South East Shipping News

Cyber threats May 28, 2012

7. May 29, Nextgov – (National) UK researchers discover backdoor in American military chip. United Kingdom (U.K.)-based security researchers found a backdoor “deliberately” inserted into an American military chip to help attackers gain unauthorized access and reprogram its memory, according to a draft research paper. A researcher at Cambridge University discovered a military-grade silicon device made by California-based Microsemi Corp., the ProASIC3 A3P250, contained a glitch that would allow individuals to remotely tweak its functions. He collaborated with a researcher at U.K.-based Quo Vadis Labs, which researches sensor technology, and found “proof that the backdoor was deliberately inserted and even used as a part of the overall security scheme.” The duo did not disclose details, citing a “confidentiality agreement.” The backdoor is “close to impossible to fix on chips already deployed” because software patches cannot fix the bugs. The holes can only be removed by removing all such chips installed in systems, the duo said. Microsemi’s aggregate net sales to defense and security users represented about 29 percent of total net sales in 2012, according to its most recent quarterly regulatory filing. The device in question is “heavily marketed to the military and industry,” the draft report states. Source: http://www.nextgov.com/defense/2012/05/uk-researchers-discover-backdoor-american-military-chip/55949/

 

Information Technology Sector

38. May 29, Homeland Security News Wire – (International) Malware intelligence system allow organizations to share threat information. As malware threats expand into new domains and increasingly focus on industrial espionage, Georgia Tech researchers are launching a new tool to help battle the threats: a malware intelligence system that will help corporate and government security officials share information about the attacks they are fighting. A Georgia Tech news release reports the system, known as Titan, will be at the center of a security community which will help create safety in numbers as companies large and small add their threat data to a knowledge base that will be shared with all participants. Operated by security specialists at the Georgia Tech Research Institute, the system builds on a threat analysis foundation — including a malware repository that analyzes and classifies an average of 100,000 pieces of malicious code each day. Source: http://www.homelandsecuritynewswire.com/dr20120529-malware-intelligence-system-allow-organizations-to-share-threat-information

 

39. May 28, IDG News Service – (International) Researchers identify Stuxnet-like malware called ‘Flame’. A new, highly sophisticated malware threat predominantly used in cyberespionage attacks against targets in the Middle East was identified and analyzed by researchers from several security companies and organizations. According to the Iranian Computer Emergency Response Team, the new piece of malware might

 

be responsible for recent data loss incidents in Iran. Flame, as the Kaspersky researchers call it, is a very large attack toolkit with many individual modules. It can perform a variety of malicious actions, most of which are related to data theft and cyberespionage. Among other things, it can use a computer’s microphone to record conversations, take screenshots of particular applications when in use, record keystrokes, sniff network traffic, and communicate with nearby Bluetooth devices. One of the toolkit’s first versions was likely created in 2010 and its functionality was later extended by leveraging its modular architecture, said a chief malware expert at Kaspersky Lab. Flame spreads to other computers by copying itself to portable USB devices and also by exploiting a now-patched Microsoft Windows printer vulnerability that was also leveraged by Stuxnet. Source: http://www.computerworld.com/s/article/9227524/Researchers_identify_Stuxnet_like_malware_called_Flame

 

40. May 28, H Security – (International) Critical hole in Seagate BlackArmor NAS. Seagate’s BlackArmor NAS server is vulnerable to having its administrative password reset by anyone with access to it and a particular URL. The BlackArmor range of network-attached storage devices is aimed at small businesses and offers storage and backup options from Windows PCs and Mac OS X systems, ranging from 1TB to 12TB of hard disk media. The problem, documented by the U.S. Computer Emergency Readiness Team, involves an unauthenticated attack directly accessing an address where they will be given the opportunity to reset the device’s administrator password. There is no current solution to the problem. Source: http://www.h-online.com/security/news/item/Critical-hole-in-Seagate-BlackArmor-NAS-1585283.html

 

 

Internet Alert Dashboard

To report cyber infrastructure incidents or to request information, please contact US-CERT at sos@us-cert.gov or visit their Web site: http://www.us-cert.gov Information on IT information sharing and analysis can be found at the IT ISAC (Information Sharing and Analysis Center) Web site: https://www.it-isac.org [Return to top]

  

 

Explosion on the Sun sends “shock wave” of super-charged particles racing toward Mars Science Laboratory for May 31 collision - Marsnow.info reports

 

According to the spaceweather blog entry CME TARGETS MARS: “The magnetic canopy of sunspot AR1492 erupted on May 27th at 0551UT, producing a long-duration C3-class solar flare and hurling a coronal mass ejection (CME) toward Mars.

Analysts at the Goddard Space Weather Lab say the cloud – they call it a “cloud” will hit the MSL spacecraft (containing the Mars rover Curiosity) on May 31st at 0100 UT followed by Mars itself about 10 hours later.

Because NASA has done nothing to protect the spacecraft from CMEs, NASA has decided to avoid discussion of these threats until and unless one of these destructive, radioactive, radiation “clouds” damages navigation controls or ignites any of the highly explosive fuels and pyrotechnics that are essential to MSL operation.

MSL and Curiosity were designed to withstand a typical range of interplanetary radiation that they would encounter during the 2009 launch window. But a long list of problems in design and execution, especially navigation and landing software, set the MSL launch ahead to the end of 2011. And that was thebeginning of a historic, two-year-long cascade of solar storms and giant CME’s.

Coronal mass ejections expand away from the Sun at speeds as high as 2000 km per second. They carry up to ten billion tons (10¹⁶ grams) of plasma away from the Sun, NASA explains in a posting far away from any mention of MSL.

Coronal mass ejections were once thought to be initiated by solar flares. Although most are accompanied by flares, it is now understood that flares and CMEs are related phenomena, but one does not cause the other. This has important implications for understanding and predicting the effects of solar activity on the Earth and in space.

While a flare alone produces high-energy particles near the Sun, some of which escape into interplanetary space, a CME drives a shock wave which can continuously produce energetic particles as it propagates through interplanetary space.

When a CME reaches the Earth, its impact disturbs the Earth's magnetosphere, setting off a geomagnetic storm. A CME typically takes 3 to 5 days to reach the Earth after it leaves the Sun. Observing the ejection of CMEs from the Sun provides an early warning of geomagnetic storms. Only recently, with SOHO, has it been possible to continuously observe the emission of CMEs from the Sun and determine if they are aimed at the Earth.

One serious problem that can occur during a geomagnetic storm is damage to Earth-orbiting satellites, especially those in high, geosynchronous orbits. Communications satellites are generally in these high orbits. Either the satellite becomes highly charged during the storm and a component is damaged by the high current that discharges into the satellite, or a component is damaged by high-energy particles that penetrate the satellite. We are not able to predict when and where a satellite in a high orbit may be damaged during a geomagnetic storm.

Astronauts on the Space Station are not in immediate danger because of the relatively low orbit of this manned mission. They do have to be concerned about cumulative exposure during space walks. The energetic particles from a flare or CME would be dangerous to an astronaut on a mission to the Moon or Mars, however.

Explosion on the Sun sends “shock wave” of super-charged particles racing toward Mars Science Laboratory for May 31 collision

 

According to the spaceweather blog entry CME TARGETS MARS: “The magnetic canopy of sunspot AR1492 erupted on May 27th at 0551UT, producing a long-duration C3-class solar flare and hurling a coronal mass ejection (CME) toward Mars.

Analysts at the Goddard Space Weather Lab say the cloud – they call it a “cloud” will hit the MSL spacecraft (containing the Mars rover Curiosity) on May 31st at 0100 UT followed by Mars itself about 10 hours later.

Because NASA has done nothing to protect the spacecraft from CMEs, NASA has decided to avoid discussion of these threats until and unless one of these destructive, radioactive, radiation “clouds” damages navigation controls or ignites any of the highly explosive fuels and pyrotechnics that are essential to MSL operation.

MSL and Curiosity were designed to withstand a typical range of interplanetary radiation that they would encounter during the 2009 launch window. But a long list of problems in design and execution, especially navigation and landing software, set the MSL launch ahead to the end of 2011. And that was thebeginning of a historic, two-year-long cascade of solar storms and giant CME’s.

Coronal mass ejections expand away from the Sun at speeds as high as 2000 km per second. They carry up to ten billion tons (10¹⁶ grams) of plasma away from the Sun, NASA explains in a posting far away from any mention of MSL.

Coronal mass ejections were once thought to be initiated by solar flares. Although most are accompanied by flares, it is now understood that flares and CMEs are related phenomena, but one does not cause the other. This has important implications for understanding and predicting the effects of solar activity on the Earth and in space.

While a flare alone produces high-energy particles near the Sun, some of which escape into interplanetary space, a CME drives a shock wave which can continuously produce energetic particles as it propagates through interplanetary space.

When a CME reaches the Earth, its impact disturbs the Earth's magnetosphere, setting off a geomagnetic storm. A CME typically takes 3 to 5 days to reach the Earth after it leaves the Sun. Observing the ejection of CMEs from the Sun provides an early warning of geomagnetic storms. Only recently, with SOHO, has it been possible to continuously observe the emission of CMEs from the Sun and determine if they are aimed at the Earth.

One serious problem that can occur during a geomagnetic storm is damage to Earth-orbiting satellites, especially those in high, geosynchronous orbits. Communications satellites are generally in these high orbits. Either the satellite becomes highly charged during the storm and a component is damaged by the high current that discharges into the satellite, or a component is damaged by high-energy particles that penetrate the satellite. We are not able to predict when and where a satellite in a high orbit may be damaged during a geomagnetic storm.

Astronauts on the Space Station are not in immediate danger because of the relatively low orbit of this manned mission. They do have to be concerned about cumulative exposure during space walks. The energetic particles from a flare or CME would be dangerous to an astronaut on a mission to the Moon or Mars, however.

Nicaragua plans to build inter-oceanic canal

 

Nicaragua has decided to construct an inter-oceanic canal which will link the Atlantic and the Pacific oceans and greatly facilitate the intercontinental cargo traffic, Press TV reports.

 

The Nicaraguan government’s decision to build the canal is aimed to cope with the sustained increase in the seaborne trade through Panama Canal which makes it difficult for big trading ships to cross the canal.

 

“In this precise moment, the global cargo traffic is increasing [by] three percent annually. Driven by development of economies such as India, China -- especially China -- and other developing countries like the BRICs, there is also eventual global economic recovery on the horizon. All of these create a strategic opportunity for Nicaragua to construct an inter-oceanic canal,” said Nicaragua’s Secretary to President for National Policy Paul Oquist.

 

The move, experts say, is expected to be hailed by Russia and China as two emerging economic powerhouses.

 

The geographic position of the Latin American country has made it capable of becoming the world’s new trading route as it enjoys the lowest elevation across the Americas in the south region of the country.

 

The United States and the European countries have long been intervening in Nicaragua’s affairs to reap the benefits that such a strategic canal could bring.

 

“The markets are actually behind them. They are facing Europe which is going down; no one can argue about that, it is true that Europe is going through a very difficult period. There is no possibility of Europe becoming more than it actually is. So, it is very, very important for the United States to find a better and improved way of going from the east coast to the west coast and toward the Asia-Pacific [region],” said Manuel Coronel Kautz from the Great Inter-Oceanic Authority.

 

Analysts says the economic benefits of such a landmark plan can promote the country’s financial position and turn it from one of the poorest countries in the region to a strategically important and rich state.

Condition ZULU closes Jaxport and Port of Fernandina

 

 

As of 12:00 p.m. today, May 27, 2012 the Captain of the Port (COTP) has set Hurricane Condition
ZULU for the ports of Jacksonville and Fernandina.  The ports are closed to all inbound and outbound traffic.  Please see MSIB 43-12  for details.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Previously condition X ray was set at which point waterfront facilities should be removing potential flying debris, hazardous materials and oil pollution hazards from dockside areas. Secure all hazmat and potential sources of pollution due to possible heavy rain run-off.

Vessels more than 500 gross tons should make preparations to leave the port at this time or should have requested permission from the COTP to remain in port. Vessels unable to depart the port must contact the COTP and submit a safe mooring plan in writing when requesting and prior to receiving permission to remain in port. Proof of facility owner/operator approval will be required.

Inbound vessels that will be unable to depart the port if Port Condition YANKEE is set, are advised to seek an alternate destination.

Pleasure craft are advised to seek safe harbor. Drawbridges may not be operating as early as eight hours prior to the anticipated arrival of sustained gale force winds (39 mph) or when an evacuation is in progress.

APM/Maersk moves to win the Panama Canal Sweepstakes with take-over of Suez and Super Post-Panamx ready -55 foot deep Terminals In Billion Dollar Offer to State of Virginia

 

APM Terminals Portsmouth Virginia, the largest privately owned terminal in North America. Image: APM Terminals

 

Beat This Miami, Charleston, Savannah!

• At 50-feet, the deepest shipping channels on the U.S. East Coast; fully prepared to accommodate the 10,000+ TEU vessels.
• More than 30 international steamship lines service the Port today, making Virginia a true maritime hub.
• Norfolk Southern and CSX offer on-dock, double-stack intermodal service to key inland markets in the Midwest, Ohio Valley and the Southeast.
• A leader in quality and environment - The Port of Virginia maintains ISO 9001 and 14001 certification.

 COPENHAGEN — The port-operating arm of Danish industrial conglomerate A.P. Moller-Maersk A/S (MAERSK-B.KO), APM Terminals, said Thursday it has made an offer to the state of Virginia to operate the cargo traffic facilities at the U.S. Port of Virginia.

In return for the long-term concession, APM Terminals offers to transfer ownership of its facility in the Portsmouth Marine Terminal at the port to the Virginia administration, in a strategic partnership deal that the company estimates to have a total value to the state of between $3 billion and $4 billion.

The proposal includes operation of freight facilities at the Port of Virginia, which is comprised by four marine terminals and adjacent inland services, all centered around the ice-free, natural harbor of Hampton Roads.

“Our proposal provides for the lowest cost, long-term solution for future growth at this time of a stabilizing economy and the eventual expansion of global commerce,” said APM Terminals Americas Region President Eric Sisco.

Included in the value estimate are initial payments, fixed concession payments, revenue sharing, capital investments and tax benefits, transferring market risk from the Commonwealth to the private sector, APM Terminals said.

The offer has been submitted to Virginia’s Office of Transportation Public-Private Partnerships and will undergo a detailed review in the coming months, APM Terminals said.

 

text size: TT

In three years 700 Dominican Republic cops accused in drug cases including head of port security

By EZEQUIEL ABIU LOPEZ

SANTO DOMINGO, Dominican Republic

Three high-ranking police officials in the Dominican Republic have been accused of providing security to drug traffickers, marking the latest public corruption case to hit the Caribbean nation as it tries to clean up its military and police.

The officials worked for the National Drug Control Agency and were arrested alongside four men allegedly waiting for a drug shipment bound for Puerto Rico, agency chief Rolando Rosado said Thursday.

The officials have been suspended from their jobs as have others who have been charged in drug-fueled corruption cases that have resulted in dozens of arrests and dismissals in recent years.

"It's a serious situation," said Tulio Castanos, vice president of the Institutional Justice Foundation, a non-governmental group that is helping the government design and implement police department reforms. "The people have lost faith in the police."

The Dominican Republic has a national police force of 32,000 officers and a military with 65,000 members, for a country of about 9 million people.

Since 2009, more than 700 agents with the National Drug Control Agency, a combination of police officers and military personnel on loan, have been removed for a variety of crimes, according to government statistics. Of those, 200 were suspected of involvement in drug trafficking.

Meanwhile, the national police force has expelled about 1,400 officers since 2010 for a variety of alleged crimes, including ties to drug trafficking, spokesman Maximo Baez said.

Members of the police and all branches of the military have become ensnared in drug investigations, including a recent one involving a navy officer in charge of port security accused of attempting to smuggle more than 800 kilograms (1,760 pounds) of cocaine to Spain on board a cargo vessel.

In another case, nearly 20 officials, the majority with the navy, were accused in 2008 of killing seven Colombian drug traffickers to steal 1.3 tons (1.18 metric tons) of cocaine. Five of those officials were sentenced to 30 years in prison, while three others received 20-year sentences.

So far this year, authorities have confiscated more than 4 tons (3.6 metric tons) of cocaine. They seized nearly 7 tons (6 metric tons) during all of 2011.

"The biggest concern is that in almost every seizure, officials were implicated," according to a report by Citizen Involvement, a non-governmental organization that tracks corruption allegations in the Dominican Republic.

The government is now requiring members of the police and armed forces to pass polygraph and background tests. In addition, internal affairs units are regularly investigating corruption allegations and handing out punishments, which has been increasing along with the country's role as a stepping stone for cocaine and other drugs bound for the U.S. and Europe.

The government's attempt to address the situation comes amid growing concerns among Dominicans about the way drug trafficking has seemed to take a central role in the country.

But there is also pressure from the U.S., which was critical of Dominican anti-drug efforts in its annual 2012 trafficking report.

In a 2009 diplomatic cable obtained by WikiLeaks and other organizations, the U.S. Embassy in the Dominican Republic noted the country had an "embarrassing" drug seizure rate and cited a lack of resources for law enforcement and infiltration of the armed forces by criminal organizations.

Former President Leonel Fernandez and others also have cited low salaries, typically around $155 a month for police officers, as a long-standing problem that may be a factor in some corruption cases.

Complaints that police and military officials demand payment from drug traffickers to operate in certain neighborhoods are common, said Manuel Maria Mercedes, president of the National Commission of Human Rights.

Payments can range from $125 a week in poor communities to more than $1,000 a week for drug-distribution points in popular tourist regions, and shootouts ensue if they fail to pay, he said.

"Hundreds of citizens have lost their lives this way," he said.

Shipowners call proposed July 1, 2012

Panama Canal toll hikes "simply unacceptable"

 

Four days after the deadline set by the Panama Canal Authority (ACP), The International Chamber of Shipping (ICS) has sent a strongly worded letter describing plans to increase tolls by up to 15 percent as "simply unacceptable."

 

Instead the ICS suggested that the ACP shelve the planned July 1 increase and all previously scheduled increases. It said that ocean cargo carriers need at least six months notice to alter their schedules to avoid a more costly canal crossing and therefore the ACp should agree to the ICS request.

 

The International Chamber of Shipping is the principal international trade association for shipowners, with member national associations from 36 countries representing all sectors and trades and over 80 percent of the world merchant fleet.

 

The ACP published plans to increase its tolls last month, despite assuring industry clients in January there would only be one small adjustment to tolls before completion of the expansion project in 2014. Not long thereafter the ACP admitted that labor strife, poor engineering and substandard concrete mixing would likely extend the opening of the new section of the canal into 2015.

But the ACP never altered its plans to increase tolls on July 1, 2012 if agreed at a public hearing at the end of this month.

 

ICS Secretary General, Peter Hinchliffe, said there was no pressing need for the increases given that "canal revenues are currently very healthy."

 

Mr. Hinchliffe pointed out that while the Panama Canal is an important national asset to Panama, it also remains an essential part of international public infrastructure crucial to the smooth operation of the global supply chain and should "take this important public role into account when setting tolls."

 

"While the ACP proposal analyzes the impact of the toll rises on the competitiveness of commodity trades, no account is taken of the impact on shipping companies themselves ... many of whom are still forced to run ships at a loss in order to remain in the market," he said.

 

"We therefore request that the ACP rescind the current plans for increases in the next two years and concentrate on developing a toll structure that can be to the benefit of all parties to be introduced in late 2014."

 

The shipowners’ rebuttal came a day after the ACP Board of Directors approved a proposal to modify the Panama Canal pricing structure "to align Canal toll charges with the value the route provides."

 

 

As part of the tolls adjustment process, the ACP had established a consultation period from April 20 - May 21, 2012, during which the ACP agreed to receive formal written comments, opinions and written requests from interested parties to participate in the public hearing. The public hearing was held in Panama City, Panama, in the ACP's "Ascanio Arosemena" auditorium on May 23, 2012.

 

The ICS doggedly delayed its comments until after the event.

 

The proposal also increased the number of segments from eight to eleven by Panama Canal vessel type. It also divided the tanker segment into three distinct segments, established a new segment for container/breakbulk, and incorporated the roll-on/roll-off vessels into the vehicle carrier segment.

 

Once approved by all parties involved, the Panama Canal market segmentation scheme will include the following segments: full container, reefer, dry bulk, passenger, vehicle carrier and ro-ro, tanker, chemical tanker, LPG, general cargo and others.

 

Price Proposal

 

Effective July 1, 2012, the ACP proposes to increase the tolls for the following segments: general cargo, container/break bulk (new segment), dry bulk, tanker (redefined segment), chemical tanker (new segment), LPG (new segment), vehicle carrier and ro-ro (merged segment), and the segment known as others. The remaining segments will not be adjusted at this time. Additionally, there will be changes to tolls applicable to small vessels based on vessel length, to incorporate adjustments not previously considered.

 

"This proposal continues to align the Panama Canal tolls to the value, benefit and quality the route provides, and maintains the competitiveness of the Panama Canal", stated Alberto Alemán Zubieta, ACP Administrator/CEO.

 

 

  

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Port Status Information   JACKSONVILLE Port Status Information  Port Status Comments Last Changed PORT CANAVERAL OPEN Set Port Condition IV 05/26/2012 PORT OF FERNANDINA OPEN Set Port Condition X-RAY 05/26/2012 PORT OF JACKSONVILLE OPEN Set Port Condition X-RAY 05/26/2012 CHARLESTON Port Status Information  Port Status Comments Last Changed BEAUFORT OPEN   08/27/2011 CHARLESTON OPEN   08/27/2011 GEORGETOWN OPEN   08/27/2011 HILTON HEAD OPEN   08/27/2011

Privacy  | Plug-ins	Today is	Saturday, May 26, 2012

2012 Hurricane Season to be "normal" except for this storm off Canaveral

 UPDATE

TROPICAL WEATHER DISCUSSION

NWS NATIONAL HURRICANE CENTER MIAMI FL

805 AM EDT SAT MAY 26 2012 

 SUBTROPICAL STORM BERYL

 

FORMED IN THE SOUTHWESTERN ATLANTIC

OCEAN AT 26/0300 UTC. THE CENTER OF SUBTROPICAL STORM BERYL

AT 26/1200 UTC IS NEAR 32.0N 76.0W...ABOUT 175 MILES/280 KM SE

OF CAPE FEAR NORTH CAROLINA...AND 240 MILES/385 KM ESE OF

CHARLESTON SOUTH CAROLINA.

 

BERYL IS MOVING WEST-SOUTHWESTWARD 4

KNOTS. THE ESTIMATED MINIMUM CENTRAL PRESSURE IS 1001 MB. THE

MAXIMUM SUSTAINED WIND SPEEDS ARE 40 KNOTS WITH GUSTS TO 50

KNOTS.

 

 ISOLATED TO WIDELY SCATTERED MODERATE CONVECTIVE PRECIPITATION COVERS THE ATLANTIC OCEAN FROM 30N TO 34N BETWEEN 72W AND 80W. RAINSHOWERS ARE POSSIBLE WITHIN 60 TO 90 NM ON EITHER SIDE OF 22N78W AT THE CUBA COAST...TO 26N74W BEYOND 32N70W. A 24-HOUR RAINFALL TOTAL

FOR FREEPORT IN THE BAHAMAS...ENDING AT 25/1200 UTC...IS 9.70

INCHES

 

...TROPICAL WAVES...

 

AN ATLANTIC OCEAN TROPICAL WAVE IS ALONG 13N46W 7N48W 2N49W.

WIDELY SCATTERED MODERATE TO ISOLATED STRONG CONVECTIVE

PRECIPITATION IS FROM 7N TO 10N BETWEEN 40W AND 50W...AND

TO THE SOUTH OF 7N BETWEEN 50W AND 56W.

 

A CARIBBEAN SEA TROPICAL WAVE IS ALONG 16N66W...TO CURACAO...

TO 10N70W IN NORTHWESTERN VENEZUELA. NUMEROUS STRONG CONVECTIVE

PRECIPITATION IS ON TOP OF LAKE MARACAIBO IN NORTHWESTERN

VENEZUELA...AND JUST TO THE EAST OF THE LAKE WITHIN A 30 NM

RADIUS OF 9N69W. RAINSHOWERS ARE POSSIBLE IN THE CARIBBEAN SEA

TO THE SOUTH OF 17N BETWEEN 60W AND 72W.

 

 

MIAMI, Florida -- NOAA's National Hurricane Center in Miami, Florida has issued a Special Tropical Weather Outlook due to a non-tropical low pressure system that has become better defined in the Atlantic off the coast of South Florida.

 

The notice, which does not require implementation of hurricane preparations, followed within ours of the announcement by the Hurricane Center that the rest of the season ought to be “Normal.”

 

 

Despite the extraordinary beginning, including 10 inches of flood in rain in a few hours in Doral, west of Miami, the experts say conditions in the atmosphere and the ocean favor a near-normal hurricane season in the Atlantic Basin this season.

 

For the entire six-month season, which begins June 1, NOAA’s Climate Prediction Center says there’s a 70 percent chance of nine to 15 named storms (with top winds of 39 mph or higher), of which four to eight will strengthen to a hurricane (with top winds of 74 mph or higher) and of those one to three will become major hurricanes (with top winds of 111 mph or higher, ranking Category 3, 4 or 5). Based on the period 1981-2010, an average season produces 12 named storms with six hurricanes, including three major hurricanes.

 

NOAA’s outlook predicts a less active season compared to recent years,” said NOAA Administrator Jane Lubchenco, Ph.D. “But regardless of the outlook, it’s vital for anyone living or vacationing in hurricane-prone locations to be prepared. We have a stark reminder this year with the 20th anniversary of Hurricane Andrew.” Andrew, the Category 5 hurricane that devastated South Florida on August 24, 1992, was the first storm in a late-starting season that produced only six named storms.

 

"NOAA's improvement in monitoring and predicting hurricanes has been remarkable over the decades since Andrew, in large part because of our sustained commitment to research and better technology. But more work remains to unlock the secrets of hurricanes, especially in the area of rapid intensification and weakening of storms,” said Lubchenco. “We're stepping up to meet this challenge through our Hurricane Forecast Improvement Project, which has already demonstrated exciting early progress toward improving storm intensity forecasts."

 

In fact, new NOAA technology predicted the development of the tropical system that blossomed off North Florida last week, almost a full week in advance, as reported here exclusively at South East Shipping News.

 

That technology suggested half dozen different tracks for a tropical system now emerging over Florida, and suggests a 70% Chance of a Memorial Day Weekend Tropical Storm for Central Florida.

NOAA says that there is some potential for additional development into a tropical or subtropical cyclone late Saturday or early Sunday during the 2012 Memorial Day Weekend as the system moves northeastward into the southwestern Atlantic Ocean.

The low will produce high seas off the southeastern Florida Atlantic coast which is bad news for boaters where Memorial Day weekend is traditionally a busy day for recreational boating and fishing.

 

The low is approximately 200 miles south-southeast of Port Canaveral, Florida.  Other busy cruise ports along South Florida such as the Port of Palm Beach, Port of Miami, and Port Everglades near Fort Lauderdale, Florida may also have local seas affected by this low pressure system.  Cruise passengers should check often with their particular cruise line for local weather updates affecting cruise itineraries.

 

As of 12:55 p.m. today, the low has a medium chance (40%) of becoming a subtropical or tropical cyclone during the next 48 hours.  This is an increase from the 20% chance given by NOAA earlier this morning.

 

Elsewhere in the Atlantic Ocean, tropical cyclone formation is not expected during the next 48 hours:

 

 

Forwarder wins landmark ruling on bankrupt shippers’ goods

By Gavin van Marle

05.24.2012 · Posted in Loadstar posts, Supply chain Add to favorites

 

Following a landmark judgment at the English High Court, logistics providers have won further protection against liabilities should a shipper go bust while the provider holds the shipper’s cargo.

The case, which saw UK logistics firm Uniserve pitted against accountancy giant KPMG, centred on a freight forwarder’s – as well as a haulier’s or shipping line’s – right to enforce their lien against administrators acting on behalf of bankrupt shippers.

“The first point for logistics companies, should a customer go into bankruptcy and the administrator comes demanding the goods, is don’t panic – there is now a precedent,” Uniserve MD Iain Liddell told The Loadstar.

According to Uniserve’s lawyers, Holman Fenwick Willan: “This judgment means that freight forwarders, liner shipping companies and road hauliers can now all feel much more certain about their legal rights when faced by administrators who refuse to settle debts in full, challenge liens and demand delivery up of goods.”

2011 was a disastrous year for UK lingerie chain La Senza, and in the second half of the year it failed to pay a number of Uniserve’s invoices within the agreed credit terms. As a result, Uniserve advised La Senza in December that it was enforcing its lien on the goods currently in its possession until the unpaid invoices had been settled.

However, La Senza went into administration the following month. KPMG was appointed as administrator and demanded that those goods still held by Uniserve be handed over as it had found a buyer willing to pay 50% of their value, if the deal was finalised within a short time frame.

Uniserve agreed, on the condition that KPMG pay its outstanding invoices and storage charges, and also offer “an indemnity in relation to any costs and/or claims that may arise out of Uniserve complying with La Senza’s order to deliver up the goods”.

KPMG declined that offer and made a court application that Uniserve deliver the goods, which had an invoice value of £2.2m, and without having to pay the invoices, charges or provide the indemnity.

It further argued that Uniserve had breached Insolvency Act moratorium by holding onto the goods between December and March – when the case was heard – without a court order.

With the deadline for the sale fast approaching, the judge, Sir Andrew Morritt, chancellor of the English High Court, ordered an expedited hearing, and the following eight days were described as “chaotic”.

KPMG changed its position several times, at one point suggesting that funds from the sale of the goods be put into an escrow account from which La Senza’s suppliers be paid, and any remaining funds be split between it and Uniserve – while Uniserve argued that arrangement would still leave it vulnerable to further claims from suppliers.

KPMG tried another tack, arguing that even if the lien was enforceable, it should be limited to the amount that Uniserve itself could sell the goods for, which it fixed at 5.5% of the invoice (it is hard to understand the logic behind this argument given that it had found a buyer willing to pay almost 10 times that).

In any case, the judge ruled that Uniserve had not broken the moratorium, rejected the escrow account proposals on the grounds that the threat of claims from La Senza’s suppliers were not purely theoretical, and dismissed the 5.5% figure because it would “fetter the terms of the lien”, and he ordered La Senza to pay the outstanding fees as well as legal costs.

“It is always sad when an important customer experiences financial difficulties, and creditors like Uniserve are exposed to potentially large losses. This judgment at least gives companies like Uniserve comfort that if they contract on suitable terms they will be recognized as secured creditors in an administration,” Mr Liddell said.

HFW noted that there had previously been significant doubt over whether a lien would be enforceable against the claims of a liquidator – the 1986 Insolvency Act placed a moratorium on liens – and also “whether a court would order delivery up of goods to the administrators, without an indemnity being provided to protect the forwarder/ carrier from potential costs and/or claims from third parties, arising out of delivery,” it said in a statement.

“Individual cases do still, however, always turn on their individual facts so whilst the judgment is most welcome as general guidance, legal advice should still be sought as soon as possible if a customer goes into administration owing significant sums.”