Dogged Attempt To Raise Sunken Boat

Press, Volume XCVII, Issue 28524, 1 March 1958, Page 8

Dogged Attempt To Raise Sunken Boat

(From Our Own Reporter)

TIMARU, February 28. The two skin-divers who did the spade-work in the comparatively easy salvage of the fishing boat, Kaio, which sank in the Timaru harbour this week have been engaged for the last two months on a much more enterprising operation. Since the Stella, another Timaru fishing boat, sank three or four miles off the coast near St Andrews, 16 miles from Timaru, on December 19, Messrs John Finlay and Fred Yelden, both members of the South Canterbury Subaqua Club, have made 62 dives to the sunken craft in repeated attempts to raise her from the bottom.

The Stella, owned by Mr D. Lamberton, of Christchurch, sank early in the morning on December 19, when her stepped mast fell on to the hull and sprang seven of the boards. The crew escaped when the vessel was still awash and were rescued, with some of the Stella’s equipment, by the Poitrel. The Stella sank into 75 feet of water in the middle of the fishing fleet’s groper grounds. On January 12 the two skin-divers were asked by an insurance company to make a dive with two conven-tional-suit divers, but the wreck could not be found. The insurance company then ordered the search to be abandoned and a claim was settled. Salvage Rights Bought Later Mr Lamberton bought the salvage rights from the insurance company after a fisherman trailing in the area had tom his nets on the Stella’s mast. Messrs Finlay and Yelden dived on the spot indicated by the fisherman and located the wreck. They attached a buoy and went out again the next day in the Bar-k-lin with its owners, Messrs J. Dixon and K. Marshall. They attached a wire to the winch of the sunken fishing boat and the Nella, skippered by Mr S. Kane, attempted to tow her into shallow water. Unfortunately the Nella’s powerful winch only served to pull the winch out of the Stella with part of the deck section. On another dive the skin-divers placed two heavy wires under the bow and stern of the Stella and took down Bin by 6in hardwood spreaders to prevent the wires from, crushing the boat when they’took the strain.

The men were able to accomplish only a little at a time because they were limited to between seven and eight dives each day and were having to work with heavy materials at a considerable depth. They were also limited by the extent of the visibility—usually from two to three feet and sometimes less. On one exceptional day they were able to see 10 feet. More Wires More wires were attached on a subsequent dive to prevent the two cables slipping off the bow and stern of the boat, and late in January a second attempt was made to lift her. The Nella, and the Seafarer, skippered by Mr P. Knowles, took the strain on the cables fore and aft but the winches were not powerful enough and the wires had to be dropped. On that occasion the skin-divers had taken tractor-type tubes down to the Stella and blown them up in the holds with compressed air in an attempt to provide buoyancy. Others were attached to davits. The forward spreader also broke

and another had to be taken down on the next dive. Several more dives were made before the surface boats were ready for another attempt. Lifted 10 Feet It was more successful and from the amount of wire that was brought in the men estimated that they had the Stella 10ft off the sea-bed. Slowly the two boats towed the Stella, still many feet under the water, towards Timaru. They had travelled only about a mile and a half in a roughening sea when the swell surged on the forward wire and it snapped. The Stella sank back to the sea bed and all the salvagers could do was buoy the after wire. The Stella is still reluctant to come to the surface. The divers have been out twice since she sank for the second time, but with little success. Purchase blocks were hooked on to the bow and stern wires but with another attempt to lift her oir the bottom the bow wire snapped again. Last Sunday it happened again as soon as the strain was on the cables. Although ’ the Stella is on a hard sandy bottom ' she has managed to settle in to a depth of about three feet and the divers will have to burrow under her bow in their next attempt to attach a heavier cable.

On their next attempt they plan to let two truck tyres take the surge and lift on the cables up near the surface craft, and so reduce the effect of sudden strain caused by the movement of the sea on the wires.

The men working on the salvage—one of the most ambitious projects undertaken by South Canterbury skin-divers—have not lost heart in spite of their frequent set-backs. They are eagerly awaiting fine weather for another attempt. The port and starboard lights, salvaged by them from the Stella, serve to encourage them in their endeavour.