermuda (Pole Star)

PUBLISHED DEC 21, 2023 7:00 PM BY THE MARITIME EXECUTIVE

 

The crew of the container ship CMA CGM Ural carried out a successful good samaritan rescue off Bermuda last week, according to the U.S. Coast Guard and local SAR authorities. 

The ketch-rigged yacht Relentless departed St. George's, Bermuda on December 9, bound for the Bahamas with two American crewmembers on board. At a position about 400 miles to the south of Bermuda, the crew encountered stormy weather and had "technical difficulties," including a failed autopilot. In deteriorating conditions, the crew decided to abandon ship. 

The crewmembers activated their EPIRB, and the call was picked up by the U.S. Coast Guard rescue coordination center in Miami. Coast Guard watchstanders called for assistance from nearby merchant shipping, and the CMA CGM Ural answered the request. The boxship was under way on a voyage from Florida to Europe, and the crew diverted to assist. 

Once on scene, the crew of CMA CGM Ural successfully transferred the survivors aboard and got under way. The master decided to stop over briefly at Bermuda in order to transfer the two American nationals to shore. The boxship arrived at the pilot station for St. George's on Friday, Dec. 15, and handed the survivors over to a local pilot boat. As of Thursday the Ural was on the far side of the Atlantic, bound for the Strait of Gibraltar.