Three Ships Held Up By Rough Seas On Greymouth Bar

Greymouth Evening Star, 3 May 1947, Page 6

Three Ships Held Up By Rough Seas On Greymouth Bar

Two ships are bar-bound and one is waiting in the roadstead unable to enter the port owing: to rough seas on the Greymouth bar, which threaten to prevent shipping movements this week-end. The Poolta, due this evening, is also likely to spend an interval in the roadstead before berthing.

The two vessels unable to depart are the Karu, with coal for Wellington, and the Gabriella which has both coal and timber for the capital. Both were ready for sea yesterday, but were unable to leave on last night’s tide. Conditions had shown no improvement at the proposed sailing time this morning. In the meantime, the Omana, one of the biggest colliers to work the port, arrived outside the entrance at 8.45 last evening, but on neither last night’s nor this morning’s tide Was she able to enter the harbour. Though there has been no wind today, the seas on the bar are breaking in such a direction that it is believed that there may be a further deterio-* ration in the depth of water available, due to shoaling, and no movements will be permitted until soundings have been taken after the seas moderate. This will not be before tomorrow at the earliest. Most of the ships working the port are operating under a restricted draught, but cargoes may have to be further reduced if soundings prove that additional shoaling has occurred. .