Update: Bourbon Rhode lost in eye of Hurricane Lorenzo

Update: Bourbon Rhode lost in eye of Hurricane Lorenzo

According to our information, the vessel Bourbon Rhode has not yet been found.

The location of the crew is also not known. Search and rescue operations are ongoing. Other maritime means are being mobilized in order to provide assistance to the crew, as well as air support from NHC (National Hurricane Center).
The crisis cell is working in very close cooperation with the Regional Operational Center of Surveillance and Rescue (Cross) of West Indies-Guyana. Weather conditions remain particularly adverse and the search zone is affected by the outer edge of Hurricane Lorenzo. 

Update 28/09/2019: 
As informed, few (3 confirmed) crew members been rescued by piet ship.

Who have any updated info on this topic please share it in FB group

Update 28/09/2019, 5:35 PM

In the context of search operations of tug supply vessel Bourbon Rhode started on September 26, the mobilized rescue teams have recovered a lifeboat with 3 crew members on board, the lifeboat having been identified by a Falcon 50 especially equipped for this type of mission and sent by the French Navy. The 3 crew members are currently taken in charge by the medical support team onboard the commercial vessel, which provided assistance, and are currently placed under medical observation.

It has been confirmed that the vessel has sunk. The search continues to be carried out in weather conditions that are improving. All necessary means are implemented by the Cross AG and the French Navy, under the authority of the Prefect representing the State’s maritime authority, namely numerous flyovers carried out by the Falcon 50 over the search zone. Numerous commercial vessels have had their course changed in order to bring assistance, as well as a plane of the U.S. National Hurricane Center.

The crisis cell put into place by BOURBON works in very close collaboration with the Cross AG and the French Navy. BOURBON’s teams are mobilized to keep the families of the crew members informed and bring them full support in this difficult time.

Update 29/09/2019

Bourbon's official information

The search for tug supply vessel Bourbon Rhode continues with the full support of Cross AG (Regional Operational Center of Surveillance and Rescue) and the French navy, under the authority of the Prefect representing the French national maritime authority. Five commercial vessels have changed course in order to bring assistance to the rescue teams. A Falcon 50 of the French navy as well as the aircraft of the American National Hurricane Center (NHC) conducted numerous overflights of the search area. The French navy’s surveillance frigate “Ventôse” and “Panther” helicopter will intervene tomorrow, September 30.

Yesterday, in the beginning of the night, a capsized fast rescue craft was spotted first by the NHC aircraft and then by the Falcon 50. A commercial vessel engaged in the operation is currently headed in its direction in order to try to recover it.

Latest update from French Navy.

Rigid inflatable spotted in search for Bourbon Rhode.

Rescue operation at sea Pointdesituation - Bourbon Ship Rhode. Sunday 29 September at 12 pm.

Since Thursday, September 2019, 26, the regional operational centre for surveillance and rescue (#Cross) Antilles-Guyana has been coordinates the search and rescue operation of the ship #bourbon Rhode.

Yesterday, Saturday, September 28, at the beginning of night, the us aircraft of the National Hurricane Center (#Nhc) spotted a semi-rigid returned probably from the bourbon ship. Due to the stress of the night that prevented its relocation by a maritime means, the national aircraft of the National Navy was able to repositioning the boat at sunrise this Sunday, September 29 A trade ship, engaged in the operation, is currently on its way to try to recover this semi-rigid.

This new discovery allows Cross Antilles-Guiana to refine the aéromaritime device. Five Commercial Ships are currently engaged in a rather large research area, in addition to the Falcon50 of the National Navy.

Update: States reaction

Croatian Minister for European and Foreign Affairs Gordan Grlic Radman reiterated today that three of the 14 crew members were rescued, while others - including Croatian citizen Captain Dino Miskic - are still being searched.

- Colleagues are in constant contact with Dino Miskic's family, all naval and air forces involved in the rescue are involved. The search continues and we hope for a truly positive outcome. The Croatian representatives are in direct contact with the French company and the French crisis headquarters. 

Ministry of Foreign Affairs of Ukraine keeps track of the situation and maintains contact with the families of the crew members too. The Marine Transport Workers’ Trade Union of Ukraine (MTWTU) asks relatives of sailors to call for help by phones:
+38 (0482) 42-99-01, +38 (095) 550-75-55, or in FB group.

 

Update 30/09/2019

Bourbon's official information

BOURBON is sad to report the death of one of the crew members of the Bourbon Rhode. The body of the missing seafarer was located by one of the aircraft involved in the search and has been recovered by one of the five vessels that came to assist. The seafarer's family was immediately notified and they requested that the identity not be disclosed.

Rescue operations are continuing to find the other crew members, with significant maritime and air search resources deployed by the French and American authorities.

Gaël Bodénès, Chief Executive Officer of BOURBON Corporation, declared:

"All our thoughts and prayers go to his family and loved ones. This tragedy affects all BOURBON employees who express their full support to the seafarers' families. We remain fully mobilized on search operations to find the other missing seafarers and I would like to express our gratitude to the rescuers, all the teams of the CROSS (Regional Operational Centre for Surveillance and Rescue) and the teams of the crisis cells who are working tirelessly to this end." 

 

Update 01/10/2019

Bourbon's official information

BOURBON today mourns the death of two other crew members of the Bourbon Rhode. The bodies of our two mariners were recovered at sea last night and transferred on the French navy "Ventôse" frigate. BOURBON stands by the seafarers' families and is fully mobilized to support them in this terrible time.

The research operations carried out by the French authorities with the support of the US authorities are part of exceptional measures, further intensified in recent days. Since the beginning of the operations on September 26, ten commercial vessels have been mobilized in the area. Daily overflights are performed by a Falcon 50 of the French Navy, supported by a C 130 Hercules aircraft from the US Coast Guards. The Navy frigate, accompanied by its helicopter "Panther", is at the heart of the system and coordinates the grid of nearly 40 search areas.

BOURBON Corporation CEO Gaël Bodénès declares:

"On behalf of all BOURBON employees, I would like to pay tribute to the deceased sailors. Our thoughts and prayers are with the families and loved ones who are grieving over this dramatic event. We stand in full solidarity with them in this ordeal and assure them of our strongest support. Research operations are continuing on this sixth day and the mobilization of the maritime world is unprecedented. I would like to express our gratitude to all the research teams and those who volunteer."

 

Update 02/10/2019

BOURBON today mourns the death of another crew member following the sinking of the Bourbon Rhode in the Atlantic Ocean on September 26.

The body of this fourth seafarer was discovered yesterday and transferred on the French Navy’s "Ventôse" frigate.

BOURBON Crisis Cell Director Cyrille Le Bris declared:

"On behalf of BOURBON, I would like to express our condolences to the family and friends of the deceased seafarer. We are at their side to accompany them through this terrible ordeal. Despite significant search resources for the rescue of the crew, the fate of the missing is an ever-increasing source of anxiety for the families. We remain fully mobilized to pursue relief operations and reiterate our warm thanks to all the teams that have volunteered and are helping us in our search." 

Over the past 7 days, an exceptionally extensive search operation has been implemented by the CROSS French West Indies-Guyana (Regional Operational Centre for Surveillance and Rescue) and the French Navy, under the authority of the Prefect representing the State’s maritime authority, with the support of the American authorities. Significant maritime and air resources continue today to be deployed over research areas.

 

Update 05/10/2019

Bourbon's official information

Search operations carried out since September 26 by the CROSS French West Indies-Guyana and the French Navy have enabled to find three survivors of the Bourbon Rhode shipwreck, as well as the bodies of four of our seafarers. Seven other crewmembers are still missing.

Several vessels have continued to survey the search area today, with no results for the past 4 days. The CROSS has decided to make the search operation evolve. It will regularly disseminate messages to vessels in the shipwreck zone and ask them to carry out adapted watch.

BOURBON Corporation CEO Gael Bodénès declared:

"BOURBON and all its employees are in mourning today and I would like to reiterate our sincere condolences and our full support to the families and loved ones of the victims. We are working in close cooperation with the various stakeholders to understand the facts and circumstances of this tragedy. Finally, we thank the entire maritime community for its many signs of solidarity, so precious in these difficult times. I would like to reiterate our heartfelt thanks to the CROSS teams, the crews of the French Navy and the commercial vessels involved in search operations."

 

Update 07/10/2019

Bourbon's official information

The three survivors of Bourbon Rhode’s crew arrived yesterday in Fort de France on board the French Navy frigate "Ventôse". They were welcomed by civil and military authorities, and by BOURBON representatives. The three seafarers, in good health, have been taken care of by the health structures and have already been reunited with their families.

The bodies of the seafarers who died during the sinking, were taken care of by the funeral services and will be repatriated to their families.

BOURBON reminds that an exceptionally extensive search operation, with maritime and air resources, has been implemented since September 26 by the CROSS Antilles-Guyane, responsible for managing and coordinating search and rescue operations on behalf of the French maritime authorities. To date, the search operations decided by the CROSS continues: the Alp Striker vessel - a 90 m AHTS capable of operating over very long distances - is still surveying the area to find the missing seafarers and all merchant vessels operating in this area are mobilized to set up an appropriate watch.

BOURBON teams are providing daily support to the families of the crewmembers. Crisis cells are pursuing their action and working very closely with the various stakeholders to understand the facts and circumstances of this tragedy.

Update 08/10/2019

From the french newspaper Le Parisien

On Sunday night the vessel Alp Striker reported to CROSS Antilles-French Guiana Crisis Headquarters that two observers on the bridge saw white and red pyrotechnic signals that they interpreted as possible distress, the prefecture explains, French newspaper Le Parisien writes.

"The origin of this signal coincides with one of the hypotheses about the search area for survivors of the Bourbon Rhode shipwreck," the prefecture said in a statement.

The Regional Operations Surveillance and Rescue Center "immediately requested that three merchant ships turn off and go to the area they would reach (as of Tuesday)." He also requested that "every ship in the area be awake." Finally, Tuesday morning, "a U.S. Coast Guard Hercules C-130 aircraft will also fly over the area."

 

Bourbon's official information

Following reports by two seafarers onboard the Alp Striker during the night of Sunday to Monday, of signals that they interpreted as potentially emanating from a distress flare, the vessel immediately set a course for the area, in coordination with the CROSS Antilles-Guyane. The CROSS called on 3 additional commercial vessels to change course and head to the area reported as being the origin of the signal. It also received air support from U.S. authorities by way of the aircraft Hercules C-130.

The search operations led by the Alp Striker, involving namely drones, as well as the operations carried out by the three other vessels, and the flyover by the U.S. aircraft Hercules C-130, have delivered no result at this stage.

The crisis cells are pursuing their actions and BOURBON’s teams are offering daily support to the families of crewmembers of the Bourbon Rhode.

Update 09/10/2019

The Marine Transport Workers’ Trade Union of Ukraine (MTWTU):

The wind of hope for all who have been praying for the Bourbon Rhode crew for the second week

Yesterday, on October 8, the launch of a signal missile in the Atlantic Ocean was recorded, and there was a reason to believe that the signal came from the crew members of tug supply vessel Bourbon Rhode, the search for which has been ongoing for the second week.

A missile is a sign that the search with the maximum use of all available means and equipment should continue.

Today, on October 9, according to the European Maritime Safety Agency, which was also confirmed to us by our colleagues from the Croatian Maritime Labor Union, satellite photographs did indeed reveal a raft that could contain missing sailors. The satellite transmits an image with a delay of two hours, so now all the ships nearby are mobilized and sent at the indicated rate.

MTWTU hopes that the alleged information will be confirmed that it is nevertheless a raft with part of the crew of the Bourbon Rhode ship, which managed to escape and survive.

 

Update 11/10/2019

Ukrainian ombudsman Lyudmila Denisova has published on Facebook the names of Ukrainian seafarers who cannot be found yet.

Denisova notes that Andrei Izmail, Alexander Korshikov, Vyacheslav Kovalchuk, Evgeny Melgunov, Oleg Kravets and Dmitry Kozyrev have been looking for two weeks, but their fate is still unknown.
Denisova said she had turned to the French Ambassador for Human Rights with a request to help the effective search for affected Ukrainians.

Update 12/10/2019

Families and friends of the missing AHTS Bourbon Rhode seafarers have open fundraising to continue the search.

They said:

"On September 26th 2019 the Ship Bourbon Rhode with 14 Crew members sunk in the Atlantic.
The Search and Rescue Mission lasted only 7 days, during which time bodies of 4 seafarers were found (God bless their soles), and 3 seafarers were found alive in a life raft.

The rescued seafarers have confirmed that all 4 life rafts were successfully launched! That means that the missing 7 crew members have a good chance of being alive, but still - the SAR mission is already suspended. We cannot stop looking for them as long as there is hope that they can be saved!

With this campaign we want to collect funds to continue the search with whatever means needed.

We have started a Petition and have collected more than 38.000 people that signed the petition, that the SAR (Search And Rescue) Mission shall be continued.

We have created a Facebook Group where we collect Information we can get about the sunken Ship and lost Crew.

We are Friends and Family of the Missing Captain, and with the blessing of other families of crew members lost at sea, we ask you to help us continue the search until every living Crew member will be found!
Thank you all for your donations! Every cent helps! If you cannot donate, please share this story to those that might."

For those of you who were unable to make the donation through the Go Get Funding web site, here is all the data you need to make your payment directly to the account for the “Help us find Bourbon Rhode Crew Lost in the Atlantic” campaign:

BANK ACCOUNT OWNER NAME: MANGOPAY SA
IBAN: FR7618829754160284210614460
BIC: CMBRFR2BCME
WIRE REFERENCE ID: MGxs8u0dyg

Thank you for all your support!

 

Bourbon's official information

Following the report of a possible distress flare on the night of Sunday 6 to Monday October 7, the CROSS French West Indies-Guyana (Regional Operational Centre for Surveillance and Rescue) dispatched 4 ships to search the area, with the support of an overflight by the US Coast Guards aircraft. Over the past week, search has been intense and extensive to try to detect a sign after on the one hand, the report of this potential distress flare and on the other hand, the satellite photo obtained from the European Maritime Safety Agency (EMSA). These new searches have unfortunately been unsuccessful.

As a whole, search operations have not found any trace of life or life rafts for more than 10 days now despite measures of exceptional magnitude.

As a reminder, search and rescue operations have been going on for 16 days, with the sinking of the ship taking place on September 26 as it faced hurricane Lorenzo. As decided by the CROSS, search operations are no suspended and won’t stop on a specific date. But they are entering a new phase of active monitoring during which the CROSS will mobilize all vessel transiting in the area to implement an adapted monitoring.

BOURBON CEO Gaël Bodénès declared:

“Our priority is to provide families and relatives of the BOURBON Rhode crew with all possible support under these tragic circumstances. On behalf of all the employees and in particular all those who work tirelessly within the BOURBON crisis cells, I want to reiterate how much our thoughts are with the families of the missing seafarers.”