The US-flagged Stena Imperative took direct fire from aerial strikes while berthed shortly after 02:00 AST in the Arabian Gulf, a Stena spokesperson confirmed. Two impacts hit the vessel, and a fire was extinguished shortly afterward. The vessel is secure, mariners reported no injuries, and a damage assessment is being conducted.
One shipyard worker was reported deceased, and authorities report two shipyard workers were injured. com places the vessel's location in Bahrain. The Bahrain Ministry of Interior reported a vessel fire and death caused by the fire, stating the ship was hit by falling debris from intercepted missiles.
Stena Imperative was harassed by Iranian gunboats off the coast of Dubai in early February. It was the only US-flagged ship in the Middle East region and part of the US Navy's Tanker Security Programme. Vessels with overt ties to the US and Israel are uniformly assessed as having a high security threat profile in the region.
Governments and agencies across the Middle East have reported missile and drone attacks from Iran on harbours and terminals, causing damage, injury, disruption and port closures. Infrastructure has been struck in Bahrain, Oman, Qatar, Saudi Arabia and the UAE, resulting in damage to quaysides, naval bases and warehouses. Governments in Oman and Qatar condemned Iranian strikes on the commercial port of Duqm in Oman, shipping off their coasts and in Doha.
Duqm port was targeted by two drones, injuring a worker. QatarEnergy has temporarily halted LNG production after its facilities in Ras Laffan and Mesaieed were targeted by drones, immediately impacting gas prices worldwide. Jebel Ali Port in Dubai was struck by debris from an intercepted Iranian missile.
The US and Iran have each announced measures designed to challenge the other's claims of controlling navigation through the Strait of Hormuz. Commercial traffic through the strait remains at a fraction of pre-war levels. The Pentagon launched a military mission to facilitate the exit of stranded vessels from the Mideast Gulf.
The US-led Joint Maritime Information Center advised vessels transiting Hormuz to travel through Omani territorial waters. Tehran issued a requirement for ships seeking to pass through Hormuz to obtain a transit permit from a newly created agency, the Persian Gulf Strait Authority. Iran since March has required ships to transit Hormuz via a route close to its coastline, with many ships either paying an unofficial toll or making other arrangements with Iranian authorities.
Maritime associations have warned that risks to shipping in the Strait of Hormuz remain elevated. A total of 19 vessels left the Mideast Gulf through Hormuz in the last two weeks. At least three vessels came under attack in the vicinity or in the Strait of Hormuz in recent days, including a cargo vessel transiting the strait on Tuesday.
The US mission to challenge Iran's control over the Strait of Hormuz enabled two US-flagged vessels to leave the Mideast Gulf. Iran's IRGC published a new map of the Strait of Hormuz illustrating the area under its management and control, challenging the US-recommended route. President Trump's administration launched 'Project Freedom' mission on Monday to facilitate the exit of ships stranded in the Mideast Gulf after the US-Israel war against Iran began on 28 February.
The US and Iran exchanged fire on Monday, with Iran launching missiles targeting US warships transiting Hormuz while the US destroyed six Iranian naval boats. In a separate maritime incident, the Stena Line ferry Stena Ebba has been stuck outside Karlskrona since Thursday morning, with passengers and crew waiting over 30 hours to disembark. The delay is because another Stena Line ferry, Stena Spirit, ran aground and is blocking the harbor.
Stena Spirit was damaged while docking in windy conditions on Wednesday. Stena Line is waiting for approval from Transportstyrelsen to move the grounded Stena Spirit to a repair yard, which would allow Stena Ebba to dock. Transportstyrelsen states they are waiting for more information, including stability calculations, before granting approval.
A press officer from Transportstyrelsen, Carolina Häggkvist, said the decision actually rests with the Danish maritime authority because the vessel is Danish-flagged. Passenger Tord Norrby on Stena Ebba expressed frustration, feeling like a pawn in a game, and reported that sick passengers are running out of medicine with no information provided. Passenger Jan Björn on Stena Ebba has run out of medicine but remains in good spirits.
In Norway, ferry disruptions have also caused significant problems. Frode Marthinussen was stuck on the ferry MF 'Storfjord' for three hours and fifteen minutes due to fog. The ferry departed 5 minutes late because of initially improving visibility.
Mid-fjord, fog became so dense that the ferry could not proceed or turn back, and passengers were told they could not reach land. The ferry lay outside Leirvåg for about two hours before docking, with visibility so poor that a tanker 40-50 meters ahead was not visible. The ferry docked at Leirvåg just after 9:00, approximately three hours behind schedule.
Dense fog caused major disruptions to ferry services in Vestland, with several routes cancelled and most others reporting significant delays. Cancelled routes include Leirvåg-Sløvåg, Gjermundshamn-Varaldsøy-Årsnes, Fedje-Sævrøy, and Langevåg-Buavåg. Tor Kristoffersen of Fjord1 stated that travelers must expect delays and cancellations due to weather, and that passengers are not entitled to compensation due to force majeure.
The Skenäs ferry service will be suspended on Wednesday, April 22, between 08:15 and 15:00 due to planned maintenance. The Visingsö ferry Braheborg experienced technical problems on Lake Vättern on Easter Monday, resulting in a nearly two-hour detour before returning to port. Remote Norwegian businesses have struggled with ferry capacity for fish transport.
Sufi AS had to pay several hundred thousand kroner for an extra ferry departure during Easter. The skrei fishing this year has mostly taken place off the coast of Finnmark, not in Lofoten as usual. Fish processing plants along the Finnmark coast have had very high volumes of fish.
In Bergsfjord, the regular ferry service was too limited to handle normal passengers and all the trailers with fresh fish during Easter. There was fish worth over 10 million kroner left on the quay. The fish processing plant had to pay the bill for the extra departure themselves.
This is a problem that happens every year, especially during periods of high activity. Ole Olsen has been in dialogue with the county municipality, and experiences that some listen while others do not understand how big the problem is. The message has been that there is no budget to put in extra ferry departures.
The municipality has been in dialogue with Finnmark county municipality, but finds it difficult to get through. Extra ferry departures must be politically decided in advance. When acute needs arise, the situation becomes difficult because the county does not have a mandate to finance extra departures without a political decision.
Interested parties must be early in flagging extra needs where they see they may arise, so that politicians can possibly decide necessary funds. Other ferry and cruise incidents include Eckerö Line's cruise ship m/s Finlandia returning to Tallinn shortly after departure on Saturday evening due to a passenger's serious medical emergency. The captain decided the situation was so serious that the person needed hospital care, and an ambulance was ordered to the port.
The passenger was unconscious when the announcement was made and a doctor was requested on board. Estonian Police and Border Guard had no matching assignment at Tallinn port on Saturday evening. A Gotland ferry with about 800 passengers turned back near Oskarshamn due to winds of 30 m/s, deemed unsafe for docking.
The Gotland ferry departed from Visby on Sunday evening and returned to Visby after the decision. Storm Dave is affecting large parts of southern Sweden with hurricane-force gusts in some areas.