G.Šneiders, "Ugunskuģi", Komunists #60, 27.03.1982.g.

G.Shneiders, Lightships, Communist newspaper #60 (Latvia, 1982)

Lightships

Lighthouses cannot be built on every underwater reef or near every narrow sea passage. In 18 century most problematic locations from the navigational standpoint were guarded by the lightships. These were special vessels, floating lighthouses, employed by the national hydrographic services to stand on its position in the sea serving as the reference point.

Mikhail Reineke, outstanding Russian hydrographic officer, suggested to place a lightship at a point 6.5 miles away to the southwest from the entrance to the port of Liepaja. A tallship was purchased in Finnland, equipped with a flashing latern and used on that position from 1898 to 1910. Its captain, Nikolaj Sture, was a retired Russian Navy officer. His crew ensured that the light of the ship always showed safe route to the Liepaja harbour.

Ovishi shoal located to the north from Ventspils, by the entrance to the Gulf of Riga, was notorious among the seamen. During the Word War I German lightship Elbe-2, earlier used by the Germans in the mouth of Elba, was stranded on the Latvian coast. By 1928 it was repaired and placed on the Ovishi shoal as Laima lightship, anchored to the 25-ton cast iron form. Its captain was Mr. Freimanis, an experienced pilot from Pavilosta, who graduated from the Riga Krishjana Voldemara navigation college. During the Great Patriotic War lightship Laima was destroyed.

In 1962 Soviet hydrographic service placed a new lightship, Irbenskiy, 33 miles away to the North-West from Ventspils, by the end of the sea channel that went to Irbe Strait. The new lightship was built by Valmet shipyard in Turku, Finland. It is a modern and very seaworthy vessel. Thanks to being painted red it is easily recognized buy the seamen who carry freight to our land. Instead of jig mast it is equipped with a metal tower and a lantern atop that produced flashing light visible from up to 12 miles away under good weather conditions. Mainmast is equipped with a nautophone that produces sound signals during the fog. The vessel is also capable to produce underwater sound signals.

15-men crew selflessly perform their duties during 15 days, after that the new crew arrives to replace them. The captain, Yurij Kostrev, recalls the times of challenges. On 17 October 1967 storm in the Baltic sea has ripped apart the main anchor chain of the lightship. Using the engine and the reserve anchors the crew kept the vessel standing against the raging storm. Vassiliy Petrov, senior engineer, and Nikolay Yakovlev, motorist from Pavilosta, did not step aside from the engine that was running two days to avoid the accident. The crew got totally wet as the storm destroyed all the glass in the windows of the bridge. The brave seamen, however, have won their luck and in two days the lightship was again on its due position.

The naval history, however, knows a different story. A notorious ship cemetry is located in the middle of the La Manche strait - the Goodwin sands. From all sides they are marked with the British lightships. In the night of 27 November 1955 force 12 storm with heavy South-West wind has destroyed South-Goodwin lightship. The British were challenged by the facts that the crew did neither given SOS signals, nor released the reserve anchors. The crew also has not managed to keep the vessel's nose against the storm using its engines. The vessel sunk just 6 miles away to the north from its position. The location of the accident was photographed from the helicopter. The questions left unanswered as the only survivor was a zoologist who was present on the lightship to overwatch the birds.

In winter, due to heavy icing, the lightships are replaced with buoys. This winter lightship Irbenskiy takes rest in our harbour to return to its important duty in spring.

G.Shneiders, (translated by Anton Ivanov for Plavmayak.ru)

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