Crisis, help urgently needed.

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Graham_Wright

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www.mastaclimba.com
I have received this morning news that my sons boat (ex trawler - ex Pat Campbell and renamed Andromeda), has been holed by ironwork on the harbour wall at Fleetwood and sunk. She is now resting on the bottom completely awash.

She is not insured.

Advice on liability would be very welcome.

Time is obviously of the essence and my son is en route from Inverness as I write.

I have diving gear (and an age of 73!) and our plan is to fix a plywood board on the outside secured with (hopefully) one bolt though the damage area to a board inboard, the outer one packed with soft material to seal the hole.

Communication between inside and out will be difficult.

I understand we are on springs at the moment (which has probably contributed to the situation) and high water overflows the lock gates. There is a possibility that there is a high water gate (wrong words) that will protect against this overflow.

There is also a possibility that the harbour authorities will be able to lower the level in the dock at low water.

I have been charged with trying to source high capacity pumps for the refloating. There is fuel and lubricating oil on board and I assume that a boom will be deployed to stop pollution.

I believe the fire service could be asked to pump her out but presumably would charge for that. As his venture is a shoe-string one, money is extremely tight. As an ex member of the Kessock lifeboat crew, he wonders if the Blackpool lifeboat could help.

I am now going top try to muster some professional help but any suggestions will be extremely gratefully received.

If there is any good news, she will not suffer any more underwater until the air gets at the metals. A;so, the planks will be swelling nicely now.
 
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Might be worth phoning Blackpool Area Divers, contact details give address couple of miles south of Fleetwood:

Blackpool Area Divers, 32 Beechwood Drive, Thornton-Cleveleys, FY5 5EJ - 01253 869188

Best of luck with refloating...
 
If the boat is wood, just nail plywood patches on the outside, with a gasket of Denso Tape or neoprene. Use 6 or 10mm ply so it will follow the curve of the hull. Depending on how low the water level can be lowered outside, you may have to block air vents, tank breathers etc.
Remember bilge pump discharges normally above the waterline may need patching if non return valves not fitted.

Pumps: most plant hire places will have 3" petrol pumps available. Anything bigger is too heavy to maneuver on deck. You need at least six if the incoming tide is a factor. The more the merrier, allow redundancy for refueling and the inevitable blocked suction hose with debris.

If son is ex RNLI, def contact local crew, if only for contacts for pumps and materials, and smoothing relations with local harbour officials..
 
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I've seen a hole patched with ply and expanding foam, which loves the wet, not sure if it can be used under the water though. Is the harbour liable for their protruding ironwork?
 
advice on liability......... I think you will find that if its in the dock one of the requirements is craft has to be insured at least third party . ........ I hope I'm wrong .
 
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Hasn't to be insured? Surely you mean' has to be insured' Anyway was this the one that has been on and off Ebay for a couple of years? If it is then its a terrible shame as it looked pretty good and would have made an excellent liveaboard for the right person.Best of luck with salvage and hope there are no fines for pollution
 
Once you have it up and secure you need to get the engine flushed and cleaned pdq. The electric motors /alternators will need a good flushing as well as the electronics ..... there is a slim possibility that they may survive. The electrical cables will be useless, if not now in a few months time; as will the switch panel.

Hose as much of the interior down with copious amounts of fresh water. Residual salt will ruin anything it touches. Obviously soft furnishings should be removed for cleaning or throwing away .... and sponge foam should be tossed.

Be careful of the batteries ..... isolate them and remove them asap .... and take care the area may be contaminated with acid.

Time is really important here. Try and save as much as you can.

Good luck and best wishes. If I was close I'd give you a hand, but alas I'm in Auckland.
 
That is terrible news. The only advice I can offer is please don't consider diving it yourself. There will be lines all over the place and the work aspect of the dive will use up your air supply much more quickly than a pleasure dive. Not to mention the awful visibility. There may be a reasonably priced firm of commercial divers there who will do the job safely. The loss of a father is more serious than the loss of a boat.

Try Sea Support Services for an idea of price, they are in Fleetwood. Mention your sons lifeboat connection and they may offer a better rate.

Good luck & let us know how it goes.

Di
 
Not a lawyer and it might be worthwhile you contacting one. If your son has no 3rd party insurance, then he could find himself being landed with a very large bill for pollution control and any other damage that the harbour decides that his boat has caused. In your son's place, I would gather photos and other evidence that the state of the harbour caused the sinking, which might give him some basis for a counter-claim.

Good luck salvaging the boat.
 
Aeolus said:
Not a lawyer and it might be worthwhile you contacting one. If your son has no 3rd party insurance, then he could find himself being landed with a very large bill for pollution control and any other damage that the harbour decides that his boat has caused. In your son's place, I would gather photos and other evidence that the state of the harbour caused the sinking, which might give him some basis for a counter-claim.

Good luck salvaging the boat.
Click to expand...

Pretty much what I was going to say.

Diving may not be allowed and I certainly wouldn't advise someone of your age to do it.
 
Having just watched the sales video of Andromeda on youtube I can't believe the gross error of judgement in not having insurance for a vessel of that size and value.Truely a very sad loss as I would think that being submerged would destroy everything below decks.I would have thought 3rd party insurance will provide cover for wreck removal costs and pollution controll and hate to think of the real costs of removal,must be tens of thousands to raise her,remove from water,clean up pollution and dispose of hull.Might be worth offering her for free to whoever can raise her and then walk away.Sad end to someones dream
 
MoodySabre said:
That was unkind. What use would third party insurance be for damage to his own boat?
Click to expand...

Not a timely post and not expressed sensitively, but once the immediate crisis is resolved, he really should get at least third party insurance. I've seen examples of serious damage done by uninsured boats to others and it is seriously irresponsible to not be covered for damage you do to others.

But, this is certainly not the time to be giving him additional worries - just be careful what you do - a sunk boat can be resolved with the application of enough money - a dead parent cannot!
 
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