# Bang it went!



## Zeb?edee2020 (Sep 7, 2018)

The M.V. Trelyon was berthed Starboard side to in Manchester docks in the nineteen-fifties. As it was a Saturday afternoon there was no cargo or maintenance being worked. So as Fourth and duty engineer I was sat in my cabin on the Port side reading, listening to the wireless/radio and smoking when there was an almighty “bang” and the ship lurched violently to Port, not far and then righted herself. Thinking that we'd been hit I hurried out on to deck: the dock was like a mill-pond with nothing moving apart from a few minor ripples due to our activity. The mystery was soon solved when the Third and duty mate arrived. The dock water level had been raised and the shortest mooring had resisted the vessel's rise causing a Starboard list too slowly to be noticed. Eventually it parted with the aforementioned bang. There was nothing in my remit to keep me on deck so I returned to the previously mentioned frenetic activity of waiting for tea-time; the third mate was probably busy drafting a report on the loss of a hawser!


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## Stephen J. Card (Nov 5, 2006)

Only one that would part like this would be a breast line. The only way the water level would rise if the river level was high and it was adding water to the dock system. It would take many movement of ships into the dock to raise enough for this. If course you might have heavy rain water to flood the area. Are you not sure the Jr Eng was transferring oil from one side to other? Better a slight list than an overflow on deck!!!!!


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## captainconfusion (Aug 13, 2020)

Zeb?edee2020 said:


> The M.V. Trelyon was berthed Starboard side to in Manchester docks in the nineteen-fifties. As it was a Saturday afternoon there was no cargo or maintenance being worked. So as Fourth and duty engineer I was sat in my cabin on the Port side reading, listening to the wireless/radio and smoking when there was an almighty “bang” and the ship lurched violently to Port, not far and then righted herself. Thinking that we'd been hit I hurried out on to deck: the dock was like a mill-pond with nothing moving apart from a few minor ripples due to our activity. The mystery was soon solved when the Third and duty mate arrived. The dock water level had been raised and the shortest mooring had resisted the vessel's rise causing a Starboard list too slowly to be noticed. Eventually it parted with the aforementioned bang. There was nothing in my remit to keep me on deck so I returned to the previously mentioned frenetic activity of waiting for tea-time; the third mate was probably busy drafting a report on the loss of a hawser!


Ever stood or been in a stokehold of a steamship [30.000shp] high pressure boilers supplying steam to main turbine plant- the chief running up and down shouting more steam!! then - a rubble and whoosh a cloud of steam issues from the burner fronts, and an immediate loss of steam power, and ensuring pandemonium and blackout- great it is all in a dream, and a vivid memory????


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## captainconfusion (Aug 13, 2020)

rumble not rubble


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## Ian860B (Dec 17, 2015)

captainconfusion said:


> Ever stood or been in a stokehold of a steamship [30.000shp] high pressure boilers supplying steam to main turbine plant- the chief running up and down shouting more steam!! then - a rubble and whoosh a cloud of steam issues from the burner fronts, and an immediate loss of steam power, and ensuring pandemonium and blackout- great it is all in a dream, and a vivid memory????


I was not in the stoke hold when furnace tubes let go but was there a couple of minutes later, steam still blowing out the furnace spy holes and the forth engineer staggering around with his face and glasses covered in fuel oil. 
Being short of steam an off line boiler was immediately flashed up and was on line in 20 minutes from stone cold!!! not my call.
IanB


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## willy hardy (Jan 26, 2014)

I can remember being on watch, when there was an almighty bang, donkey man running around like a headless chicken, steam blasting out of the boiler room, dust everywhere.
It turned out to be the valve to the steam whistle had been working loose for a while, then suddenly boom. We found lots of debris but never found the valve.


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