Looking into the future the Pelican feeding its young from a self-induced wound in its own
breast (as depicted, mysteriously, on the state flag of Louisiana) is accepted as an
appropriate symbol of both self-sacrifice and rebirth. Through his selfless efforts, man is
raised from the slavery of ignorance to the condition of freedom conferred by wisdom.
Given the current state of affairs in Louisiana, one hopes that the understanding of the Pelican
as a symbol shall point the way towards a new consciousness of ourselves as a whole, and lead us
to face our futures with strength, grace, wisdom and faith, to learn from our mistakes and carry
our successes and zest for living to future generations.
Disaster Feared in Ship Fire Off Antarctica
February 15, 2007
Reprinted from: http://www.truthout.org
Penguins in path should flagship of Japan's whaling fleet start leaking oil.
Wellington, New Zealand - Officials warned of a potential environmental disaster in Antarctica after fire erupted Thursday on a Japanese whaling ship, as the search continued for a missing crewmen from the crippled ship.
New Zealand Conservation Minister Chris Carter, whose country is leading efforts to help the stricken ship, said it was carrying 132,000 gallons of heavy oil and 211,000 gallons of furnace oil and was starting to list from water pumped aboard to fight the fire.
"It is a serious situation ... a ship badly damaged and full of toxic oil," Carter told National Radio.
No oil had spilled from the ship and it was in no immediate danger of sinking, officials said.
Japanese officials said the blaze that broke out in the below-decks area of the ship where whale carcasses are processed was under control.
Thick Smoke Gets in Way
Most of the 148-member crew of the 8,000-ton Nisshin Maru were evacuated Thursday to three other ships from the Japanese whaling fleet in the area, said Hideki Moronuki, an official with the Japan Fisheries Agency.
The Nisshin Maru sent out a distress call early Thursday after the fire broke out, said Steve Corbett, a spokesman for Maritime New Zealand.
Senior crew closed hatches to seal off the burning area - apparently a processing plant inside the ship - to prevent the fire from spreading, Moronuki said.
By Thursday night, efforts to put out the fire were halted by thick smoke, Corbett said. He had earlier said that officials were confident the fire wouldn't spread and that the ship wouldn't sink.
Search teams were waiting for the smoke to clear before attempting to assess the ship's condition and search for the missing crewman.
Currents Head for Colony
Carter said the safety of the Nisshin Maru's crew was the top priority, but noted the ship was only 110 miles from the Antarctic's Cape Adare, one of the world's largest penguin breeding rookeries with some 250,000 breeding pairs, Antarctica New Zealand chief executive Lou Sanson said.
"It's a long way off the coast but the currents do go that way. We're very concerned about what could happen," Sanson told The Associated Press.
He said the ship was far from help and in a "high energy environment where you get a lot of storms." Conditions stayed calm Thursday.
No international assistance had been requested or sent to the area - 265 nautical miles north of the U.S. McMurdo Base in Antarctica, said the New Zealand government.
"We are doing everything we can to protect the lives of the Japanese sailors," said Carter, adding New Zealand, Australia, the United States and Britain were forming a contingency plan to aid the stricken whalers.
Chased by Activists Earlier
The Nisshin Maru was the flagship of a Japanese whaling flotilla harassed this month by activists from the conservation group Sea Shepherd, who have thrown foul-smelling acid and other objects at the ships to try to keep them from hunting whales.
A Sea Shepherd ship collided with a Japanese ship earlier in recent days, causing damage but no injuries.
Sea Shepherd on Wednesday gave up its chase as it started to run out of fuel, but Greenpeace was planning to take its place with its own anti-whaling ship.
An international treaty does not allow commercial whaling, but Japan has an exception for what it calls scientific expeditions.
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