Loss Prevention Advice
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Commercial shipping in the eastern Black Sea faces extreme risk as daily drone attacks expand into neutral international waters.
Overview
Escalating drone attacks on merchant ships in neutral waters mean there is no longer a safe haven for commercial shipping in the region, unless these attacks stop completely.
Ukrainian drone forces have shifted their focus from the outer roads of Russian ports (at the beginning of August) to the international waters of the Black Sea.
The latest drone attacks on vessels heading to or from Russian ports occurred on August 26, 2026.
The only major exception is crude oil tankers loading at the Caspian Pipeline Consortium (CPC) terminal off Novorossiysk. Aside from the m/t SKIROS on August 17, 2026, tankers at the CPC terminal have not faced targeted strikes in the past several weeks, and the terminal operates normally.
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A tanker transiting westbound in the Gulf of Aden has reportedly been hijacked on 20 August, approximately 136 nautical miles east of Al Mukalla, Yemen, highlighting a renewed crisis in waters off Somalia.
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Since their introduction, Electronic Chart Display and Information Systems (ECDIS) and Electronic Navigational Charts (ENCs) have rapidly become the primary means of navigation aboard many vessels.
As explained in the “ECDIS – Safety Settings,” briefing, ECDIS offers several advantages over traditional paper charts, one of the most important being its ability to alert navigators when a vessel may be approaching dangerous waters. By using safety settings tailored to the vessel’s condition, ECDIS can provide valuable warnings and support safer navigation.
However, these settings must be properly understood, configured and used to ensure they deliver their full benefit.
Safety contour
This is the primary safety feature on the ECDIS. It is set by the user and marks the boundary between safe water and shallow water.
How does it do this?
Before departing port, the ECDIS user must set a value for the safety contour. This should take into account the vessel’s draught and required under-keel clearance. The quality of the ENC data available must also be considered. The safety contour shows on the ENC as an extra wide isoline.
Users should check their SMS for the procedure on setting the safety contour. If it is not set, the ECDIS default value for the safety contour is 30m.
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Nine people were killed and several others injured after a suspected toxic gas leak inside a ship being dismantled at a shipbreaking yard in Bangladesh on 14 August.
The incident occurred at around 9:00 a.m. local time at a yard in Sitakunda, on the outskirts of the southeastern port city of Chattogram, according to Md Alamgir, an inspector at the local Sitakunda Police Station.
“Two more bodies were found at the yard at around 2:30 p.m. local time after six deaths had already been confirmed there,” he said.