To read further information about the cable installation project which is listed on the Port of Cork Company website under Notice to Mariners (No. 6 of 2011) click here.

The odd appearance of the barge masks a colourful and chequered career, as only a remnant of the original vessel survives (see photo). Only the forward section and bow (90m long X 20m beam) remain after the partial scrapping of the former oil tanker, Esso København, which took place nearly fifty years ago.

She was launched in 1930 as the MS Peter Hurll by the Palmers Shipbuilding and Iron Company Ltd (Yard/Hull no. 479) at Hebburn-on-Tyne, England. Measuring 11,952grt the tanker was commissioned for Baltisch-Amerik Petroleum Import G.m.b.H. (Waried Tankschiff Rhed.) of Danzig. For further details click here.

The vessel's profile was typical of the era, with a 'two-island' arrangement where the bridge superstructure is sited amidships and separated from the crew's accommodation quarters located aft on the poop deck at the stern.

At 452-foot long, the 17,585dwt vessel had a cargo carrying capacity of 138,108 barrels, which had an assigned pumping rate of 4,000 barrels an hour. The twin-screw diesel powered vessel had 5,300 brake horsepower engines that gave a speed of 12.3 knots.

In 1935 the vessel was sold to the Panama Transport Co. of Panama. While en route to Aruba, with an American crew, war was declared in Europe on  September 3, 1939. At the Caribbean island's port of Las Piedras the Peter Hurll loaded her first war-time cargo of 106,514 barrels of fuel and crude oils bound for Everett, Mass.

Throughout the war years the Peter Hurll was crewed at various times between  Americans and Danes. To read in greater detail the career history of the vessel and an account of the attempted U-Boat attack on the Peter Hurll click here. The tanker had several sisters, the F. H. Bedford Jr, J. H. Senior,  J.A. Mowinckel and The Heinrich v. Riedemann which was lost on April 16, 1942.

Only a few months after the war in February 1946, the Peter Hurll bunkered the Queen Mary, which was moored alongside Pier 90 on the North River, New York. In less than 10 hours the vessel tranferred 27,797 barrels of fuel in a direct tanker-to-ship delivery of fuel oil. The famous 80,000 tonnes Cunard liner which like the tanker, was also built in 1930, had been recently re-converted from a troopship to her peacetime role as a passenger-liner.

In 1967 the liner retired and the vessel is moored at Long Beach, California, as a static hotel, restaurant and museum (see www.queenmary.com).

Two years later the Peter Hurll changed ownership to Det Danske Petroleums A/S of Copenhagen but later under the control of Dansk Esso A/S was  renamed Esso København (see link) and the vessel was enlarged to a tonnage of 12,043grt.

In 1952, the vessel was taken to Odense, Denmark by H. J. Hansen, where the vessel was partially broken-up. The remaining fore-end survived and was rebuilt as a cable / pipe laying barge in 1963 (click here). The structure which essentially is a barge was named Henry P Lading for new owners, Nordisk Kabel og Traadfabrikker A/S, Copenhagen.

At one stage the barge was renamed "Nkt Cables a/S" but in 2002 the barge was sold to Jydsk Dykkerfirma ApS, now named JD Contractor A/S. The company (click here) is the largest underwater contractor in Denmark, providing diving assignments and the laying and embedding of submarine cables and pipelines worldwide.

Only late last year, scuba-divers found a fully intact World War I U-Boat on the seabed just outside Cork harbour. To read more about the U-Boat which sank some 93 years ago and photos click here.

Crosshaven Boatyard Company Ltd has announced that Hugh Mockler, (formerly of HM Yachts Ltd), is to join long established yacht broker, Donal McClement in the Boatyard's new boat and brokerage sales division.
Matt Foley, General Manager of Crosshaven Boatyard, told Afloat, 'Donal and Hugh are two of the best known and most successful Yacht Brokers in Ireland. Over the past number of years and their combined knowledge of a very difficult market will ensure that the buyers and sellers get a top class service'. Hugh and Donal will be able to give buyers and sellers the best possible advice.'
Crosshaven Boatyard has been providing marine services for over 60 years.
The boatyard also specialises in all aspects of the repair and maintenance of modern pleasure boats. Many well-known boats such as Gypsy Moth V, the Saint Brendan, Longbow II and a series of Moondusters were completed in the1980s.
It was the first commercial marina, with a marine travel hoist, in Ireland in 1979. The yard is the Irish distributor for Dufour Yachts of France, and Grand Soleil, of Italy.

Hugh Mockler (left) is greeted by General Manager Matt Foley (centre) and yacht broker Donal McClement. Photo: Bob Bateman

For further information about this and to download a copy of the Pilotage Byelaws click this link. In addition the port company has a draft copy of the Pilotage Byelaws which is available for collection from:

The Port of Cork Company,                                                                                                                                                                            Custom House, Custom House Street, Cork                                                                                                                                                                                                             

The port can be contacted by Tel: 021 4273125 and for other genaral information on the port logon to www.portofcork.ie

Anthony O'Leary of Cork is the Afloat.ie/Irish Independent "Sailor of the Year" in celebration of his outstanding achievements afloat nationally and internationally throughout last season, and to honour his dedication to sailing in all its forms both as a participant and an administrator.

The O'Leary pace afloat and ashore belies his age of 53. During 2010, it was in May that he was "Sailor of the Month" for an already remarkable list of wins with his Ker 39 Antix. Having topped the April Series in Kinsale, he then won the Crosshaven-Dun Laoghaire race overall, went on to win his class and be one of the top points scorers in the ICRA Nationals in Dublin Bay, and then went on to Scotland to win his class overall with a nail biting brace of wins on the final day of the Scottish Series.

To achieve all that before May was out was exceptional, but the O'Leary progress was only beginning. The big picture was to maintain momentum towards the international Commodore's Cup in the Solent in August. Antix was one of the three boat squad, and her skipper was also the team captain in a campaign which was light years away from the glossy efforts which dominated the boom years of Irish affluence.

Anthony O'Leary takes on the waves at the helm of his yacht Antix during Cork week in Cork Harbour. Photo: Bob Bateman

In previous seasons, Ireland had been able to muster enough boats for two or even three teams, yet had never won despite being within inches of success. But this time round, only three boats were game for it, and only one – Rob Davis's Corby 36 Roxy – was new. Yet with Dave Dwyer's ever-keen Mills 39 marinerscove.ie filling the third slot, O'Leary headed a potent force, and he himself sailed with style and inspiring sportsmanship to give Ireland a commanding overall win.

Anthony O'Leary is the personification of Irish sailing at its very best. With the enthusiastic support of his wife Sally, he is father to a family which has logged outstanding sailing success at all levels. Yet he himself is in many ways the quintessential club sailor. He is as happy racing the Autumn series at Crosshaven with a 1720 or the West Cork regattas with a cruiser-racer, as he is competing at the highest levels. He has been among the front runners for the title of Ireland's "Sailor of the Year" several times. And now, as with all his wins, when he does do it, O'Leary does it with style.

Crosshaven RNLI Lifeboat report that they have recovered the body of a missing fisherman from the sea at Ringabella Bay after information received from a person on shore. The fisherman was lost when the fishing boat sank almost four weeks ago.

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Water Safety News from Ireland

Marine Casualty Investigation Board News

Marine Warnings

In addition to services running out of Rosslare operated by Celtic Link Ferries and Irish Ferries and the alternative option of landbridge connections to Europe via the UK.

In the meantime, the Port of Cork will continue to be in dialogue with potential operators and investor's, however in the current climate it is proving more challenging to establish the service. Yet both the port authorities in Cork and Gijon remain committed in establishing the first direct Irish-Iberia passenger ferry route, with an update on the Spanish service due in early June.

Since 2008 the port authorities of Cork and Gijón, through the Promotion of Short Sea Shipping and Co-Operation with Small Medium Enterprise's (Proppose) an EU Inter-Reg project, have conducted feasibility studies into the service.

Interest in the service to date, has shown interest from Brittany Ferries, P&O Ferries and Transfennica, a Scandinavian based operator. It was envisaged that a ro-pax type of vessel would operate the 24-hour route to Gijón in Asturias, the region which forms part of Spain's northern 'Green' coast.

The route across the Bay of Biscay would be an attraction to freight hauliers, saving mileage and reduced fuel costs in addition avoiding a weekend ban to trucks travelling through France.

Last summer the ro-pax Norman Bridge started a new route between Nantes / St. Nazaire (Montoir-de-Bretagne) and Gijón, operated by GLD Atlantique. This route received support through the EU 'Motorways of the Seas' (MOS) programme to divert vehicle traffic from congested road-infrastructure and transferred to designated shipping routes, using larger and faster ro-pax vessels.

The route's opening was marked with a declaration signed by Dominique Bussereau, the French Minister of State responsible for Transport and his Spanish counterpart Magdalena Alvarez of the first of two Franco-Spanish MOS concept routes, starting with the 14-hour GLD Atlantique service.

There will be no match racing on the south coast this year following a rejig of the fixtures calendar.

After two years of expansion for match racing in terms of events the theme for 2011 is consolidation.

Changes to the ISA SailFleet schedule for the boats mean that we have had to go through a rejigging of the match racing calendar.

The major impact is that Royal Cork YC are to take the boats latter than originally hoped meaning that they will be unable to host a leg of the Tour.

With Kinsale not taking part in the SailFleet scheme this year that means no match racing on the south coast for the first time in a couple of years.

With no tie up with the Dun Laoghaire Festival of Cultures available this year a date of July 23rd and 24th has been settled on for the Ireland vs The World International.

The highlight of last year this event will once again pit Irelands 6 best match racers against 6 teams from the rest of the world. Once again National and Tour champion John Sheehy will captain the Irish team.

The Leinster Match Racing Open, to be hosted by the Royal Irish Yacht Club, has been moved to July 16th and 17th to allow it to act as qualification for the Irish team for the following weekend and to give Laura Dillion and the Gladiators (Sam Hunt, Paddy Blackley, Peter Bayly, Richard Murphy) competitive practice immediately before heading over to Poland to represent the country at the ISAF Nations Cup.

Howth Yacht Club's, Dublin Match Racing Open stays with a date of September 3rd and 4th before we head for Lough Derg and the Womens (October 15th and 16th) and Open National Championships (November 5th And 6th).

All of the above means that here will be no Munster Match Racing Open this year and work continues to find a host for the IUSA Student Match Racing Nationals with Galway a potential for early April. There has been considerable work on the cost of entry for events over the winter and the majority of events will have a basic entry of €330 this year. All events will be run at ISAF grade 3.

Revised calendar

July 16-17th – Leinster Match Racing Open, Royal Irish Yacht Club
July 23-24th – Ireland vs The World International, Royal St George Yacht Club
September 3rd and 4th – Dublin Match Racing Open, Howth Yacht Club
October 15th and 16th - Womens Match Racing Championships, Lough Derg Yacht Club
November 5th and 6th – National Match Racing Championships, Lough Derg Yacht Club

The Royal Cork Yacht Club is recruiting an Operations Manager on a fixed term contract basis.

The Club offers a full range of sailing facilities, comprising a 200 berth marina, 40 moorings, extensive dinghy facilities, seven-day hospitality service and a full 12-month schedule of sailing activities.

Operating from Crosshaven, Co. Cork, the Royal Cork Yacht Club celebrates the 300th anniversary of its founding in 2020.

A notice on the club website this afternoon says;

"We are seeking to recruit a senior individual who will provide overall leadership and management for our operations team, with responsibility for overseeing the Club facilities, hospitality services and sailing activities. He or she will also be involved in the advancement of the Club's ongoing infrastructural development plan.

Reporting to the Executive Committee, this is an exciting opportunity for a person with proven commercial, hospitality and marketing skills.

The person appointed will have senior management experience, preferably in a marine, or leisure environment, and must be able to demonstrate strong interpersonal, organisational and leadership capacities."

Please send applications and CV (by e-mail only) to [email protected]

An economic impact analysis was carried out by three MBS students from University College Cork (Ger Swayne, Lorcan Daly & Stephen Hicks) which reported an economic impact of €5.6m with accommodation and food and beverage accounting for 65% of the figure. The students worked according to the standard Failte Ireland festival report methodology which includes qualitative and quantitative research.

At today's launch Deputy Mayor Of County Cork Cllr John O Sullivan stated 'the festival gave a great boost to the Kinsale area early in the summer season and it also ensured that works were carried out in the town prior to the event that benefitted both locals and visitors. In particular the refurbishment of the Old Mill as an exhibition venue was a huge new resource for the town.'

The media report was carried out by IFM Sports Marketing Surveys and was commissioned by Clipper Ventures who run the Clipper Round the World Yacht Race. Global media coverage for the whole race is estimated at over $100m and Cork's share of this is very substantial at $26.5m. These figures are boosted by a Discovery Channel global deal that has been agreed with the TV series producers and Clipper Ventures. An Irish broadcaster for the series will be announced in the coming weeks.

Commenting on today's results, Fiona Buckley, Head of Operations,  Fáilte Ireland stated 'from a tourism perspective the media coverage that Kinsale, Cork and the region received through the Clipper project will ensure that Cork is top of mind as a tourism destination in the coming years. In addition the economic report found that 98% of the overseas visitors would return to Cork as a result of the Clipper festival and 97% would recommend Cork to their friends.'

The festival in Kinsale was helped by the arrival of the fleet of 10 Clipper yachts six days ahead of schedule and the fantastic weather during that period.  When the yachts moved to the new Port of Cork Marina on 07 July the weather changed dramatically and this had an impact on the attendance figures in the city.

'When the fleet arrived in Cork city there was a crowd of over 10,000 people to welcome the fleet to the new Cork City Marina which was installed to welcome the Race but is also a lasting legacy to marine tourism in the region. We would like to thank the Port of Cork for investing in this new permanent infrastructure with the support of Cork City Council.

This new Marina will play host to other marine events over the coming years.' Stated Lord Mayor Cllr Michael O Connell Clipper Race Chairman, Sir Robin Knox-Johnston, said, "Cork and Kinsale were fantastic hosts, providing marvellous entertainment during
the race festivals in both locations and I am pleased to see that they reaped the rewards. The welcome visitors received will ensure a lasting tourism legacy for years to come. "

The return on investment for the project is estimated at over 300% which is above average for hosting a sporting event of this calibre.

The possibility of an Open 40 entry plus a new white sail division are just some of the developments for the tenth Dingle Skellig Hotel Dun Laoghaire to Dingle Race. Over 50 (SCROLL DOWN FOR PHOTOS BY MICHAEL CHESTER) gathered at the National YC in Dun Laoghaire last night to hear local TD and the Minister for Sport, Tourism and Culture Mary Hanafin give a ringing endorsement for the unique 320-mile offshore race when it sets sail on June 11th. A notice of race and entry form is available for download below.

The last race attracted 39 entries and a course record was set by Michael Cotter's Whisper. This year organisers Martin Crotty and Brian Barry along with Dingle Harbour master Brian Farrell are confident that they will break the 40 boat barrier. They may well be right as the event has been specifically timed to bring Dublin boats to the south coast for ten days of racing at the ICRA Nationals in Cork Harbour and the Sovereigns Cup the following week in Kinsale.

The event is also benefitting from inclusion in this year's ISORA calendar.

Present last night were represntatives from the major Bay clubs, including Breda Dillon from Howth YC and Fintan Cains of ICRA. Peter Ryan of ISORA, who is also the National YC commodore spoke about plans to develop off shore sailing and the club's plans to welcome the international Figaro offshore fleet in August.

Solo sailor Mick Lidddy who is making a bid for an Irish entry into the race was also in attendance.

SCROLL DOWN FOR LAUNCH PHOTOS BY MICHAEL CHESTER

Afloat coverage of the 2009 Race is HERE