Toyama, Japan - Vladivostok ferry problem
 

Just saw the news this morning about the typhoon that hit Japan. Especially hard hit was the port city of Toyama where the two Russian ships transport used autos from Japan to Vladivostok in Russia and which double as the RTW biker transport ships between Japan and Russia. TV news coverage showed film of one of the ships, the Antonina Nezhdanova, full of cars and capsized at port. It mentioned that there are around 60 reported deaths and many more people unacounted for. It did not mention the fate of the passangers and crew of that particular ship or the fate of the Rus, the other ship which I sailed on in June. I hope for the best...



------------------
Improvement makes strait roads, but the crooked roads without Improvement, are roads of Genius - William Blake

Seamen from the ship Antonina Nezhdanova have returned to Vladivostok in the middle of the last week. All are alive. The vessel lays at the bottom and it have already recognized unsuitable to the further work. Many businessmen which carried machines from Japan

Like Daana said, everyone on the ship is OK. The ship was struck against the dock, developed a hole, and capsized. This unfortunately is probably going to block the dock for a few months. Mart Heijnens of the Netherlands made it across about 2 weeks before the accident. This has been a bad year for natural disasters in Japan. 10 typhoons (average is 3 or 4) making landfall, and a big earthquake.
Hopefully ferry service will be restored by Spring. At least they have another ship...
Picture here:
http://www.maritimematters.com/image...nina102104.jpg

Now on TV and in newspapers write about that who more will compensate cost of automobiles and motorcycles former on a vessel. And about that that as the vessel remained only one, accordingly and import of automobiles to Vladivostok reduce machines and motorcycles probably will rise in price.