Lifeboats looked all right: Tarihiko master

Press, 21 February 1986, Page 3

Lifeboats looked all right: Tarihiko master

Claims that “rotten” lifeboats and lifejackets were used by passengers abandoning the ill-fated Soviet ship Mikhail Lermontov have been dismissed by the master of the first rescue ship into Port Gore.

Captain John Reedman, master of the L.P.G. container ship Tarihiko was on the scene of last Sunday’s sinking less than two 'hours after the first mayday call. The Tarihiko picked up the lion’s share of the liner’s 700 passengers and crew and sailed to Wellington with 356 unscheduled passengers. The captain of the Navy patrol boat Taupo which also assisted in the rescue, Lieutenant Peter Batchelor, allegedly claimed that "many of the lifeboats were so rotten that people were putting their feet through the bottom.”

Lieutenant Batcheler also allegedly claimed that the lights on the ship’s lifejackets would not work and the whistles were “like toys.” Captain Reedman, commenting while at Lyttelton

yesterday, said the lifejackets and lifeboats looked all right to him. “Our main job was to get the people out of the lifeboats and not to worry about the condition of them,” he said. “I would say though, from a random look, there was nothing wrong with them.” Describing the rescue, Captain Reedman said his vessel had been anchored 17 miles from D’Urville Island before going to New Plymouth to load L.P.G.

“We heard the mayday call at 6.03 p.m. and responded straight away. “That mayday call was officially cancelled about 45 minutes after that but I overheard the fact that the ship was listing 10 degrees and I thought it would be prudent to carry on and investigate,” he said. “It: took us about an hour and a half to get to the entrance of Port Gore. We couldn’t see anything at once but we had to go into Port Gore and sight the ship, because the visibility was poor and the

heavy rain was reducing it further,” he said. "When we actually saw the Mikhail Lermontov she. was listing about 10 degrees to starboard and was actually launching some lifeboats. She was very close inshore.” Captain Reedman said that none of the passengers or crew of the stricken vessel were in the water “but the boats were down and there were people getting into .them. “There was a little reluctance from the Russian vessel for assistance at that stage which I just don’t understand,” he said. Captain Reedman could not speculate on why the Mikhail Lermontov was reluctant to receive assistance. He said he saw no evidence to suggest that the Soviet crew had sped off in motorised launches and. left the passengers to fend for themselves.

“I would deny that I think the Russian crew did a very good job in the circumstances. We didn’t see any lifeboats

disappearing or anything like that It was a very well done operation by the Russians.” The passengers, many of whom were elderly, did not panic at all, he said. Their attitude was more one of shock and disbelief. Captain Reedman had nothing but praise for his crew. “I am extremely happy with the way our crew handled it I am very proud of them. New Zealand seamen are among the finest” he said. The Tarihiko was officially released by Wellington radio to go back to - Wellington at 11.55 p.m., almost six hours after answering the initial mayday call. The vessel, with her extra passengers including 164 Soviet crew, arrived back at Wellington at 4.45 a.m. next day.