Dean strengthens to category five; spins toward Yucatan

Mexican authorities have evacuated tourist resorts and shut down offshore oil facilities ahead of the potentially catastrophic arrival of Hurricane Dean.

The storm has reached Category Five - the highest strength - as it rushes towards Mexico's Yucatan Peninsula with winds of up to 160mph (255km/h). Thousands of tourists have already left the area. Category Five storms are rare - only three have hit the United States since record-keeping began.

A hurricane warning is in effect for the coast of Belize and the east coast of the Yucatan Peninsula, from Belize City to Cancun. The hurricane is heading west and is expected to move slightly north-westwards across the Yucatan Peninsula. After crossing the Yucatan, the storm is forecast to move over the Bay of Campeche in the south-west Gulf of Mexico, before striking Mexico's coast again near Tampico. Dean is expected to pour 5 to 10 inches of rain on the Yucatan, Belize, Guatemala and Honduras. Some areas could see up to 20 inches.

For more details

US$193m Mumbai terminal project moves closer to fruition

The consortium of Gammon India and Oragados SPL has received a letter of intent to develop the Mumbai Offshore Container Terminal Project.

The first phase of the terminal project is estimated to cost about INR8 billion (US$193.61 million), with the second phase costing the consortium a further INR4 billion. The project is on a build-operate-and-transfer basis for 30 years, including a three-year-period to cover construction and equipping the facility, stated an Indian Equity Bulls report.

For more details

Genco takes delivery of first capesize vessel

Genco Shipping & Trading Limited announced that it has taken delivery of the Genco Augustus, a January 2007-built 180,000 dwt Capesize vessel.

The Genco Augustus is the first vessel to be delivered to the Company under Genco's previously announced agreement on July 18, 2007 to acquire nine Capesize vessels from companies within the Metrostar Management Corporation group. The Genco Augustus is currently on charter with Cargill International S.A. at a rate of $45,263 per day. The charter is due to expire between December 2009 and April 2010.

For more details

APL launches Suez Express service to US east coast

Neptune Orient Line's container shipping subsidiary, APL, recently launched a weekly Suez Express service from South Asia to the US east coast in a bid to combat global freight congestion.
The service will provide shippers with dependable Asian access to the US east coast at a time when other transport alternatives are becoming increasingly congested, said APL senior vice president Bob Sappio.
The service sails to four US east coast ports: New York, Charleston, Savannah and Norfolk, while its Asian destinations include ports in India, Vietnam, Thailand, Sri Lanka, Bangladesh, Malaysia and Indonesia.

For more details

Three Indian warships to drop anchor in Bahrain

Three Indian warships will arrive in Manama on Tuesday on a four-day visit as part of the Indian Navy's overseas deployment to the Gulf.

The ships, INS Delhi, INS Beas and INS Jyoti, are part of the Western and Eastern Naval Commands based in Mumbai and Visakhapatnam respectively. Over the years, Indian warships have regularly paid visits to ports in the Gulf, reaffirming their presence and solidarity for peace with countries in the region, said Indian Ambassador Balkrishna Shetty. The present visit seeks to foster maritime goodwill between India and Bahrain that share rich cultural and maritime heritage.

For more details

Dean batters south Jamaica

Trees have been uprooted and roofs ripped off houses in southern Jamaica, as Hurricane Dean devastated through the Caribbean.

The storm, with winds of up to 230km/h, careered along the country's south coast, its eye passing some miles away out to sea. Dean has already claimed at least six lives in the eastern Caribbean. Haiti and the Dominican Republic were spared the worst as Dean passed to the south overnight - damage was limited to flooding in coastal areas. Airports have been closed, a 48-hour curfew is in place and the island's power company switched off electricity. The US has said it is prepared to fly in aid if necessary.

About 1,000 emergency shelters have been opened, but just 47 were occupied. As heavy rain began to fall, there were reports of mudslides north of Kingston and the St Mary area on the island's north-east coast. Areas of the Cayman Islands and Mexican coast were also evacuated, amid meteorological reports the storm could intensify into a Category Five hurricane after it leaves Jamaica.

Sunday night's projections showed little chance that Dean would hit the United States. But federal officials and their state counterparts in Texas were preparing for any unexpected turn northward, and oil workers off the Texas coast were heading for shore. The space shuttle Endeavour undocked from the ISS on Sunday, a day earlier, in a bid to beat the hurricane should it eventually reach Texas, where NASA's mission control is based.

For more details

Port Khalid reopens after fire

After a seven-hour closure on Saturday after a major fire, shipping has resumed at Sharjah’s Port Khalid, police and port authorities said yesterday.

Port Khalid was closed for most of the day on Saturday while emergency crews battled overnight to put out the blaze that broke out around 11.22 p.m. on Friday. Activity at the port did not stop except for a short period of not more than seven hours to facilitate the security forces bringing in the necessary fire-extinguishing equipment, said Rashed Al-Leem, director general of Sharjah’s Hamiriyah Ports, Customs and Duty Free Zone.

UAE Interior Minister Lt. Gen. Saif ibn Zayed Al-Nahayan, who visited the site on Saturday evening, applauded the emergency services for getting the fire under control before it spread to other areas of the port. The minister, who was inspecting the scene of the blaze, called for measures to protect vital premises against such hazards.

For more details