Maui fleet in rough water

Press, Volume CXVI, Issue 34047, 10 January 1976, Page 14

Maui fleet in rough water

(?.£uj Zealand Press Association) NEW PLYMOUTH, January 9. The entire Maui construction fleet was tonight believed to be running for shelter as big seas and high winds lashed the tower installation site 21 miles off the south Taranaki coast.

Little information «as available from Shell BP and Todd Consortium officials, but a spokesman did say that the two) work-barges. Atlas and Kokan Pioneer 1, were preparing to seek calmer waters about 9 p.m. as winds rising to 30 knots w hipped up the sea. the winds from the east! offered no shelter on the ex-; posed coastline, but watchers; at Opunake reported seeing) lights moving close inshore.; Several other smaller lights; were seen offshore from Opu-| nake. leading to the belief that the entire fleet was mak-l ing for Opunake Bax for shelter. The tower itself was re-j

I;ported to be in no danger.; ■ Although it is not yet pinned; i securely to the seabed, its I sheer weight and bulk are (thought to be sufficient to •(keep it stable in waves of up Ito 30ft. Five days have virtually . been washed out since the successful upending of the 1 tower. In hard cash, they . represent nearly 51.25 m in lost time. In addition, the rather rigid timetable to which planners I had hoped to adhere has been i badly disrupted, and waiting) 'time on barges and equip-; ,;ment yet to arrive in New; J Zealand will certainly inI crease. The major operation now pending, that of securing the, tower to the seabed, is deli-i cate, requiring minimal seas.l , If the consortium were to go ■ ahead in the present rough; I conditions and risk the operation’s success, the results could be disastrous. Today, a swell of about; 9ft prevented any further: progress in the piledriving; operation, and the with-i drawal of both barges from) •the scene tonight might mean) at least two more days delay. It would take that length' |of time to get the barges: 'back tn the site and set them! up for the piledriving—and! then only if the seas moder- ! ate.