Howling wind plays havoc with Cape schedules

Ray Smuts AS THE sun set on a fairly placid Table Bay at the weekend, evidence of the vexing south-easter that plagued Cape Town all week was evident as up to ten vessels lay at anchor. “We are getting them in and out as fast as we can which means working flat out,” was the word from VTS manager Captain Karl Otto on Friday evening as the self-same wind started accelerating to 25 knots. This was a ‘pussy cat’ compared to the more than 80 knots that had howled through the port at intervals earlier in the week. Otto told FTW delays anticipated were a maximum of six hours and that three of the port’s four tugs were being deployed in addition to one work boat and a launch. Container terminal manager Ian Bouwer said possibly four vessels had been delayed due to severe winds, “losing seven or eight hours here and there, but we are working them out.” He added that the average delay had been between 12 and 16 hours. MPT manager Oscar Borchards said wind had not been a real factor and that bulk vessel operations were going according to plan. Even so, he admitted: “We are working the dust out of our ears and original delays of 19 days in terms of volumes have been reduced to two or three days as of this week.” The bulk carrier Evanthia discharged 4 000 tons of maize from the US earlier in the week, then steamed out - in a non-foul weather related procedure - to No:1 anchorage, only to return on Monday (27/1) to off-load the remaining 35 000 tons. Borchards described the initial off-loading as “exceptional” due to the local need. “In terms of our planning the Evanthia was second in line for berthing and ours is a first come, first serve, policy.”