Research vessel damaged?

Press, 6 March 1984, Page 8

Research vessel damaged?

The American research vessel Samuel P. Lee will be dry-docked at Lyttelton later this week, after damaging her stem during her recent voyage to Antarctica.

The ice-strengthened vessel returned to the port on Saturday, after spending four weeks in Antarctic waters on Operation Deep Sweep. The director of operations, Mr Terry Kelley, said the vessel developed a vibration in her stern while surveying in McMurdo Sound. Mr Kelley said the ship was caught in ice while following an ice-breaker into McMurdo Sound three weeks ago. It is believed a piece of ice may have damaged the propeller.

A diver from H.M.N.Z.S. Tui, which is in the port’s dry dock, inspected the vessel’s hull on Sunday morning, but could not find the damage. The Samuel P. Lee ft; the

same class of ship as the Tui, an oceanographic research vessel. The American vessel will be dry-docked when maintenance work on the Tui is completed. Mr Kelley said repairs were not expected to be big, and the ship was expected to leave for Suva on schedule next week.

The ship has been studying the geology of the Ross Sea and Wilkes Land as part of the $l2 million project to which New Zealand contributes $120,000. It was the target of protest action by Greenpeace members when it left the port for Antarctica on January 5. The protest group claimed the vessel was in breach of Antarctic Treaty rules on mineral prospecting by doing oil research in Antarctica.

Public tours of the vessel can be arranged by getting in touch with Mr Kelley on board the vessel at No. 4 wharf.