Guest 640- Registered: 21 Apr 2007
- Posts: 7,819
Our assoc editor, that energetic roving man about the area, young Howard McS, was out on this rolling horror yesterday...twas only for the brave or the foolhardy out there. Howard was doing a Joseph William Mallord Turner and was chained to the mast for the furtherance of his art!!lol
But seriously though...I saw this familar workhorse of a Seafrance ship out there, and it appeared to be making some unusual manouvres, could it have been in trouble? before long this salvage type vessel arrived and was in attendance. I dont know if there was anything seriously wrong. After a considerable time they got it together and headed on towards Calais.
Visibility not great, pictures poor as they were a long way out. But you can see how rough it was.
Keith Sansum1
- Location: london
- Registered: 25 Aug 2010
- Posts: 23,942
lovely pics paulb
and the sea set to get even rougher tonite
ALL POSTS ARE MY OWN PERSONAL VIEWS
Guest 657- Registered: 13 Mar 2008
- Posts: 3,037
, makes me feel a bit queasy just looking at the photos.
howard mcsweeney1- Location: Dover
- Registered: 12 Mar 2008
- Posts: 62,352
must agree jeane, looks frightening there.
funnily there were many of us up on deck and i didn't see anyone looking like they were feeling unwell.
Guest 640- Registered: 21 Apr 2007
- Posts: 7,819
You might have been on this very ship Howard. Yes I think I can spot you there on the foredeck. In the background you can see the drama mentioned earlier being played out.
Yes Keefy they reckon it will be even rougher today..and much gloomier
howard mcsweeney1- Location: Dover
- Registered: 12 Mar 2008
- Posts: 62,352
completely different at 10 a.m. paul, this before the wind kicked up.
Guest 640- Registered: 21 Apr 2007
- Posts: 7,819
Well that is calm..just goes to show how quickly it can all change. Heavens..Im not at all sure my sea legs would be up to any of it. I still re-live the horror of the Princess Maud Holyhead run every night in my dreams !!lol
I believe we have lost two whopper cruise liners that were due in today because of the rough weather. Pity..now gone elsewhere.
Guest 673- Registered: 16 Jun 2008
- Posts: 1,388
The vessel in the photos is the veteran freighter "SeaFrance Nord pas de Calais." Believe she had a spot of engine trouble.
The tug standing by her is the Emergency Towing Vessel "Anglian Monarch." She is one of the four ETV's stationed around our coasts to render immediate assistance to shipping when required. They were introduced as a result of the major oil spills following the Braer and Sea Empress disasters.
The ETV's are due to be stood down shortly as a result of government cuts.
http://www.publications.parliament.uk/pa/cm201012/cmselect/cmtran/948/94807.htmGuest 640- Registered: 21 Apr 2007
- Posts: 7,819
Ah yer a star for sure Ed with that brill info..yes thats the very one. Couldnt think of its name. So it looks like it was in fact in a spot of real bother out there...and in dire conditions.
Very disturbing about the cuts, what would have happened if that vessel wasnt there to lend assistance. Bit of a frightening prospect that. Very concerning.
Guest 673- Registered: 16 Jun 2008
- Posts: 1,388
Talking of freight ships, it has just been announced that the European Seaway will be withdrawn at the end of the month ready for the entry into service of the Spirit of France. Think the Spirit of Britain will be going back to the shipbuilders to rectify all the problems which have surfaced and have hopefully been put right on the Spirit of France, and that the Pride of Calais will remain in service until the SOB comes back, whereupon she will join the Pride of Dover in retirement.
From P&O: EUROPEAN SEAWAY TO BE WITHDRAWN FROM SERVICE
"The European Seaway dedicated freight ship is to be taken off the Dover - Calais service and laid up on 30 September 2011. This commercial decision will help us better match capacity to current levels of freight demand in the Short Sea sector, pending the arrival of the much larger Spirit of France later in the autumn. Affected seafarers will be redeployed to other ships in the Short Sea fleet"
Guest 651- Registered: 12 Mar 2008
- Posts: 5,673
Been nice knowing you :)
Guest 719- Registered: 11 Jul 2011
- Posts: 443
i am glad that i do not work on the ferries any more to many long delays
Yorkshire Born And Yorkshire Bred
Guest 640- Registered: 21 Apr 2007
- Posts: 7,819
Jeeez it was a rough night in old Dover. Grim in the docks, but they all seemed to keep going, how they did, well I just dont know. The waves were rolling and weaving and pounding the sea wall, while the rain powered downwards in biblical volume, rattling the tiles on the roof and washing across the main road. A night to be indoors and no mistake.
Considerable gusto needed to stick ones gob outside the window to get this shot..
howard mcsweeney1- Location: Dover
- Registered: 12 Mar 2008
- Posts: 62,352
great picture there, did they actually stop the ferries eventually, last time i heard late last evening was that there was merely delays.
Guest 640- Registered: 21 Apr 2007
- Posts: 7,819
Yes as far as I could tell Howard they kept going through it all...but with the obvious delays. I looked out at variouis times during the evening and the tug boats were pulling and labouring to get the different ferries into position so that they could leave the harbour safely. Not easy in the teeth of driving rain and strong galeforce winds which were whipping across the harbour.
DFDS issued a press release saying they were still running but expereincing delays..and urging people once again to use the M2/A2, because of Operation Stack and the tunnel problems.
Guest 673- Registered: 16 Jun 2008
- Posts: 1,388
Certainly a wild old day and the dramatic photos above do it justice. The problem is not actually in leaving the harbour safely, it is in berthing safely in the first place. In those sort of winds, it takes a lot of fine judgement and bottle on the part of the Master to get the ship alongside the berth without either the ship or the berth suffering major damage. Equally, the deck crew handling the ropes and anchors have a very dangerous job at the best of times and this is exacerbated in heavy weather. For almost everybody else onboard, it is just another day at the office - unless a technical fault develops in which case the engineering staff are precipitated into a nailbiting cliffhanger to fix it pronto.
howard mcsweeney1- Location: Dover
- Registered: 12 Mar 2008
- Posts: 62,352
indeed on monday the captain took his time to get it perfect and the deck crew had their work cut out.
couldn't do the first job, certainly wouldn't do the other.
Guest 645- Registered: 12 Mar 2008
- Posts: 4,463
Although it's a lovely day it must be rough between here and Weymouth as the RAF band due to play tonight in Howard Davis Park before tomorrows air show are stuck in England with no ferries coming over.
Marek
I think therefore I am (not a Tory supporter)
Guest 663- Registered: 20 Mar 2008
- Posts: 1,136
Good shot there of lastnights weather hope ones head wasn't to far out PaulB, I am feeling really cheated out of our summer weather, owing to the lack of it.
Brian Dixon
- Location: Dover
- Registered: 23 Sep 2008
- Posts: 23,940
jan,that was gordon browns fault acording to big dave of the tory party.
and barryw all so blames the labour party as well.lol
