Episode 9 Channel Patrol

-NARRATOR:

-It's the busiest waterway in the world.

Come on, skipper! Get a move on, that way!

A gateway to our nation.

Over 90% of the world's trade travels by sea.

It's not just TVs and refrigerators. It's everything around us.

Protected by a multi-agency task force,

it's a unique stretch of water.

This is Warship Tyne, Warship Tyne, channel 1-2. Over.

It's very difficult to police the Channel.

To board every vessel is an impossible task.

It's a place where swimmers

and Sunday sailors

fight for space with cruise liners...

..and cargo ships.

It's like trying to get across the M25 during rush hour.

For some, the English Channel is their place of work.

If my mum came and saw what I was doing up here,

she'd tell me to get off straightaway!

-For others, it's a playground.

-Woo-hooo!

But, for those who venture onto its unpredictable waters...

We're just going to assist the moving of the casualty now.

Control, Dover lifeboat.

..it can mean life or death.

Just drag him onto the boat!

I hope my babies get to see this and see what Daddy does for a living!

Today, on Channel Patrol,

the tide turns against a crew of lighthouse engineers.

Dock workers' precision driving skills are put to the test.

We try to keep everything nice and neat.

If you don't get it right,

then it could throw out the whole of the deck.

And a team of rowers take to the high seas.

Relax into the rhythm.

We're going to plan!

Whoooo!

The Channel is of huge strategic importance to the UK.

It is the entry point for the majority of our imported goods...

..is a rich source of food...

..and has defended us in times of war.

But deep in the Channel's murky depths,

lie the legacy of its many uses.

The remnants of thousands of vessels,

from small fishing boats consumed by the rough waters,

to warships lost in battle.

Trying to keep collisions at bay

is the job of the Trinity House Corporation.

Since the reign of Henry VIII,

it has provided lighthouses dotted along the coast,

warning ships of dangerous, rocky outcrops.

And, out at sea,

Trinity House maintains nearly 500 buoys and eight lightvessels,

to mark shipping lanes and isolated underwater hazards.

This thing is taking on water, so we do need to get it in.

If the weather makes it unsafe to do it today,

then we're not going to be able to.

On board the Trinity House boat, the Galatea,

Captain Wayne Durrans and Officer Bob Culley

have been trying to bring a damaged lightvessel ashore

during a week-long storm.

It's been involved in a collision,

so we need to take the damaged lightship into tow

towards Harwich for repairs.

And, in the meantime,

bring a clean lightvessel out

to put in the place of the damaged vessel.

This part of the Channel, the Goodwin Sands,

cannot be left unmarked.

This underwater sandbank

is one of the most treacherous areas off the UK's coast.

The tidal streams are fast

and the shifting sands mean the depths are constantly changing.

So, the lightvessel acts like a lighthouse at sea,

to guide ships away from it.

The incredibly rough weather

has been hampering the crew's mission so far.

Galatea, Galatea. Lightvessel.

I can't get down there and have a perfectly good look

with her pitching and rolling as she is.

Right, at the moment, I'm calling a stop to the operation.

Can you now make your aim

to see how we can make this thing more watertight if necessary?

Aye-aye.

The weather is a huge concern for us.

The elements we deal with, particularly the sea state,

we're governed by that, in what we can and cannot work in.

So, sometimes we just have to sit off

and wait until weather conditions improve for us to do the job.

While they haven't been able to begin the tow job,

water has continued to pour into the lightvessel,

making the operation all the more urgent.

Taking action at the first opportunity is critical.

Right, the weather has eased,

so we're going to try and get alongside it.

-Everybody happy?

-Yeah.

OK, thanks, guys.

Crucial preparation needs to be carried out

before the towing can begin.

The damage to the lightvessel is in the pipework,

through which the anchor chain passes.

There's three hawser pipes.

Now, the collision damaged this one here.

In order to bring the vessel into tow, the anchor needs to be raised.

But, bringing it up through the damaged pipe,

would cause further damage and water ingress.

So the anchor chain needs to be cut and passed through a different pipe.

The plan today is retrieve the chain onto the Galatea.

We'll cut it.

Then we'll have to pass the chain back to the lightvessel,

reconnect her, so she's securely anchored overnight.

After the week-long delay, everyone is raring to go.

We've got 22 people on board at the moment,

and the engineers, they'll be involved in making sure

everything is running throughout the operation.

The deck officers will be helping me up here.

And the deck crew will be on board the lightship.

It's going to be quite a strenuous job.

The first step is for the crew to move the Galatea in close

to the 300-tonne lightvessel.

A precarious operation.

When she gets within throwing distance of a rope,

the guys will get some lines across.

One at the forward end of the lightship, one at the aft end,

to stop the lightship from moving about and hitting us.

And then we'll move into the last bit of distance

and put some more ropes out to make it secure.

The Galatea is making her way alongside now,

so she'll get into position, come along, and we'll tie her up fast.

Although the weather has cleared,

there are other factors that affect whether the captain

can hold position safely alongside the lightvessel.

The only problem I've got this morning is the strong tide.

So the lightvessel may be moving about on the tide, yawning about.

If we don't manage to keep hold of the lightship,

then we've really got to find a way of stopping it

from drifting off in the tidal stream.

So there's lots of factors to think about,

lots of things that could go wrong.

Bring it right across to me.

Right, Gwyn.

Keep a little bit of weight on it. That's it.

They're going to need me.

Now the crew is ready to winch up the anchor chain of the lightvessel

and bring it onto the Galatea to be cut.

It is a dangerous operation.

We're going to be working with large cable, anchor cable.

Potentially, extremely dangerous.

That could whiplash and possibly hit somebody.

All right, it's coming up.

Just keep coming.

Just keep an eye on it.

-Hold it.

-The chain can just go.

I mean, sometimes you'll see it distorting, as well.

But it can just go.

I've got one shoulder shorter than the other because of that.

I've had it whistling past my legs, all sorts.

That's an adrenaline moment, that is.

But, as you can see, there's a lot of weight on there.

We're all watching each other.

The chain is now on board the Galatea, ready to be cut.

Well done, lads.

But the swell has picked up considerably

and the captain is concerned.

The wind is actually on the starboard side of the ship.

It's flying through there. The tide's flying through, as well.

It would be nice to get that cable

back up to the lightship now all fast.

So that the lightvessel is anchored to the sea bed once again

and then I can break free.

There's now a danger the two ships could be forced apart

before the operation is complete.

The tide and the wind's picked up too much,

so the captain is not happy with keeping position.

So we'll have to take the chain all back and put her back on here.

So we're rushing now to beat the tide to do that.

As the conditions rapidly deteriorate,

the pressure is on to complete the mission

before the rough seas intervene.

We're not holding very comfortably

and, if the conditions were to get any worse,

she's going to struggle more.

The bottleneck of the English Channel at Dover

is at its busiest during the peak summer months,

when up to 120 ships, ferries and freighters

arrive and depart from the port every day.

And it's this time of year

when some of the country's most daring fundraisers

also join the traffic...

..aboard more unorthodox, man-powered craft.

5am, Dover.

A group of friends prepare to row in a race

to the halfway point of the English Channel.

And back again.

The sweat tends to get into my eyes,

so I've got this ludicrous Karate Kid get-up going on.

Should help.

It's a six-man crew with a female cox, Jess.

At a distance of over 20 miles, it's the equivalent of rowing to France.

And the competitive crew, including Jack Pagan,

hope to complete it in five hours.

I don't know about anyone else, but we want to be first back.

And, if we're not, we won't be happy.

So we're going in it to win it.

Bad weather has delayed the row by over a month

and Jack is concerned about their fitness.

I think I've gone backwards

from when I was at my peak about a month ago.

The crew is also rowing out into the unknown.

I've never done anything like this before.

I think the longest we've done is about three hours

on a practice row we did one Sunday morning down the River Thames.

So, erm...I don't know if you can call that a good practice.

But Jack has his own motivation to achieve a good time.

Yeah, well, we've got to be back by 12.15,

otherwise I get a 60-quid parking fine.

So I think that's an incentive, if anything.

I'll not be happy if I've got to pay that.

So, yeah, everyone knows, if we're late,

it's getting split between everyone.

Our job today is to get you out to the middle of the Channel,

avoiding all the cargo ships,

and getting you back all in one piece.

Before they can begin,

it's time for a reality check from James Salmon,

who will pilot the rowers out into the middle of the Channel

and back again.

This is a true challenge.

This is nothing like you've probably done before.

A lot of people think it's just going to be a bit of a seaside row.

You've got 9.9 miles to row out there in a straight line,

and that's without the tides and the swells to contend with.

It is the world's busiest shipping lane out there.

Some of the world's biggest cargo ships you'll be seeing.

When you see them looming up, they are huge.

And they create quite a wash.

We don't know how calm it is out there, because it's been dark.

There's a bit of a breeze, OK? There's quite a tide running today.

You might find the water swirling around with the tides, OK?

The competing teams are raising money for the AHOY Centre,

a charity that gives disadvantaged young people

opportunities to learn to sail and row.

For those of you who haven't met me before,

I'm the fundraising challenges manager from the AHOY Centre.

On board the support boat today, will be charity rep, Rachel Hedley,

herself a veteran Channel rower.

Just remember, when it all gets hard and gnarly out there

and your muscles are sore and you're thinking it's never going to end,

you've made a great contribution to our charity.

And that's what you're doing this for.

And I think that might keep you going through

a little bit of pain and suffering today.

The pilot boat escorts the team and their rowing boat

out to the start point -

a beach inside the harbour.

One of things that's really critical with rowing is the timing.

Technique and timing is everything.

And, when people get tired, and start to flag,

quite often their technique is the bit that goes first.

If they're not absolutely in synch,

you'll see, the boat will sort of start to look

a bit like a centipede.

Sort of, you know, all the oars go all over the place.

And off they go.

At exactly 7am, the three teams start.

Clear, clear, pull!

Jack, and his five friends, are guided by cox, Jess Dubek.

Don't lift your oars too high, either.

It's fairly calm today.

I'll let you know if there's a wave coming along.

Hopefully, we'll hear her being quite vocal today.

Because, really, the role of a cox in this kind of challenge

is to motivate and keep the team together.

To get the best out of them.

Relax into the rhythm.

We're going to France!

Whooooo!

As the team leaves the relative calm of the harbour,

the sea immediately becomes choppy.

Are you ready?

Give me a couple, just to get in.

In, out!

Pull!

Three and two...

You can see on the water, there's quite a lot of swell.

But that's because we're out at sea and it's the English channel.

So that's one of the things the team has to contend with.

And it's those different conditions to rowing on the River Thames,

where they've done their training.

The crew has made a phenomenal start

and are already well ahead of the other teams.

But this is an endurance test, and not a sprint.

They're doing 30 strokes a minute at the moment...

..which is quite high for fixed-seat rowing.

Eyes on Jack's shoulders for two minutes.

Get in time.

But it might be they're trying a bit too hard at the moment.

So we'll see how it goes.

I'm hoping that they'll sustain this nice, fast pace,

because then we'll all be back at Dover for lunchtime.

But, with nine miles ahead of them, the crew has to dig deep

if they are to propel themselves to success.

In, out!

In, out!

In, out!

90% of the world's global trade is carried by sea.

It is by far the most cost-effective means

to transport goods and raw materials en masse around the world.

Vessels are getting larger and larger.

The largest ones that we handle

at the moment in the port of Southampton

are circa 400 metres long

and 60 metres wide.

They can carry 18,000 containers.

There's a hell of a lot of value in there.

-Hearing you now loud and clear. Over.

-Morning, John.

This is Dover coastguard.

The service broadcasts at 1-2-4-3 UTC.

The Maritime and Coastguard Agency keep this vital traffic flowing.

And do you have any dangerous cargo on board, sir?

No dangerous cargo on board.

The Channel is very crucial for UK trade.

We will get small tankers, small cargo vessels,

building all the way up to 300, 400,000-tonne tankers

and container vessels.

So they are the major ones that we look after.

Roger. That's well received, sir. Many thanks. I wish you a safe trip.

Dover coastguard out.

Once the coastguard has guided tankers through these waters,

they come to dock in one of the Channel's busy ports.

Britain, without its ports, is inconceivable.

Just think of how much comes into the country via the sea.

I mean, just for an example, all these cars,

they are just a small minority

of what actually does come through the docks.

If the ports were to shut down,

the country probably would go into meltdown.

And it's not just goods coming in.

In the last two years, car manufacturing in Britain has boomed,

thanks to increasing global demand for British design.

We now export 81% of the vehicles made here.

The car industry relies heavily

on the Channel's major port of Southampton

to get its product out to the rest of the world.

650,000 vehicles transit through here every year.

And there's one quintessentially British car

that is always in demand.

Today, a bumper batch are bound for Australia

and other destinations around the world

on this 12-deck cargo ship.

The man in charge is Geoff Naylor,

who's worked at Southampton for eight years.

I have probably driven, over my time here, every vehicle.

Any kind of Porsche, Ferrari...

You get hearses coming through here.

So, when you're driving them, you get in and you get a little shiver.

You know, you don't know who's been in the back.

Everything, basically.

I've driven everything.

Geoff must make sure that the ship's decks are packed with precision,

because the surge in car manufacturing

has put space at a premium.

All right, listen in, please.

Today, Geoff is managing a squad of 30 drivers.

Today, we've got the Boheme.

It's going to be roughly about 330

to 340 vehicles to put on.

And we've only got a certain amount of timescale, all right?

On the Dock Road, 30mph.

Quayside, 15mph.

And, on the ship, ten.

As we all know, it's always dangerous on these vessels.

Let's have your wits about you.

If you see anything that is going to happen

that you think might be a danger to anybody else or yourself,

let everybody know.

Everybody understand?

OK.

What we're trying to do is

put the cars that are going to various destinations

on board the vessel, in the correct order,

safely.

And try not to have any damages or anything like that.

We have 340 vehicles to put on

in a timescale of four hours.

And we need to meet that deadline.

Skilled drivers are vital to get the job done in time.

First, they collect the cars from holding areas,

before heading for the ship.

A cool head is an absolute job requirement behind the wheel

of these brand-new vehicles.

New drivers, sometimes you have to relax them down,

because they are nervous.

So a first time coming onto a vessel like this,

you see the big ramp, the big open mouth at the front

and then they lose it, they just get nervous.

If someone wants to damage the car,

either by driving into the vessel

or, in the multi-storey it's sometimes quite tight

getting out of the multi-storey,

we'll have to pay for it, simple as that.

With such a large volume of vehicles going through Southampton each year,

accidents do happen.

There was damage on one of my vessels the other day.

The driver, coming round on the deck to go downstairs,

turned in, for whatever reason, too sharply, too tight and, erm...

..damaged the door.

Just simple mistakes like that that we don't need.

Because, otherwise, you won't get a profit.

Like a giant game of Tetris,

the drivers need to slot into tight spaces.

If you don't get it right,

then it could throw out the whole of the deck.

And it could be a struggle then for the next port,

where it's going to, to get the cargo off.

We try to keep everything nice and neat so it looks good, as well.

And it's more professional-looking.

Geoff's target is to get 100 cars expertly parked per hour.

A feat that depends on the stowers.

Stowing is watching the guy back and pointing which direction

that they're going to turn the wheel.

The stower will give a signal,

because, if you're shouting all the time to the car drivers,

they won't hear you.

So everything is done by signals.

A hand signal is, for example,

cars coming,

you say...this way.

Full-on. Stop.

Going back. Coming forward.

That's the hand signal.

Keep coming. Keep coming. Whoa!

That's it.

It's like a jigsaw.

And, to be honest, when I do it, everything comes correct.

I'm quite happy. Oh, look at what I've done!

The stowers do have a hard job and a difficult job

because, if a driver isn't necessarily doing

what the stower signals,

if one of the drivers was to scratch or scrape another vehicle or a pillar

as it was coming in,

it is likely that the stower would get the blame for that

and then they'd have to do incident reports and things like that.

Take that one out.

Geoff has intervened to do a bit of juggling

to maximise the space around a pillar.

Use that red one and then you can bring them through here then.

You'll get it through the gap.

And then we turn and bring the other one in here.

So, what we'll do now, is we'll move this one back

and then we'll bring that one in.

And, like Samie says, we won't lose any space, then.

It's things like this,

these are one of the other things that can slow you down.

Just trying to place things correctly and get them all sorted.

Space is money. And every millimetre counts.

You don't get paid for shipping fresh air.

Geoff has just 30 minutes left to finish the load.

We was ahead by about 20 cars before.

And now we're probably ahead maybe by about four or five cars.

But that's only because of where we've just been stowing down here.

A little bit more of a slightly difficult, awkward position.

So, most of these vehicles here have had to have been reversed in.

So these ones are just taking a bit more time.

Once in position, the final step for each car

is to make sure they are secure.

The lashing is very important because,

if any of the cargo is not lashed down properly,

it will shift when the vessel's at sea,

either with a deep swell

or there could be a storm out there or something like that.

Most of the vessels, they rock and roll

and the vehicles are so tight together,

that could cause quite major damage.

Even if there's one vehicle out, that will be a knock-on effect

onto the vehicles either side of it

and then, again, the vehicles either side of that as well.

It will rock and move and shift

and could split the lashings on the other vehicles, as well.

So very, very, very important that the lashing needs to be done.

As well as the cars,

Geoff has to load up 215 heavy vehicles, including tractors.

So this is the high and heavy cargo coming on now.

So all these tractors now will be getting reversed down here.

These also need to be locked down to the deck floor.

The danger of the heavies is, if they're being reversed,

you may have a lasher putting the lashings out,

maybe not concentrating,

and they could just be moving backwards or walking backwards

and step or get crushed.

Basically, get run over.

If you got run over in one of those,

the driver probably wouldn't even know that he's done it, to be honest.

And then that's it. Done.

You have got to have eyes in the back of your head sometimes

and just be aware of what's going on around you.

These chains are ten tonne, they've got a breaking strain of ten tonne.

It's really pulling the vehicle down. There's no way that's going to move.

Back with the cars, Geoff's four-hour loading time is almost up.

This is the last one just coming into stow now.

The lashers are even up-to-date as well.

They've lashed that lane and lashed that lane.

At the end, when it's all done, it is for me, I've done it before,

it is quite rewarding

to know that you've done everything properly and safely

and you know that nothing is going to move.

And that's it. We're done. Perfect job. Well done to everybody.

Brilliant.

OK, on the buses, then, guys. That's it, well done.

Packed up tight, the freighter will be leaving Southampton

and heading into the Channel's busy shipping lanes.

On an average day, there's a never-ending conveyor belt

of freighters going back and forth, up and down the Channel.

Propelling their way through the busy waters today

are a plucky rowing crew.

In, out!

All right, nice bow side. A bit of a comeback there.

Five miles into their 20-mile challenge,

they are well into the shipping lane.

What the pilot boats will now be doing

is they'll be tracking the ships really carefully,

making sure that they can safely pass behind them.

And there is the chance, if a tanker is coming along quite quickly,

that they'll ask the team to wait for it to go past.

Which can cause quite a lot of frustration for the teams,

because they're really geared up to keep rowing,

keep the momentum going.

I want a long stroke!

Long stroke!

While the crew is well ahead of the other teams in the challenge,

they are still pushing hard to complete in five hours.

Only eight minutes and everyone's going to have a minute's break.

The rowers get lucky and the ships don't hinder their endeavour.

2 hours 20 in, and the halfway point of this challenge,

the Copart Buoy, comes into view.

And the buoy

is probably only about 20 minutes away.

I can tell you what colour it is.

I can tell you what shape it is.

I can tell you that it's very insignificant!

Rowing all the way to France used to be possible,

but the French authorities banned it in 2013,

after a team got into trouble rowing at night.

They've made such good time to get here,

so they will be feeling really sort of strong, we've conquered it.

But we have to remember, they're only halfway through.

All right, guys, enjoy this moment going round the buoy.

Take a look at the buoy.

You're never going to see that ever again in your life.

Whoooo!

Beautiful rowing round the bend.

They've done amazingly.

They've done the best rowing in the last ten minutes.

After going round the buoy,

the crew is rewarded with a well-earned mid-Channel break.

The other teams are now over a mile behind,

so the crew's focus turns to completing

within their five-hour target.

Jess has only allowed them a few minutes' break.

We're going to do really efficient strokes.

So I want your oar in the water longer than it's out of the water.

And...stroke!

The next stage of it is they are going to cross over the track

of the other two boats coming this way.

That'll be another good mental boost for them.

And then they have to grind their way through the second half.

And let's hope they have the mental resolve to keep it going

for another nine miles.

But the team's strong first half quickly catches up on them.

I think there's some signs of fatigue setting in.

You can see some team members are not quite in the same rhythm

as everyone else every so often.

Which is a sure sign that they're getting a bit tired.

The shoulders get hunched, they don't really sit up straight,

they don't use their core muscles so much.

So it all starts to look a bit like a sack of potatoes.

In!

In!

In!

Two thirds of the way in,

and the crew knows they need to work hard

to hit their goal of five hours.

In!

In!

Nice!

Now, keep together.

They've been rowing for a long time. Their muscles will be sore.

They will be getting blisters on their hands

and, I think, this is probably the toughest point.

So, quite often, what people find at this kind of point,

is that they'll be getting quite a lot of cramp in their hamstrings.

You're sitting on a very hard piece of seat,

which is stopping the blood flowing properly into those muscles,

the top of their hamstrings.

So they'll want to stretch out.

Jack is cutting it fine to get back to his car in time.

Keep splooshing!

The two teams behind them have dropped back.

The nearest one is two miles behind.

So that's an amazing distance.

So, Jack's parked his car ambitiously,

despite being told to just pay for the day.

It's about to run out at 12.15.

And we're now coming up to 12 o'clock.

So that means they've got 15 minutes to get back up the harbour,

get round to the marina, sprint off the boat

and go to the car-parking meter.

I don't think that's possible.

Row!

Row!

I'm going to give you a countdown for three.

Then we're going to do our last power 20 on the Channel.

You're going to give me the hardest you've done!

And...

Ready? One, two...

Despite their best efforts,

the crew reaches Dover 20 minutes after their five-hour target.

But at least they came first.

It goes without saying, when you actually make it into the harbour,

the sense of achievement kind of flows through you

and you realise you're actually going to make it,

the tide is going to die out and it's a race for the home straight.

So, yeah, that was definitely the best bit.

Actually finishing, you can't top that.

Three!

Two!

One!

One more! Keep going!

Whoooooooo!

-Cheers, guys.

-Well done, boys.

Well done, everyone. That was really good. Well done.

Dotted around the Channel are a variety of navigational aids

safeguarding skippers from serious accidents.

If the buoys weren't there, itself, on the Dover Strait,

it'd be a bit like a junction on the road with no traffic lights.

And they are there for specific reasons.

Dividing the lane up over mud banks,

which could be another problem for any ships

that come down this particular area.

So the buoys and the lights are a major factor towards

the safety of the Dover Straits.

So, if a ship does hit a buoy or a light ship and damages it in any way,

we will call Trinity House and inform them of that problem.

And then they will come out immediately

and deal with that situation

to ensure that the navigation mark is back online ASAP.

Out at the Goodwin Sands, off the coast of Deal in Kent,

a Trinity House crew is dealing with a damaged lightvessel

that needs towing back to Harwich for repair.

Having hauled the lightvessel's anchor chain on board the Galatea,

the crew must now sever it

so it can be reattached through an undamaged portal.

Once we've done that,

we'll take the mooring chain back to the lightvessel

and secure it on board here.

So then the Galatea can move away

and she'll be anchored on her own, then.

But the strong spring tides are forcing the two ships apart,

putting a dangerous strain on the tethering ropes.

The operation on the anchor chain is finally complete

and it can be released from the Galatea.

Lads, just watch yourself on them ropes, OK?

The ropes may not hold for much longer

and need to be released in a controlled manner

to avoid endangering the crew on both boats.

As weight's coming on it, you don't want to get anywhere near it.

Because, if that does go, it's going to fly back in a straight line.

The captain mobilises chefs and engineers

to help secure the lightvessel.

But the pressure from the tide is too much.

That's gone.

Let go!

Everything!

Bob and his crew on board the lightvessel have no choice

but to release the other rope to prevent a collision.

She took a big wave. The forward rope snapped.

In that situation, you just let the rope part, get everybody clear.

If anybody had tried to get near to take that rope off,

they'd have been putting themselves in danger.

So it's just better to let it part.

It was pretty lively out there. But everyone knows their job, you know?

It's just another day at the office.

The towing job has to wait until the tide dies down.

This is probably the most problematic lightvessel I've had

in all the time I've worked here.

And that's, what, 18 years now.

After eight days at the mercy of the rough seas, things are looking up.

The weather is on our side,

it's veered round to the north-west, the wind,

so it's not coming round Dover any more. So that's good.

We can carry on with the operation

and, hopefully, get the lightvessel into tow back to Harwich.

Today is the last push, the big, final hurrah!

So, we'll get on board, and connect the tow.

We've got the tow wire out now for when we're in position.

We'll have the motor boat in the water.

We'll pass a messenger rope down to the boat.

That will be taken across to the lightvessel.

They can then start heaving that in.

And, then, once that's all set up,

the lightvessel can heave in the final part of the anchor,

there's about 100 metres left in the water.

So, once she's up and out of the way, we can start the tow.

Trinity House's rapid intervention vessel, Alert,

is bringing out a replacement lightvessel.

As the Alert arrives,

so there's a lightvessel on station for the maximum possible time.

A seamless changeover, if you like.

With the lightvessel now perfectly positioned behind the Galatea,

the motorboat can take a rope over to connect the towing cable.

This attaches to the towing links here now.

And then, obviously, when they've got it on board,

they'll put it on their capstan

and they'll take the weight and we'll feed out the wire to them.

They can now raise the lightvessel's anchor.

Finally, the lightvessel is under tow.

And Bob and the team can afford to relax a little.

OK, happy days. We got it under tow at last.

It is a relief to get that over and done with now.

Yeah, a good team effort all round. And we've done it safely.

And now it's handed over to the captain to take it back to Harwich.

Job done.

Never had a lightvessel experience like that

and I've been here ten years now.

So, I'm going to have a wash,

something to eat,

a little siesta in my armchair.

With their vital maintenance operation complete,

this area is safe once again

for the many ships that pass through the Channel.