One hundred and fourteen years ago on this day, Monongah, West Virginia, witnessed the most devastating mining disaster in American history. On the morning of December 6, 1907, an explosion at the Fairmont Coal Co.’s No. 6 and No. 8 mines claimed the lives of 362 individuals, among them were children who had ventured into the mines with their fathers.
Today we recognize this day as National Miners Day.
Each year on December the 6th, we celebrate National Miners Day acknowledging and appreciating the expertise, commitment, and labor that miners contribute to supply numerous crucial products making it possible for us to enjoy the comforts of modern life.
There are various ways to show appreciation to miners. You could learn about miners and what they do, visit a local mine, donate to a miner’s charity, or watch a film about miners and mining (Harlan County, The Miners' Hymns, The Pennsylvania Miners' Story, Little Accidents). The simplest way however would be to just pause, take a look around you and realize how many of your life’s comforts are dependent on the minerals pulled out of the earth. These include your phone, your car, and your pots and pans to name a few.
Here at Höegh Autoliners, we recognize the immensely important work, as well as the sacrifice and commitment from miners all over the world.
We are proud that we can make their laborious work easier by offering mining equipment shipping. From East Asia to the Middle East and North America, our sophisticated roro boats operate in eleven global deep-sea trades. You can explore our routes here.
08 December 2023
Monday last week I finally boarded Höegh Trooper in Durban. The layout of the ship is pretty much the same as on Höegh Jeddah, but Trooper is twice as old and, naturally, visibly more worn. Built in 1995, Trooper is the oldest vessel in the Höegh Autoliner fleet. Since such an old vessel poses more challenges in terms of maintenance, the crew is slightly larger than on the other ships, counting 26 seafarers all in all. During daytime they are all busy making the ship run smoothly, drilling, cleaning, repairing, removing rust, painting, fixing the pipes, dealing with paperwork, and so on. I try to look helpful, at least. In the evenings, there is always something going on, be it dart competitions, chess, poker, basketball, table tennis, or video games. And karaoke, of course. The crew is Filipino, after all.
05 December 2023
Sumitomo Corporation (Head Office: Chiyoda-ku, Tokyo; Representative Director, President and Chief Executive Officer: Masayuki Hyodo) and Höegh Autoliners (Head Office: Oslo, Norway; Chief Executive Officer: Andreas Enger) are charting a greener course in deep-sea transportation of Ro-Ro cargo, such as cars, high and heavy machinery and breakbulk, by forging an agreement to look into the supply of clean ammonia as a bunker fuel at the ports of Singapore and Jacksonville, USA from 2027 onwards.
17 November 2023
10 November 2023
When you think of a captain, you might imagine an authoritarian, bearded character wearing a uniform, steering the ship, and shouting aggressive commands to the crew. Luckily, the times have changed. What does it take to be a good captain nowadays?