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All the planning had been done in preparation for refuelling of the station today. Everyone up early waiting for the sun to come up. As the ship was coming into anchorage in Buckles Bay you could see the LARC and IRBs getting ready to enter the water for the first stage of the operation. All plans rely on the weather to play the game and this morning it did not play to start with, the wind was too high to start operations. The pacing of the Voyage Leader on the Bridge of the ship wanting the wind to abate finally worked and we were able to start the set up of the refuelling equipment about 50 minutes behind of schedule.
By 9.50 am the fuel hose had been connected between the ship and the shore, anchors had been set to keep the hose in position, the fuel hose had been pressure tested and vented and then fuel started to flow. By 3pm approximately 170,000 of the 250,000 litres required had flowed ashore. During this time the watercraft operators in their IRBs (inflatable rubber boat) cruise the fuel line keeping an eye out for any signs of problems and people ashore are walking along the fuel line also looking out for any issues. All care is taken to ensure that this is both an environmental and safe operation.
Every 15 minutes a radio call from the fuel farm ashore to the Bridge advising how much fuel had been flowing into the tanks. It is an all day operation to pump ashore the required amount of fuel to sustain the station for a year. It is well coordinated and involves AAD expeditioners on the ship, the ship crew, watercraft operators and station expeditioners.
The weather has played the game this afternoon and the sun is glistening off the ocean. All we need now is the pod of Orcas to swim by like they did last night as we left Buckles Bay.
CONTINUOUS A DANCER: Leanne and Anthea
Map
A map showing Australia and Antarctica. The map shows the journey of one voyage that has occured in the season, with each route highlighted in a distinct colour.