Captain Nick St. Jean accepts the Citation of Merit for the crew of the El Coqui at the CSA Devlin Awards in New Orleans.
American Maritime Officers-led crews on the tanker Stena Immaculate, cargo vessel El Coqui and the inland tug MV Bulldog were spotlighted during a celebration of safety achievement during the Jones F. Devlin Awards dinner presented by the Chamber of Shipping of America (CSA) on May 4 in New Orleans.
The 58th annual event recognized 1,157 vessels with 8,075 cumulative years of accident-free operation. Seafarers and representatives from 38 companies and their subsidiaries attended the annual industry-sponsored event.
In total, twelve companies contracted with American Maritime Officers representing more than 65 vessels received Safety Awards for the crews’ efforts to keep fellow shipmates safe. Of those vessels, a dozen had achieved more than a decade of consecutive safe operations without a reported incident.
Among the honorees included Crescent Towing; Crowley; E.N. Bisso and Son; Fairwater Tankers; Keystone Shipping; Liberty Maritime; Ocean Shipholdings, Inc.; OSG Ship Management; Pasha Hawaii; Schuyler Line Navigation Company; Tote Services and U.S. Marine Management, LLC (USMMI).
Special recognition was given to the crew of the Stena Immaculate for their brave actions after a foreign-flagged vessel crashed into the side of the Crowley tanker as it rested at anchor off the coast of the United Kingdom in March 2025. Chief Engineer Dimiter Mitev accepted the CSA’s Top Honor Award for the crew’s actions to mitigate the disaster, saving both the ship, most of its government-fuel cargo and all lives on board the tanker.
The El Coqui, a Jones Act containership with dedicated service to Puerto Rico, received a Citation of Merit for actions the crew took to save the lives of four stranded American sailors whose boat had capsized off the coast of the Dominican Republic in January 2025.
Tug Bulldog, a Crescent Towing vessel manned by AMO, was honored with a Letter of Commendation for its speedy actions to rescue stranded sailors clinging to a piling near Savannah, Ga.
CSA’s awards programs are open to all companies in the industry, both CSA member companies and non-member companies. Two different awards are given at the annual Safety Awards Luncheon – the Jones F. Devlin Safety Awards for safe vessel operation, and the Ship Safety Achievement Awards.
The Chamber of Shipping of America represents companies that own, operate, or charter U.S. and foreign flagged oceangoing tankers, container ships, and other merchant vessels engaged in domestic and international trades along with other entities that maintain a commercial interest in the operation of such oceangoing vessels.
Chief Engineer Dimiter Mitev accepts the Top Honor Award for the Stena Immaculate.
Captain Steve Fazekas accepts a Letter of Commendation for the Tug Bulldog.