A safe haven

Press, 4 January 1980, Page 3

A safe haven

Lyttelton survived the high winds and driving rain of the storm withc'it any major mishap although four scheduled sailings of the Diamond Harbour ferry' had to be cancelled yesterday morning because of high winds and heavy seas. Ships berthed in the inner harbour secured extra mooring lines during the night when the Lyttelton Harbour Board's signal tower recorded gusts about midnight of up to 64 knots, with the wind blowing steadily between 45 and 55 knots. The bulk cement carrier Westport lay at anchor overnight and yesterday was berthed at No. 4 West awaiting calmer conditions before shifting to the dry dock for survey.

No ship was worked yesterday' and scheduled

departures of vessels in port had been put back. The fishing boat Astro Carina broke from her moorings at No. 5 wharf about 11 p.m. on Wednesday. She was taken in tow after breaking adrift and, according to the Deputy' Harbourmaster (Capt. j. M. Partington), suffered only slight damage to. her railings and superstructure. The 22.5 m vessel is owned by’ Mr J. Brough. Another fishing vessel, the Leo, was also slightly damaged during the storm. Both boats were secured at the cattle wharf pending better weather. There was no major disruption of services in Lyttelton Borough although electricity was cut to Diamond Harbour for about 30 minutes near midnight.