2015 off to a grim start, but lower fuel costs offer some hope

THE New Year opened with two maritime tragedies, followed by a collision leading to significant oil pollution in waters off Singapore and then the running aground of a Singapore-flagged car carrier in southern England.

In the first fatal mishap on Friday, 18 Filipino seafarers died when their bulk carrier Bulk Jupiter sank off Vietnam.

The next day, seven Russians and a Filipino were lost when their small cargo ship, the Cemfjord, sank in heavy seas off northern Scotland.