tagged w/ Ady Gil
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Holy Sheite seems to be the best term of the day to describe the footage of the Japanese whaling ship run-in with the Sea Shepherd's space-age-whale-protecting-batmobile (thanks progresshiv for bringing this video to Current).
You can read Sea Shepherd's account of the run-in:
In an unprovoked attack captured on film, the Japanese security ship Shonan Maru No. 2 deliberately rammed and caused catastrophic damage to the Sea Shepherd catamaran Ady Gil.
Six crew crewmembers, four from New Zealand, one from Australia, and one from the Netherlands were immediately rescued by the crew of the Sea Shepherd ship Bob Barker. None of the crew Ady Gil crew were injured.
The Ady Gil is believed to be sinking and chances of salvage are very grim.
According to eyewitness Captain Chuck Swift on the Bob Barker, the attack happened while the vessels were dead in the water. The Shonan Maru No. 2 suddenly started up and deliberately rammed the Ady Gil ripping eight feet of the bow of the vessel completely off. According to Captain Swift, the vessel does not look like it will be saved.
“The Japanese whalers have now escalated this conflict very violently,” said Captain Paul Watson. “If they think that our remaining two ships will retreat from the Southern Ocean Whale Sanctuary in the face of their extremism, they will be mistaken. We now have a real whale war on our hands now and we have no intention of retreating.”
C'mon. The term "unprovoked attack" raises all kinds of questions. I'm glad there are people out there like the Sea Sheppard vehemently protecting the whales and bringing the issues at hand to the surface~ but frankly, I can't tell if this is unprovoked~ and if memory serves, the Sea Shepard's soul purpose is to attack.
It is curious and interesting that this footage was taken and released by what appears to be the Japanese whaling ship. That raises all kinds of questions.
Meanwhile~ if you are seeking a little more drama to go with your mid-day coffee, enjoy this footage of Whale Wars:
Related Content:
What Lies Beneath~ Diving into the belly of the planet
Extreme(ly) saving the world as we know it
Are whales trying to communicate with us? Holy Sheite seems to be the best term of the day to describe the footage of the... more
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leahl
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2 years ago
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Japanese whalers have detained the skipper of the stricken Ady Gil on board their vessel today, anti-whaling boat Sea Shepherd captain Paul Watson says.
Pete Bethune boarded the Shonan Maru 2 about 6.30am (11.30am NZ time) from a jet ski in order to make a citizen's arrest of the vessel's captain for allegedly ramming and sinking his ship and the "attempted murder" of the crew on board during an incident on January 6.
The high-tech speedboat Ady Gil, which had been part of efforts to harass Japanese whalers in the Southern Ocean, sank following a collision with the Shonan Maru.
The Sea Shepherd Conservation Society later filed with New Zealand police a complaint of attempted murder against the captain of a Japanese whaling vessel.
As well as the citizen's arrest, Mr Bethune was to present a $3 million bill to the whalers for the cost of replacing the Ady Gil.
The whalers had acknowledged Mr Bethune was on board, Mr Watson told NZPA.
"Pete presented the skipper with a demand that he turn himself in to a New Zealand or Australian port in order to answer to charges of destroying the Ady Gil and the attempted murder of six Sea Shepherd (Society) crew members.
"Of course we know they're not going to do that, but we have to press the case. They destroyed our ship without any repercussions."Japanese whalers have detained the skipper of the stricken Ady Gil on board their... more
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If you’ve seen the TV series “Whale Wars,” you know all about the Sea Shepherds, those activists who try to obstruct Japanese whalers, to the chagrin of whale eaters and Greenpeace alike. The group just lost a very expensive carbon fiber and Kevlar speedboat in the craft’s maiden confrontation with a Japanese whaling vessel.
The Sea Shepherds and the Japanese are blaming each other for the sinking, but anyone with real sea legs would instantly recognize the culprit: The Shepherds renamed the speedboat from Earthrace to Ady Gil. Every sailor knows it’s the worst kind of bad luck to rename a vessel.If you’ve seen the TV series “Whale Wars,” you know all about the... more
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The Sea Shepherd Conservation Society, featured in the Animal Planet reality show Whale Wars, was struck a nasty blow this week when Japanese Whalers allegedly rammed and sank one of their new boats, the Ady Gil.The Sea Shepherd Conservation Society, featured in the Animal Planet reality show... more
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ship sinks whale protest boat Ady Gil
The high-tech stealth boat Ady Gil was cut in half and sunk by a Japanese security vessel in Antarctic waters today, dramatically upping the stakes in the annual struggle between whalers and protesters.
Sea Shepherd group leader Paul Watson told Fairfax Media the $1.5 million Ady Gil was sinking, but its six-man crew had been rescued and was uninjured.
Earlier today, the fleet was contacted for the first time by the Ady Gil and Sea Shepherd's "secret" third vessel, the Bob Barker.
Captain Watson, aboard the Steve Irwin, said he was still 500 nautical miles from the scene.
"This seriously escalates the whole situation," Captain Watson said of the collision.
The ICR said the Ady Gil came "within collision distance" directly in front of the Nisshin Maru bow and repeatedly deployed a rope from its stern "to entangle the Japanese vessel's rudder and propeller".
The statement accused the activists of shining a laser device at the Nisshin Maru crew and launching acid-filled projectiles, one of which landed on the vessel's deck.
After broadcasting a warning message, the Nisshin Maru sprayed the Ady Gil with water cannons to prevent it from coming closer, the ICR said.
Captain Watson told Fairfax in November the Ady Gil would be used to intercept the whaling fleet's chaser boats.
"What I think we can do is latch onto at least one of the three harpoon vessels and keep them out of the picture," he said.
Looking more like Batman's spacecraft than a boat, the biodiesel-powered trimaran Ady Gil arrived at the Southern Ocean stand-off between Japanese whalers and activists yesterday.
It was reported this morning to be about 50 nautical miles away from the whaling fleet.
Japan's Fisheries Minister Hirotaka Akamatsu had earlier warned two security ships would be used to protect the whaling fleet, intervening when Sea Shepherd tried to block the transfer of harpooned whales to the factory ship Nisshin Maru.
Captain Watson this morning announced the existence of a secret third ship in the Sea Shepherd flotilla.
He said he was confident that with three ships, Sea Shepherd would be able to cause maximum disruption to the whaling, which has been underway for around a month.
Japanese whalers have stepped up security this year, sending spy flights from Australian airports to track protest ships.
The Hobart flights were paid for by Wellington-based Omeka Communications, air industry sources told Fairfax.
Omeka is a public relations firm retained by Japan's Institute of Cetacean Research. The Hobart flights carried Omeka's principal, Glenn Inwood, who is an institute spokesman, and another man, the sources said.
The operation started in December when the Steve Irwin left Fremantle to intercept the whaling fleet, which this year is targeting 935 minke whales and 50 fin whales.
WA pilots said surveillance flights continued out of Albany for some days, costing a ''truckload'' of money. Two men aboard the flights told locals they were ''looking for people who were looking for whales''.
The Rudd Government has repeatedly called for caution by both sides in the wilds of the Antarctic.
"We have reminded the masters of protest vessels of their obligations under international law to take all steps to ensure safety of life at sea, particularly in the inhospitable conditions of the Southern Ocean," Environment Minister Peter Garrett said recently.
"We are also passing the same message to the government of Japan."
FACTS ON THE ADY GIL
Top speed: 40 knots (74 kmh)
Cruising speed: 20 knots (37 km/h)
Range: Halfway around the world - 20,000 km
Cost: Estimated $1 million
Length: 24 metres
Weight: 16 tonnes
Construction: Carbon fibre foam sandwich with kevlar armour.
Source: theage.com.auship sinks whale protest boat Ady Gil
The high-tech stealth boat Ady Gil was cut in... more
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