Vandals target fishing boats
Fishermen fear their boats are being targeted by vandals at Lynn's Boal Quay after the biggest shrimping vessel in the port was set adrift early on Friday morning.
The 55ft Antares, owned by West Lynn man Eric Oughton, drifted unmanned down the River Great Ouse on the ebb tide until she grounded on the bank near the Dow Chemical plant, off Crossbank Road.
Fortunately, she was recovered without obvious damage – but Steven Williamson, a director of Lynn Shellfish, said this was the latest in recent vandalism attacks on vessels moored at Boal Quay in which thousands of pounds damage has been caused.
"We have had two or three incidents of boats being smashed up, vandalised and set adrift – we don't know whether it's someone with a vendetta against the fishermen," he said.
Mr Williamson said Mr Oughton's boat the Johanna was broken into and damaged while moored there on the night of December 27. "They smashed a lot of equipment in the wheelhouse, stole the skipper's personal TV and some electronics stuff, and tried to get both ropes off," he said.
One of Mr Williamson's boats, the Lynn Princess, was targeted the same night. "They smashed windows in the wheelhouse, got inside the accommodation and smashed up some of the equipment, chucked paint about and even left excrement inside the boat," he said.
"It cost several thousand pounds to repair the windows and electronics and clear up the filth and mess they made. They also stole some flares and, if they let them off at the wrong time, you could have a lifeboat going out needlessly."
Mr Oughton said the Antares' mooring ropes were "slipped" early on Friday and police were aware of the vandalism to two vessels, this latest incident and a fisherman's blue Mercedes 190 car being broken into at Boal Quay last week.
Doors were broken off to get into the Johanna's cabin and a television, power tools and some other equipment were stolen. "They also smashed things about in there and took a computer," Mr Oughton said.
He said there was no damage to the Antares – but it was a lucky escape as it could have flooded at the angle it lay.
Fortunately, skipper John Ashton and his mate Edward Ellis got aboard and supervised its recovery with help from other boats. A rope was also tied to a tractor on the bank to prevent her from capsizing.
Lynn port operations officer Bill Chase said the Antares was seen aground on the east side of the river at about 8am. No crew were aboard and the boat was listing at an angle.
The crew of a survey launch kept watch on the boat, as the tide was going out, and then the Antares crew turned up and were put aboard.
The vessel was refloated at about 11.45am with help from other boats at the scene.
Yesterday a Norfolk Police spokesman said the vandalism and thefts of fishermen's property at Boal Quay were under investigation and officers were checking on possible suspects.
Email to a friend
Print this page
Looking for...
Featured advertisers
Jobs
Search for a job
Motors
Search for a car
Property
Search for a house
Weather for King's Lynn
Sunday 27 May 2012
Today
Sunny
Temperature: 9 C to 26 C
Wind Speed: 17 mph
Wind direction: East
Tomorrow
Sunny
Temperature: 10 C to 24 C
Wind Speed: 10 mph
Wind direction: North
