Maryport Marina gate failure - photo gallery
- Tue, 6 Oct 2009
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Spring tides and high winds combined to force open a west Cumbria marina lock gate creating a six-foot surge damaging dozens of boats on Saturday.
Maryport Marina gate failure photo gallery
Maryport coastguard, police and fire crews were called out to oversee the rescue operation after boats crashed into each other and sank, according to local press reports.
At least 10 boats have been damaged, six of them severely.
A catamaran ended up on its side and marina jetties have been pushed to a 90 degree angle.
Two fire engines also attended the scene and Maryport inshore rescue team was called out to pull some boats to safety.
Marina bosses are working frantically to track down boat owners to tell them of the incident.
No casualties have been reported.
Pauline Gorley, general manager of Maryport Developments, said she believed the marina gates' locking mechanism had failed causing them to fall into the sea and create the wave.
An investigation will be launched and will take several months.
The gates recently underwent a £300,000 refurbishment.
PBO reader, Kevin Akitt wrote:
On Saturday we experienced a high tide (it was springs, full moon) and this was pushed along by winds of up to 70 mph in West Cumbria.
The recently installed dock gates at Maryport failed and the resulting tidal wave as the dock gates burst open smashed its way into the private boat owners marina, this destroyed or damaged many boats, one boat sank and a cat cartwheeled over.
Some boats have extensive damage with holes in the hull and broken masts.
A recently installed set of pontoons was pushed into a set of pontoons further into the marina and the dock gates have simply gone.
Amazingly no one was injured.
Another reader, Ian Burnie, whose 33ft Nauticat, Pamoja was rescued, wrote:
The wave resulted in E pontoon being ripped away from its piles and smashing into D pontoon, with multiple sinkings of some very good vessels.
Can I congratulate the Marina Manager Pauline Gorley, who with all the Marina staff, who have worked very hard all weekend, assisting owners, who survived the 'Maryport Tsunami', to move their yachts from remains of E & D pontoons, to safer moorings within the marina. I know in my own case, the Marina staff acted as a deck crew, which permitted a successful manoeuvre in the dark and high winds on Saturday evening.
