Taking the Port Bowen Apart

Evening Post, Volume CXXX, Issue 72, 21 September 1940, Page 18

Taking the Port Bowen Apart

salvaging of the Port Shipping Company's liner Port Bowen, aground on the beach at Castlecliff since July of last year, is unique for this country. "Debuilding" conveys the intention better than salvaging or wrecking, for the vesselis to be taken apart rather than wrecked. Other stranded vessels have been salvaged on the New Zealand coast, but the Port Bowen- is bigger than any of these, over 8000 tons, and this is a reclamation in war time, .when whatever can be recovered has more than a' money value because material and machinery are difficult and perhaps

had given in carrying out the reclamation project.

While these preliminaries were on the way the clearing of the ship had made a very fair start. Fine fittings and deck gear went first—fifteen winches, cables and anchor chain, three ship's compasses, saloon fittings, and hundreds of feet of twenty-years-seasoned inch-thick oak panelling. With the removable gear out of the way, the oxy-acetone burners swung to it. The funnel was dropped and sliced into strips for handling. The high bridge and officers' quarters were cut down tier by tier, and work began with the heavier decks. This heavier

impossible to obtain from overseas. So stuff and the three-quarter-inch hull instead of being ripped down in quick plating - are to be taken out plate by time to clear the beach the Port plate by "blowing" the rivets with the Bowen will, within the limits of econo- oxy-acetone flame, the burr being mic working,. be stripped down plate melted off and the rivet punched by plate and member by member—a through. At a guess, 150,000 rivets real waste reclamation of some thou- have been blown so far; there are sands of tons of machinery, fittings, plenty more.

and hull.

Some of the cuts are heavy; the big-

The biggest single item of salvage will be the complete refrigerating plant, which, will be installed at the Kakariki freezing works, near Feilding. These works were built and briefly operated during the last war period, then were closed, and gradually have been stripped. It is not at present proposed to reopen the killing sections, but Kakariki will give almost half a million cubic feet of additional cold storage space for these war years. But for the compressor, thousands of feet of brine piping, insulation, and equipment from the. Port Bowen, the works would have remained derelict, or would have cost vastly more to reequip with new plant. HANDED OVER AS A GIFT. The Port Bowen went ashore on July 15. Over 2000 tons, of bunker coal were jettisoned to lighten her and removal of cargo went on through August and September. She was never, and is not now, fast settled on the ridgy beach, and heavy seas and the coastal current have moved her off and on nearer the shore and half a mile along the beach; she is clear.of water on the land side at low tide now. In October last year she was given up, though still unholed and seaworthy except for easily reparable damage, .but lost as a war year -carrier. Discussions between the owners, the Wangangui Harbour Board, and the Government resulted last June in the handing over of the ship, as she lay, as a gift to the Government.

She was empty of cargo and more besides, for in the eleven months between stranding and handing over a lot that was movable was wafted ashore. Only some know how.

The ship became the charge-of the Minister of Supply and Industries and Commerce, the Hon. D. G, Sullivan, and after a survey by the Department's experts it was decided to obtain the services of William Cable and Company to demolish the wreck. The Minister enlisted the aid of the Public Works and Railway Departments and things moved quickly. Within a month a railed jetty five or six hundred feet long was built from the shore to the boat, and Public Works men, transferred temporarily from the Turakina deviation job, built an extension, a mile and a quarter long, to the Gastlecliff railway, a pri-vately-owned line. Power and water were taken from the shore, hoisting gear installed at two great ports cut in the hull, truck gear built for the jetty, and a gantry built at the shore end to transfer heavier weights to the railway. This extension runs through backyards, over front entrances, across the Castlecliff tram line; everyone concerned was willing to waive rights to ge^ the job done.

The Minister, in conversation with a "Post" reporter, paid a tribute to the owners of the vessel, the officers of his Department, and his co-opted members of Parliament, Messrs. J. Hodgens.and C. Barrell, for the very fine help they

gest so far was the severing of the 12----inch rudder pillar to free the steering quadrant. This weighs tons, and if shipbuilders in Britain want it readymade it will be shipped away with accompanying steam steering gear. The

rudder, 20 tons of it, may be cut through,at the p&iftes and dropped to the beach as too awkward a piece to salvage. A good part of the steel plate, sections and rounds, to be recovered irom the hull has been placed already; all of it can be used. Inevitably there will be a considerable scrap yield, most of which, will be railed to the Railway Workshops at Eastern Hutt.

STEEL FOR THE ARMADALE. One of the problems in the repair of the: Armadale, on the floating dock after her collision with the Ole Jacob,

was to obtain channel steel for the main members to patch the huge hole in her bow. The Armadale will have first call upon channels .from the Port Bowen. Considerable tonnage of brass and copper tubing and non-ferrous metal in other shapes will come from the engine-rooms and various ship's services, and there are miles of usable electric cable. BRINGING BACfc A FREEZING BLOCK. Concurrent with the discussions between the owners, Harbour Board, and Government over the salvage as a

plant.in the engine room will be dismantled and possibly shipped away. The recovery of the twin propeller shafts will entail heavy but worthwhile pumping. The twin propellers are bronze, worth big money as metal.

The boilers will probably be taken out late in the salvage by cutting away the side of the boat and hauling and rolling them out. Big money again.

The weather will have the final say as to how far the demolition can ,go. The coast is open to westerlies which blow up crashing rollers. Seas confounded the efforts to refloat the Port Bowen and repeatedly held up the removal of cargo, and though they are later this year they will come again. As the hull is now, only "old man" seas drown her, but the further the demolition proceeds the greater the effect of lesser seas will be, holding

whole, there were discussions with the Wellington Meat. Export Company over the rehabilitation of the cold storage block at Kakariki, leading to an agreement satisfactory in every way to bring back half a million cubic feet of storage.

The five insulated holds of the Port Bowen are lined with fine Baltic pine, behind which is approximately 50,000 cubic feet of tightly packed granulated cork and silicate cotton. Even after equipping Kakariki there will be a surplus for similar use elsewhere. There were about 100,000 feet of brine

piping in the holds, more than enough for the cold storage block at Kakariki. The compressor will be dismantled and with no great alteration will be changed over to electric drive. engineroom salvage. There are twelve feet or more of water in the engine room, seeping in through strained bottom plates, but though the six turbines have been half submerged for months it is thought that they will be sound and free of salt water, as they are sealed to work at high pressure. They and secondary

up work and threatening the less buttressed hull. Everyone on the job knows that westerly weather is going to be tough, but at whatever stage the debuilding of the hull may be stopped the holds and engine and refrigerating sections will be cleared, and the country's stocks of plate, channels and sections, or marine and converted marine machinery will appreciate considerably at a cost much less than would go in overseas purchases, assuming that they could be made at all today. The whole plan of salvage and the speed with which it has been commenced since agreement was reached and the ship handed over to the Government reflects the full co-operation of owners, Harbour Board, the owners of the Castlecliff railway, and several Government Departments under expert advice and direction.