Episode 3 The Harbour

Aberdeen harbour.

So you can pick up to a speed of between five and six knots, please.

A multimillion pound business

at the cutting edge of maritime technology...

Bridge on the move, Bob. Roger. On the move, guys.

..where everyone works together...

I can't slap these guys, you know. I'd like to!

HE LAUGHS

You've got to be on the ball, you've got to be alert.

..in the most challenging conditions...

If your feet get caught in that, it will drag you over the side.

What the BLEEP happened there, like?

..to keep the harbour running...

THEY LAUGH Oh, my God!

Come on! Come on!

Eugh!

CHEERING

..every single day of the year.

You are looking good on starboard side.

No, we don't drive a submarine.

Aberdeen harbour, the epicentre of marine operations

for the oil and gas industry.

Not just in the UK, but across north-west Europe too.

And it's always hectic,

so dive support vessel, the Bibby Sapphire,

has had to berth in Montrose instead.

Brrr! That's cold!

What happened to summer?! It was here last week, you missed it.

Hugh Jones, her captain,

is preparing to catch the mid-morning tide.

Aberdeen gets very busy and we've been in port for six days now

doing some maintenance and things and Aberdeen don't like us in that long.

OK, Ian, that's us under way and were off to UKCS.

I'll start swinging it round then.

Right, just steady the ship up. You ready, Jacek?

OK, take control forward.

Jacek Vichinsky is the chief officer.

It's the first time he's taken the ship out of Montrose.

Jacek is steering, the pilot is guiding him

and I'll just keep an overview on things...

..and hope I'm still in employment in half an hour's time!

That's it now. Good, thank you.

Keep her coming to port.

Come a little bit more quickly, please.

The wind is one challenge...

You're getting pushed by the wind. Yes. OK.

..the varying depths of the harbour, another.

This is the shallow bit we're coming up to now.

Come back to 085, please. 085.

Been delighted. See you guys the next time.

VOICES ON RADIO

There you are, pilot away. There he is.

Pilot away!

The Bibby Sapphire is heading for the Joanne Oil Field,

a journey that will take about 13 hours.

It's nice when you're going out into blue lumpy stuff,

but this is grey lumpy stuff, isn't it?

North Sea!

Down here, lads!

Billy Duguid has been a boatman at the harbour for the past 16 years.

You can go still a wee bit more if you want.

VOICE ON RADIO

Sitting in an office just wouldn't appeal to me...

unless I was surrounded by a bevy of beauties, you know?

Then I would change my mind. To hell with this crap!

HE LAUGHS

He's on shift with Gary Morris, one of the harbour's newest recruits.

His attitude is very different to the old-timers'.

My mates think I'm super lucky because I get to watch TV

and stuff, so my breaks are a lot better than their breaks.

Back at the bothy, Billy's dog is waiting.

That's my travelling companion, Duke.

A fierce border terrier, kills for fun.

HE LAUGHS

But while Billy spends his downtime with Duke,

the younger boatmen have other pursuits...

Aw!

..and Billy doesn't approve.

He hides the PlayStation 3 controllers and stuff like that.

He hates us.

Its Billy's job to train up the younger guys,

not that they are always receptive.

If they want to sit and play that,

they are not listening to that,

as I'm concerned, you know? I don't play that.

My radio is on all the time and I'm tuned in, you know?

I expect them to be, as well. That's the job, this.

It's not like the old days.

When I was a young lad, if I didn't listen, you were...

You got a slap and that solves the problem, you know?

And you knew you were doing wrong, you know?

I can't slap these guys, you know? That's assault! I'd like to!

HE LAUGHS

Wouldn't I, Duke?

Barmaid Val Morrison is admiring a recent purchase.

I like going round the charity shops and it's a jig I bought today.

It's the old-fashioned stuff. It's needing a clean, like, look at that.

But I still think I'll get 20 quid for it.

Her house in Torry is an Aladdin's cave of charity shop finds.

I've got tables, I've got cutlery sets, I've got vases.

I've got this nice iron, one of that fancy irons, a Swan iron.

I've got a brand-new lime kettle.

I dinnae ken where I got the aftershave fae,

but I must have bought it.

And she's got a keen eye for a bargain.

Look at him. Is that nae lovely?

The outfit was on the doll. I got the whole lot for ?4.

I actually bought the dolls' house in the charity shop for ?6.

My chummy Shirley says to me,

"What are you doing buying a dolls' house? You're 62!"

This bit opens out, but I cannae really open it out...

Well, I can...now!

Look, is that nae just lovely?

And then this all lifts up.

Oh, it's my candles!

Oh, here's my money box!

But she is running out of space and she's having a big clear out

before having new wardrobes installed.

All this stuff is to go into the car boot sale

and I've just decided I'm coming home with nothing.

The Bibby Sapphire is more than halfway to her destination

and it's time for divers to go into saturation.

Did they reinforce that for Brownie?

LAUGHTER

That's not fair, I have lost weight! I'll come out lean and mean.

For the next few weeks, these chambers will be home.

When you have done it for so long,

it's just an everyday job, basically.

Martin, here's your ear drops.

Another day at the office.

Hello. We are all in, ready. We've got two using five.

Mick, you are in two, yeah? Roger that.

Getting the Clipper Board going here.

Jeff White is the life support supervisor.

He can now take the divers to the depth they will be working at.

Are we ready to take the seal?

So just confirm that you are pushing on doors 23, 11 and 13.

They've all had to hold the exterior doors

because we are blowing down the main system.

On the surface, we breathe in a mixture of nitrogen and oxygen.

Standing by, pressure on the door.

Going for it, fellas.

At depth, it's helium and oxygen, which they are pumping in now.

Are you getting it there?

Yeah, take it to three.

OK, we're looking good here.

Jeff toyed with idea of becoming a diver, but decided against it.

I mean, they're going in there, sealing themselves in a bin.

For a month.

I think it takes a special person. HE LAUGHS

Torry Battery, at the entrance of the harbour,

is a favourite spot for Billy to walk his dog, Duke.

I've travelled a lot, but you just come back to your roots, do you?

He just takes off. He does his own thing.

His first job was on a trawler

and he's spent most of his life working on boats.

You couldn't envisage...now...

young lads doing what we did, you know, what I did.

No, you went away to sea, maybe staying for a day,

shoot away the nets, then three hours later, you're up out of your bed,

standing on the deck, hauling nets in, gutting fish.

He was lucky to get his job at the harbour

because vacancies are never advertised.

Because I'm on the lifeboat crew,

one of the lads said there was a job coming up where I am now.

I applied and, fortunately, I got it. It's a good job.

Even though he has no family connections to the other boatmen,

unlike half his colleagues.

They take in their sons, their nephews, and that's...

I totally understand that. You know, that is the way it is.

If I lived in Fittie, I would want my son to follow the trend, you know?

That's the way it is, you know?

It's an early start at Thainstone Centre,

on the outskirts of Inverurie.

We've got a car boot sale the day, with all my rubbish,

if there's anybody who'll try it.

It'll take me about half an hour to unload the van,

cos there's so much stuff.

There's space for at least 200 cars,

selling every conceivable household item.

I dinnae ken half of what's in here, actually.

We'll just get everything out,

cos I can't see anything for anything here.

A Pasta Perfect timer? Aye. Dinnae ken what it's for, like.

Val's roped in her friend Stacey Davidson

and Crown and Anchor regular Simon Lieske to help her out.

Here, dinnae sell these, I'm wanting to keep these.

She's come out at half past six in the morning

to help her adopted ma.

Cos she says...she's only out to see what she can get, like.

STACEY LAUGHS

This is what we're needing.

I've got a pretty doll's house up here.

The same doll's house that Val bought for ?6,

and is hoping to sell for at least ten times that.

If they want it, they can sort their loo and everything themselves.

I'm going to ask 80, but I'll take it down to 60.

I'm nae going to take less than that -

OK, I ken I didnae pay much for it,

but I'm nae going to take less that that.

The sale can attract up to 5,000 people...

..all of them looking for a bargain.

Is there no face on it?

No, there's nae meant to be a face on.

She's meant to be like that. Here, you could have her for ?4.

I daren't, honest.

He'll be back.

Val, your green light...

Just take what you can get for it.

OK? Thank you. Thank you, bye-bye.

But Val's sales technique is failing to attract any buyers.

Are you nae buying that, you miserable little BLEEP?

LAUGHTER

What a... That's what I like.

Hey! You buy something off this stall.

You dinnae display things properly.

Oh, excuse me!

This is the second time I've done this for her.

She was supposed to get rid of all her rubbish the last time,

cos she moved house, but she never did, so...

This is why we're back again, but never mind.

Better get rid of it the day.

Look at that doll's house, Mum.

Excuse me - the doll's house, how much do you want? ?60. ?60.

Yeah, on comms, mate.

It's 5am on the Bibby Sapphire

and they're launching the ROV,

or Remotely Operated Vehicle.

Here we go...

Supervisor Dave Gordon can now begin to survey the area

the divers will be working.

The vis doesn't look brilliant, does it?

No.

The poor visibility is caused

by a build-up of sediment in the water.

Yeah, we'll start from here, we'll just go along this side.

The vis is minging.

Something's come up on sonar now. Aye.

15m ahead.

The divers will be installing a flexible pipeline

and tying it into a manifold...

..a structure made of pipes and valves to transfer oil and gas.

Just see the top of the manifold there. There you go, yeah.

Looks like giant cauliflowers, but it's just marine growth.

So we're just going to make sure

there's no scaffolding poles or debris

that's going to obstruct the laying of the line.

They won't see the net until they're on it.

You need a lot of...patience, for this job.

# Oh, what a beautiful morning... #

Four of the boatmen are preparing for a job

that doesn't happen very often.

Come on. Come on, boys, onto that job...!

We're going away out the channel now,

heading towards that barge that's lying out without a tug.

Barges rarely come into the harbour -

once every 18 months or so.

I reckon that's probably going out to the barge as well.

It's going to be a challenging few hours for Gary.

This is his first time of doing this, like.

So we'll just have to keep an eye on him, make sure he's OK, ken?

There's no real training for this,

considering the guys who I'm learning from

have only done it a couple of times.

Nothing to worry about, boy - look, steady as a rock.

LAUGHTER

The barge is unmanned,

so the boatmen will be preparing the ropes they need

to bring her into the harbour.

So we'll go alongside the barge now and we'll get on board this barge.

Russell Matthews is going with them

as a second pair of eyes for the pilot on the tug.

Once on board, we're going to recover the tow line. Yeah.

We're going to secure the tug port to starboard,

quarters on the bridle... Right.

A loose tow line could catch in the tug's propellers.

Pull this then, Gary. Right you are.

Right, Gary, watch yourself now, please.

Then they tie on to the tug at the back...

Right, Gary, grab that, grab that now...

..which will help to guide her in.

Right...

The barge is here to pick up a dive support system

and take it back to Holland.

It's a lot cheaper than using a cargo ship.

With the tugs doing all the work,

the boatmen can sit back and enjoy the ride.

Spanish Armada.

LAUGHTER

It's been a slow start for Val.

Hello, my dear.

But her luck may be about to change.

A bird's just pooped on my picture, just missed my back!

I tell you, if that's not lucky, I dinnae ken what's nae.

There you go, my darling.

A pound each, ?4. ?4.

Or maybe it's because she's lowered her prices.

40p, my darling. I'll wrap them in here for you.

There you go. How's that, now? Nothing else we can sell you?

I'll pack it, you pay it.

THEY LAUGH

50 pence each. 50.

They're a comfy shoe. You should buy more shoes, they're all there.

Coming a bit better now,

I didn't think we were going to do well.

But I'm just selling my shoes and my handbags for 50 pence,

cos I just want them away.

Hey, go down there and buy some more stuff down there - go on!

Thank you. All right.

If you want it, you have it for ten, cos I'm nae wanting to take it home.

Val even finds a buyer for her unit.

I'll need to charge you ?45, ?5 delivery,

and Simon will deliver it.

But we need to charge you 45, because he would need to... OK.

Is that OK with you? Right. We'll deliver that to you.

I'll write a great big "sold" ticket on there for you.

By midday, most of her stuff is gone.

Look at all this - this is what we've made the day.

That there, and then Stacey's got a bag of money.

Seven, eight, nine, ten - 285, 295...

What's that, 300? ?300. Perfect.

That'll be nearly all my wardrobe paid, I think.

Well, maybe nae quite, but nae far short of it.

And I'll just sell my body for the rest.

SHE LAUGHS

It takes around 20 minutes to bring the barge into the harbour.

Boatman Craig Massie is waiting on the quayside to tie her up.

It's all good experience for the boys who haven't done it before.

Gary will be fine - Fintray loon, born and bred, he'll be fresh.

He'll be brand-new.

All hands to the deck

before the ship hits the sand, you know?

This is the critical part of the job -

especially when there are no safety rails on the barge.

Stand back a wee bit, Gary. RADIO: Yeah - she's coming in.

Right. BLEEP, we're going backwards.

Look - right...pull it...

Pull the slack, Gary.

Pick up the slack, Norman, pick up the slack.

Pulling in the slack stops the barge from moving

once the water level rises.

But it's more of a challenge than Gary anticipated.

Make it fast, Gary.

Other way, other way, figure of eight. Sorry.

We've all got to learn.

There we go - successfully tied up. Happy days.

Hi, Dave, that's us with the barge, all fast.

I didn't expect it to be, like, super-hard,

but...it was all right, under Alan's guidance.

That's it alongside - couple of days and it'll be away again.

OK? See you later on, Phil. Take it easy.

Just another notch on the belt, know what I mean?

Becoming an all-round boatman.

With the survey successfully completed,

the first dive can now go ahead.

Bridge, starboard dive, bell system, 5-0.

Like all dive supervisors,

Bob Campbell was a diver himself for 35 years.

I'm too old and blind to do it any more.

It can be quite physical down there at times -

you get to a certain age and it's, you know...

You have enough of living in a box.

Bridge, starboard dive, bell surface, 0-2.

On our way, Dave.

OK, Josh.

OK, it's about a metre to go. Just about there, guys.

That's it landing.

That's the diving bell landing on top of the diving bell stage.

OK, go through your door. Happy with that?

Bridge, starboard dive, bell at depth, 0.5.

Roger that - put him in the trunk and checking for leaks.

But there's a problem with one of the hats.

MONITORS BEEP

OK, just check his reclaim, Carl.

Come back.

No reclaim, got no negative pressure.

The water trap...

..it's not sealing.

Say that again?

MAN SPEAKS OVER RADIO

It's leaking a lot.

The divers use a circular system called reclaim,

which allows the gas they breathe to be recycled.

And the dive won't go ahead until it's sorted.

What we're going to do is get you another valve down

and...we'll change it out down there.

Stand-by diver Josh Connolly

takes it down to the riggers on deck.

Spot on. Cool.

The valve is lowered down to the divers.

Deck dive.

RADIO: Go ahead.

Yeah, Murdo, have you got that fitting down there with you yet?

Yeah. That's the tug leaving...

Roger that. Come down to 6-0.

6-0, Roger.

OK, have you got a visual?

But the poor visibility is making it hard

for the diver to spot the valve.

You're still about 7m away on the screen, Juan,

so if you walk directly astern, or go on about 090...

I'll just get the ROV to fly up and spot him for you.

Can you just spot that for me, Dave? Yeah.

Yeah, 16m, roger that.

I knew the vis was bad, but this...this is worse than bad.

We'll spot it first, then they'll lower it down slowly.

So they just don't land it on top of the divers.

Deck dive, tug it down 5m and all stop.

RADIO: Going down five.

There it goes - just home in on the flasher.

OK, the ROV's on it, can you see the ROV, Juan?

You can see some of the divers' bubbles coming up, look.

So we know we're close to them.

Tug it down five more metres and all stop.

RADIO: Coming down five.

Yeah, that's what we want, the bag.

OK, back to the bell with that,

soon as the tug has cleared to the surface, Juan.

OK, Carl is just passing you in that valve.

He's passing you in the bag, it's got the valve in it.

Well done, there, Carl.

If we've got a seal on that plunger, we should be good.

With the reclaim sorted, the divers can start work.

Whenever you're happy, Juan, you can drop to the bottom, mate.

Roger that.

There he goes, that's him going down.

So dark down there - it's kind of an alien environment,

where you're stepping off into the unknown.

Coming up, things get steamy on the fuel tanker.

Glasses are steaming up. I know. Cos you're hot, baby.

And truck driver Kenny loses patience.

Nobody will give way to nobody, cos they haven't got time, you see?

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