Hot Port News from GAC
04-Mar-2020
TEMPORARY SHORE LEAVE RESTRICTIONS
Taman, Russia
PREVENTING CROSS-BORDER SPREAD OF COVID-19
Constanta, Romania
PORT HEALTH OFFICE MEASURES
Tema & Takoradi, Ghana
TEMPORARY TRAVEL BAN
Angola
LATEST COVID-19 MEASURES
Port Klang, Malaysia
EXTENSION OF PRECAUTIONARY MEASURES
Singapore
MARITIME DECLARATION OF HEALTH
Singapore
REQUIRED ADVANCE DOCUMENTS
Lomé, Togo
VESSELS ARRIVING FROM CHINA & IRAN
Bahrain
MAXIMUM AUTHORISED DRAFT FOR NEOPANAMAX LOCKS
Panama Canal, Panama
Temporary shore leave restrictions
Wednesday, March 4, 2020, Taman, Russia
Due to COVID-19, from 2 March 2020, the following restrictions have been implemented at the port of Taman:
Shore leave is temporary prohibited for all crew and passengers with Chinese, South Korean, Italian or Iranian passports.
Shore leaves is temporary prohibited for all crew and passengers on vessels that have visited Chinese, South Korean, Italian or Iranian ports within the last 14 days prior to arrival at Taman.
In addition to standard pre-arrival information, ships calling at Taman port must furnish to the Port Authorities a list of previous ports of call for at least the last 40 days, with dates of arrival and departure from each port.
For further details and updates, as well as information about operations in Russia, contact GAC Russia at russia@gac.com
Preventing cross-border spread of COVID-19
Wednesday, March 4, 2020, Constanta, Romania
The Romanian Ministry of Health’s Department for Public Health of Constanta District Office for Supervision/Control of Contagious Diseases has advised the following procedures to prevent the spread of the COVID-19 epidemic disease:
Route of each vessel calling Constanta Port will be checked via Maritime Single Window (MSW) for tracking positions of last 14 days.
The crew list will be checked to detect persons coming from risk areas. The office will contact the agent, asking for information regarding crew changes of persons from risk areas in the last 14 days.
The Maritime Health Declaration uploaded into MSW system will be carefully checked to trace any suspicious cases, in accordance with medical protocol.
Medical-Sanitary Office of Constanta Port personnel, fully equipped with medical overalls, hairnet, facial mask with filter and gloves (all single use), will board vessels to take the temperature of all persons coming from risk areas in the last 14 days. All such persons will be asked about clinic criteria (fever over 38° Celsius, cough, shortness of breath, malaise) and epidemic criteria (the history of last travels before embarkation, the contact with sick people for persons suspected of COVID-19 infection). The Medical Log will be mandatorily checked to searching for symptoms and medical treatments for the last 14 days, which can indicate the symptomatology of the infection at the current date of control.
If no suspicion of respiratory infection is found as per medical protocol definition, but a vessel arrives at Constanta within 14 days of standard incubation time after departing a risk zone, the following procedures will be taken:
I.a) no shore-pass will be issued and crew members will not be allowed to leave the vessel until fulfillment of 14 days. During this period, crew members’ temperature will be taken twice daily and the Medical-Sanitary Office of Constanta Port Border be informed about any raised values or occurrence of specific symptoms in order to introduce the standard procedure.
I.b) There will be maximum restricted contact of shore personnel with crew members on board. When proximity cannot be avoided, equipment mentioned in Point 4 above must be used and contact with crew members must be for a maximum of 15 minutes and individuals should keep a distance of least 2 metres between them. Protection equipment will be taken off after going on shore, but prior of getting into the car, and collected into yellow plastic bags marked “Biological hazard”. The plastic bags will be delivered to an authorised company for burning.
I.c) The vessel will continue port operations, such as loading, discharging, bunkering, etc., by following the rule I.b)
I.d) After expiry of 14 days – all restrictions are cancelled.
If suspected infection found among crew members or the vessel is coming from a risk area:
II.a) Quarantine will be declared which means no operational activity will be allowed except supply of food provision, water, drugs and medical products.
II.b) The emergency number 112 will be used to call the special ambulance for transportation to the Hospital for Contagious Disease in Constanta.
II.c) The agent and the port authorities will be informed about the suspected COVID-19 infection and the establishment of quarantine.
II.d) No action will be taken until the presentation of the lab’s results for the tests collected from the suspected person. If the results confirm the COVID-19 infection, the quarantine will be maintained based on standard procedures for these cases. If results do not confirm the COVID-19 infection, the quarantine will be cancelled and, subject of numbers of days passed on from the moment when vessel left the risk area, medical supervision will continue until the fulfillment of the 14 days.
II.e) The vessel will be disinfected by authorised companies.
(For information about operations in Romania, contact the GAC Dubai Hub Agency Centre at hub.ae@gac.com)
Source: Idu Shipping, Romania – GAC agent
Port Health Office measures
Wednesday, March 4, 2020, Tema & Takoradi, Ghana
The Port Health Authority under the Ghana Health Service is strengthening the preventive and control measures at Tema and Takoradi ports.
The Port Health Authority is embarking on screening and disinfection of all vessels arriving into the country from the affected countries, especially China.
We entreat all agencies handling vessels within the Tema Port to notify the Port Health office ahead of the arrival of a vessel (at least four clear days) at the port for appropriate health surveillance and monitoring of the vessel and its contents for us to prepare adequately healthwise.
(For information about operations in Ghana, contact the GAC Ghana at gac-oma.ghana@gac.com)
Source: Ghana Health Service Port Health Office, Tema, Notice for incoming vessels dated 2 March 2020
Temporary travel ban
Wednesday, March 4, 2020, Angola
In order to restrict exposure to the Corona Virus epidemic, the Ministry of Health in Angola has imposed a temporary travel ban with effect from 3 March on travellers from below listed countries:
China
South Korea
Iran
Italy
Nigeria
Egypt
Algeria
The ban will remain in force until further notice from the Ministry of Health.
For further details and updates, as well as information about operations in Angola, contact GAC Angola at angola@gac.com
Latest COVID-19 measures
Wednesday, March 4, 2020, Port Klang, Malaysia
As per the latest COVID-19 briefing by the Ministry of Health at Lembaga Pelabuhan Kelang LPK yesterday (3 March), the following is now in force:
All vessels coming arriving within 14 days of departing from China (including Macau, Taiwan & Hong Kong), Italy, South Korea, Japan and Iran will be placed under Quarantine status. No one will be allowed to board the vessel prior to ‘all-clear’ has been notified by local Port Health Authority.
All Chinese crew that seek treatment in Malaysia will be vetted at local Port Health office before being sent to Sungai Buloh Hospital for treatment. No private hospital is allowed during this critical time.
If a crew member is declared ‘positive’ of COVID virus, they will immediately be taken to the Immigration Office and the Immigration officer will provide them special pass to be taken to Sungai Buloh hospital for Quarantine process.
Immigration procedures remain as outlined in the circular dated 9 February 2020.
For further details and updates, as well as information about operations at Malaysian ports, contact GAC Malaysia at shipping.malaysia@gac.com
Extension of precautionary measures
Wednesday, March 4, 2020, Singapore
The Maritime and Port Authority of Singapore (MPA) has implemented temperature screening at all sea checkpoints, including ferry and cruise terminals, PSA terminals and Jurong Port, for inbound travellers. MPA has also put up health advisories at the sea checkpoints to inform travellers and ship crew on the precautionary measures to take when travelling, as well as to remain vigilant and adopt good hygiene practices…
…The MPA will extend the precautionary measures to include the following:
a. All arriving vessels with crew/passengers with recent travel history to mainland China, Iran, northern Italy [the 8 administrative regions in northern Italy: Aosta Valley, Piedmont, Liguria, Lombardy, Emilia-Romagna, Veneto, Friuli-Venezia Giulia and Trentino-Alto Adige/Südtirol] or the Republic of Korea in the past 14 days;
and
b. All arriving vessels that have called at ports in mainland China, Iran, northern Italy [ ports located in the 8 administrative regions in northern Italy: Marina di Carrara, La Spezia, Genoa, Savona, Ravenna, Porto Levante, Chioggia, Venice, Porto Nogaro, Monfalcone and Trieste] or the Republic of Korea in the past 14 days.
Ships can continue to berth at terminals to carry out operations.
MPA advises the shipping community to adhere closely to the health advisory. The National Environment Agency’s (NEA) Port Health requires the following vessels to submit the Maritime Declaration of Health Form:
a. All arriving passenger ships (with the exception of ferries operated by MPA-licenced regional ferry service operators); or
b. All arriving vessels with crew/passengers with recent travel history to mainland China, Iran, northern Italy or the Republic of Korea in the past 14 days; or
c. All arriving vessels that have called at ports in mainland China, Iran, northern Italy or the Republic of Korea in the past 14 days.
MPA also urges all crew members onboard to have their temperature taken twice daily. There are also guidelines on how to isolate unwell crew and passengers… …If any of their crew or passengers are unwell, they should report the incident to the Marine Safety Control Centre at 6325 2488/2489…
…Ship owners, managers, operators, agents and masters of Singapore-registered vessels should monitor the health of their crew closely. Masters of such vessels are required to report to their company, MPA and destination port authorities, if their crew are unwell, experience respiratory symptoms (e.g. cough, runny nose, shortness of breath) or feel feverish. They should also make the necessary arrangements to seek medical attention…
…Since 08 February 2020, 2359 hrs, cruise and ferry terminal operators have implemented centralised outbound temperature screening for departing passengers. This is an additional precautionary measure by the terminal operators to ensure the health and safety of all passengers and crew…
…Cruise and ferry operators have also stepped up their cleaning and disinfection regime on board the cruise ships and ferries, especially in common or public areas to help prevent the widespread transmission of COVID-19.
PSA and Jurong Port are also taking precautionary measures for employees returning to Singapore. Some of these measures include allowing eligible staff to telecommute and providing frontline staff with paid Leave of Absence where they are unable to work remotely.
This circular supersedes Port Marine Circular No. 07 of 2020.
(For information about operations in Singapore, contact GAC Singapore at singapore@gac.com)
Source: Maritime and Port Authority of Singapore Port Marine Circular No.09 of 2020 dated 4 March 2020
Maritime Declaration of Health
Wednesday, March 4, 2020, Singapore
This circular supersedes Port Marine Circular 06 of 2020 dated 26 Feb 2020, and brings to the attention of the National Environment Agency’s (Port Health Office) requirements to submit the Maritime Declaration of Health to the Port Health Office. These requirements are applicable for the following vessels:
All arriving passenger ships (with the exception of ferries operated by MPA-licensed regional ferry service operators);
or
All arriving vessels with crew/passengers with recent travel history to mainland China, Iran, northern Italy [the 8 administrative regions in northern Italy: Aosta Valley, Piedmont, Liguria, Lombardy, Emilia-Romagna, Veneto, Friuli-Venezia Giulia and Trentino-Alto Adige/Südtirol] or the Republic of Korea in the past 14 days;
or
All arriving vessels that have called at ports in mainland China, Iran, northern Italy [ports located in the 8 administrative regions in northern Italy: Marina di Carrara, La Spezia, Genoa, Savona, Ravenna, Porto Levante, Chioggia, Venice, Porto Nogaro, Monfalcone, and Trieste] or the Republic of Korea in the past 14 days.
This declaration is part of the measures to prevent the spread of Coronavirus Disease 2019 (COVID-19) into Singapore and come into effect from 04 Mar 2020, 2359hrs. It must be submitted to the National Environment Agency’s (Port Health Office) 24 hours before arrival at Singapore Port…
The master of the ship is recommended to implement the following additional precautionary measures:
a. Educate crew/passengers of the symptoms of COVID-19, which are:
i. Fever;
ii. Runny nose;
iii. Cough; and
iv. Shortness of breath
b. Carry out daily temperature checks for all crew/passengers at least twice daily;
c. Isolate unwell crew/passengers when his/her temperature is above 38 degree Celsius. The unwell crew should also wear a mask;
and
d. Disinfect common areas and rooms in the vessel before arrival in Singapore. The disinfection may be conducted by the ship’s crew en-route to Singapore. You can refer to the Interim Guidelines for Environmental Cleaning and Disinfection of Areas Exposed to Confirmed Case(s) of COVID-19 in Non-Healthcare Premises issued by NEA for guidance on the disinfection protocols, if needed.
Any queries relating to this circular should be directed to the Port Health Office at Tel: (65) 6222-2585.
(For information about operations in Singapore, contact GAC Singapore at singapore@gac.com)
Source: Maritime and Port Authority of Singapore Port Marine Circular No.08 of 2020 dated 4 March 2020
Required advance documents
Wednesday, March 4, 2020, Lomé, Togo
Port Authorities have advised that from today (3 March), all vessels calling at Lomé, both offshore and in the port, must send the following documents at least 72 hours prior to arrival:
Crew list – this must state crew embarkation port/Country and date.
Maritime Declaration of Health
Last 10 ports of call
Where this is not possible, the documents must be sent immediately on leaving the previous port of call.
Port Health will attend vessels arriving from affected countries, to disinfect the vessel first before any other persons embark to carry out their assigned jobs.
(For information about operations in Togo, contact the GAC Dubai Hub Agency Centre at hub.ae@gac.com)
Source: OMA Togo – GAC agent
Vessels arriving from China & Iran
Wednesday, March 4, 2020, Bahrain
Any vessel that has called at a port in China or Iran may not enter Bahrain if 14 days have not passed since its sailing date.
For further details and updates, as well as information about operations in Bahrain, contact GAC Bahrain at bahrain@gac.com
Maximum authorised draft for Neopanamax locks
Wednesday, March 4, 2020, Panama Canal, Panama
Based on the present and projected level of Gatun Lake for the upcoming weeks, the Panama Canal Authority (ACP) announces that, effective March 30, 2020, the Maximum Authorized Draft for vessels transiting the Neopanamax locks will be 13.87 m (45.5 feet) Tropical Fresh Water (TFW).
Vessels arriving after March 30, 2020, with drafts over 13.87 m (45.5 feet) TFW may be allowed to transit, depending on the actual level of Gatun Lake at the time of transit. Otherwise, they will be required to trim or off-load cargo in order to be allowed to transit.
Draft adjustments will be announced in 6-inch (15.24 cm) increments/decrements, generally with at least four weeks advance notice.
The ACP will continue to monitor the level of Gatun Lake in order to announce future draft adjustments in a timely manner.
(For information about operations in Panama, contact GAC Panama at operations.panama@gac.com)
Source: Panama Canal Authority Advisory To Shipping No.A-07-2020 dated 2 March 2020
