Commutors a bit warm??

[Guest]

http://www.nzherald.co.nz/nz/news/article.cfm?c_id=1&objectid=10836231

[Fogg 427]

Fully not surprised. Those 360 ferries are an aging fleet and when I was communting on them they were beset by mechanical problems but just about kept going. When Fullers took over 360 I hoped they would tidy things up but it looks like they are just as tired.

 

Exactly the same incident happened when I was onboard one night in a lively trip home (fresh NE wind). It was the 2nd evening run with very few passengers on board (only about 5 of us) and I was riding shotgun on the bridge when an overheat alarm went off on one engine. We shut down and limped into GH on the other. We made the trip OK but had a battle docking in fresh winds with one engine. I suggested to the skipper that we call GH security and ask them to provide a 'tug' service with their tinny to help us dock - he agreed and asked me to get on the VHF and make it happen, knowing I was an experienced boaty and also part of coastguard service (in those days). I talked them through some nudging manoeuvres whilst the skipper used his one remaining engine and we docked OK after a couple of attempts.

 

We never put out any other kind of distress call at the time of the engine overheat/failure, cos the skipper seemed confident he knew what it was and had it contained. But I sometimes wonder whether that was a breach of procedure and whether we should at least have given CG an advisory call.

 

Anyway, like I said from my experience of 360 I'm not surprised about the engine failure but it sounds like they handled it OK. Might have been a different story if a real fire had broken out.