GRLife
Fast-changing Arctic and North Atlantic conditions bring route risk


Climate change is impacting ice hazards for shipping, freeing up new trade routes in some areas, while increasing the risk of ice in others. More information on the Safety and Shipping Review 2018.
There was another milestone for Arctic shipping in early 2018 when a specially-designed LNG tanker became the first commercial ship to travel the Northern Sea Route in winter and without the assistance of an ice breaker.
The Eduard Toll successfully journeyed from South Korea to Montoir, France via northern Russia, shaving around 3,000 nautical miles off the traditional transit via the Suez Canal.
It followed the transit in August 2017 of another specially-designed tanker, the Christophe de Margerle, which became the first merchant ship to sail across the Arctic Ocean without the aid of an icebreaker. It took just 19 days to reach South Korea from Norway, almost a week faster than going via the Mediterranean.
Arctic ice has been thinning and retreating over the past 40 years, bringing new opportunities for shipping, but also serious environmental concerns. Research shows the mean center of shipping activity moved 300km north and east— closer to the North Pole—over a seven-year span.
As a result, a growing number of vessels are sailing in Arctic waters. For example, cargo volumes on the Northern Sea Route (NSR) increased by nearly 40% to 9.7 million tons in 2017, the biggest annual volume ever, according to the Russian Federal Agency for Maritime and River Transport.
This is expected to rise to 40 million tons by 2022, reflecting the development of oil and gas fields, and 70 to 80 million tons by 2030. “Climate change could open up new shipping routes in the Arctic, such as the North West Passage, and routes across Russia and Canada. These routes will have advantages as well as disadvantages. For example, a collision in a remote hostile environment like the Arctic could prove challenging, and would be a long way away from salvage teams,” says Volker Dierks, Head of Marine Hull Underwriting, AGCS Central & Eastern Europe.
In February 2018, China announced plans for an “Arctic Silk Road” by developing shipping lanes opened up by global warming. China said it would encourage infrastructure development and conduct commercial trial voyages in Arctic waters, with plans to build its first Polar expedition cruise ship by 2019.
At the beginning of 2017 the International Code of Safety for Ships Operating in Polar Waters (Polar Code) came into force. The code introduces mandatory requirements for shipping in Polar regions, principally relating to ice navigation, manning and ship design.
“The Polar Code continues to be refined,” says Captain Andrew Kinsey, Senior Marine Risk Consultant, AGCS. “Arctic conditions are fast-changing and the normal International Maritime Organization review updates are too slow. For these new shipping routes we need to find faster ways to disseminate information and the lessons of successful transits.”
Ships operating in Arctic waters are bound by the Polar Code, but ice is also posing a significant hazard for shipping elsewhere.
Outside the Arctic and Antarctic, a number of so-called conditional areas also carry a higher risk of ice, including the Gulf of St. Lawrence, Alaska, Sakhalin, Russia and the Baltic Sea. Trading in these areas has also been increasing with global warming.
There is also a threat of ice hazards in more southerly shipping routes from icebergs. At the end of 2017, the US Coast Guard’s International Ice Patrol warned shipping companies that an unusual number of icebergs were drifting into shipping lanes. It found that over 1,000 icebergs had drifted into North Atlantic shipping lanes in 2017, marking it the fourth consecutive season where the danger has been classified as “extreme”.
“Such extraordinary conditions require complementary training for crew, as well as additional routing support,” says Arnaud Gibrais, a Senior Marine Risk Consultant at AGCS, based in Paris.
“A melting Arctic could lead to an increase in icebergs affecting trade routes, although this has not yet been a problem for the major north, south, east or west shipping lanes. But this might become more of an issue in the future,” adds Dierks.
Climate researchers at the University of Manitoba, Winnipeg have also claimed more Arctic sea ice is entering the North Atlantic Ocean, increasing the level of hazard for ships in late spring. Arctic sea ice blocked normally open areas of ocean around Newfoundland in May and June 2017.
The ice cover trapped many ships and even sunk some boats when it punctured hulls, the research found.
Entertainment
“His Death Leaves a Huge Void”, Gov Mbah Mourns Music Icon, Ejeagha


Governor of Enugu State, Dr. Peter Mbah, has expressed deep grief over the death of music icon, ‘Gentleman’ Mike Ejeagha, saying the legend had created a void that would be too difficult to fill.
Mbah described Ejeagha as an unassuming and easygoing personality, whose fanbase spread across international boundaries.
Recall that the news of the passing on of the ‘Gwo gwo gwo ngwo’ crooner at age 95 filtered into public space Friday evening.
Reacting to the sad development, the governor, who had celebrated the folklorist during his lifetime by reconstructing the popular Obinagu Road and the adjoining Chief Mike Ejeagha Crescent leading directly to his residence in Abakpa Nike, Enugu, a long wish of the icon left unfulfilled by successive administrations in the state, and by renaming Obinagu Road as Chief Mike Ejeagha Road in his honour, assured that his government would further immortalise the legend in death.
Taking to his verified social media handles, @PNMbah, the governor paid a heartfelt tribute to the Enugu-born musician
“I’m profoundly saddened by the death of music icon, Gentleman Mike Ejeagha.
“Mike Ejeagha was a legend, a cultural ambassador and a revered son of Enugu State.
“He was one of the finest musicians of his generation with an easygoing personality and humility that belied his towering celebrity status.
“I will always cherish fond memories of the time spent in his company – the warmth and wisdom he radiated; the joy he found in the ordinary.
“This is a loss not only for his immediate family; it’s a big loss for Enugu State, the entire music community, and the country as well.
“Ejeagha’s immense talent and genius lay in how he took simple indigenous folktales and turned them into unforgettable songs that resonate across cultures.
“Ejeagha’s fan-base transcended boundaries. He was easily one of the most recognizable voices in music.
“His death leaves a huge void that will be difficult to fill. But the legacies he has left behind will last a lifetime.
“On behalf of the Enugu State government, I offer heartfelt condolences to the Ejeagha family, and assure them of our support.
“As a government, we would ensure that his memory is duly immortalized.
“Above all, I pray that his family experiences the comforting grace of God’s love, and the fortitude to bear the loss.”
Culture
Nigeria’s First Lady Oluremi Tinubu Bags Ugosimba Chieftaincy Title in Enugu
…Says ‘I love your state’


Nigeria’s First Lady, Senator Oluremi Tinubu, has been conferred with the chieftaincy title of “Ugosimba 1 Enugu” (Jewel/Eagle from another kingdom)by the Enugu State Traditional Rulers Council.
She received the title on Tuesday during her two-day working visit to the South East state.
Conferring the title, alongside other officers, patrons, and members of the Council, the Chairman of the Enugu State Traditional Rulers Council, HRM Igwe Ikechukwu Asadu, said the honour was in recognition of her love for Enugu State and service to the nation and humanity.
“Our First Lady served in the senate for three consecutive terms and was honoured with the Commander of the Order of the Niger, CON. Nobody could say you were silent at the parliament.
“The good news is the humanitarian part of you. We looked at the way you love Enugu State. We are thanking you for what you do for the midwives, for the nurses. Personally, I am a nurse too. I appreciate it when it comes to the less privileged, healing the sick, clothing the naked, feeding the hungry. So, we are here to recognise and appreciate all these good works you are doing. It’s only God that can pay you for your good work,” he said.
An evidently elated Mrs. Tinubu, thanked the Government and people of the state for their overwhelming acceptance and love.
She described Enugu as a peaceful state, saying that she felt inner peace since she arrived in the state capital on Monday.
While also appreciating the royal fathers, she described the title as a special honour, not only to her, but also her husband, President Bola Tinubu, and the entire family.
“Thank you so much for all the support you have given. Today is indeed a great honour to me personally and also to my family. I love your state; it is such a very peaceful state and a very peaceful ambience.
“I want to thank Your Majesties for this honour done to me and also to my husband as well; and I know he will be very delighted and I believe the children too will be delighted.
“It is not that I have not been given titles, but this one is quite special and I believe it is God-ordained. And as you have honoured me today, Enugu State will know it for good.
“This moment will remain special in my heart and I will always remember your people for good and for the honour you have done for me. And this is not the end because our tomorrow is here already,” she said.
Entertainment
From Bomb Blast to Praise: Maureen J’s Miracle Song
–Lagos bomb blast survivor tells her story through soul-stirring gospel track


From the ashes of one of Nigeria’s most devastating tragedies has emerged a powerful testimony in song. “How Do I Kelee Gi?” — a soul-stirring blend of English and Igbo meaning “How do I thank You?” — is the heartfelt anthem of Maureen Onwuka, popularly known as Maureen J, a survivor of the January 27, 2002 Lagos bomb blast.
The blast, which rocked the Ikeja Cantonment area, left hundreds dead and thousands displaced in an unforgettable moment of national grief.
For Maureen, then a young evangelist, it marked the beginning of an emotional and spiritual journey that would change her life and eventually give birth to a song of thanksgiving.
On the day of the explosion, Maureen had stepped out for routine evangelism when she was caught in the chaos. Fleeing with a panicked crowd, she found herself at the edge of a canal near Ajao Estate. She couldn’t swim. Before she could react, the surging crowd pushed her into the water.
“I found myself stepping on bodies. People who had already drowned. It was like walking on human carpet, and I didn’t even know at first,” she recounts, her voice heavy with emotion. “Some were grabbing at me, trying to come up, but every time someone held my leg, I felt myself going under.”
Maureen screamed out a desperate prayer: “Lord, remember me! I was just out telling people about You! Please show me mercy!” In that moment, a stranger appeared in the water — a man who swam to her, pulled her to safety, and vanished without a trace. “I don’t know who he was. I believe he was an angel,” she says.
She escaped with her life, but the images of that day, especially the lifeless bodies of children, women, and men, remained etched in her memory. In the aftermath, she made a solemn vow to God: to tell the world what He did for her.
That vow found its fullest expression in “How Do I Kelee Gi?” — a song she describes as a sacred offering of gratitude. “Words weren’t enough to carry my story. I had to pour it into music,” Maureen explains. “Mixing English and Igbo was intentional — what God did for me was too great to explain in just one language.”
Though the song was written two to three years after the tragedy and initially recorded with little fanfare, Maureen never stopped sharing her story. Encouraged by those who’ve heard the track and urged her to push it further, she is now relaunching the song with renewed purpose.
“This song is my flagship,” she says. “It’s time to tell the world. I want people to not just hear my voice, but to know the miracle behind it.”
Maureen, who hails from Umukparo, Mbala Isuochi, in Abia State, has always been musically inclined, serving in choirs from her youth. But the 2002 experience gave her voice a new purpose. “After the blast, music became more than a gift — it became a mission,” she says.
Inspired by gospel icons like Mercy Chinwo, Sinach, and Nathaniel Bassey, Maureen hopes to reach hearts and stir worship through her sound. “Their songs move me toward God. That’s what I want mine to do too.”
“How Do I Kelee Gi?” is currently available on Audiomack and CD Baby, with plans for a full official launch slated for August this year.
From tragedy came a testimony. From near-death, a new life’s mission. And through it all, Maureen J stands — a living witness that miracles still happen, and when they do, the only fitting response is to sing.