GILMAR A468

 

Barry Johnson collection.

Official No:  302228   Port and Year:   Aberdeen, 1960

Description: Steel side trawler; single screw, motor.  Ketch rigged

Crew:  

Built: 1960, by J. Lewis & Sons, Aberdeen.  (Yard no. 300)

Tonnage:  174 grt  62 net.

Length / breadth / depth (feet): 89.5  / 23.4 / 11

Engine: 2 SA 5 Cyl; 550 bhp. British Polar Engines

Owners:

 

1960:  Devanha Fishing Co., Aberdeen.

 

1976: G. Wood, Aberdeen.

Manager: George Wood.

 

1982:  Pounds Marine Shipping.

 

1983: E. L. Fisheries.

 

1984: Trawler Owners' Association, Docks, Milford.

Manager: W. H. Kerr.


1990: Southard Trawlers, Milford.

 

Landed at Milford:  Oct 1984 - 1991

Skippers: Bob Foster (1984)

Notes: Aug 1992: Broken up at Castle Pill.

 Accidents and Incidents

From the Pembrokeshire Telegraph & Cymric Times of Wednesday 3rd October 1984:

 

    The latest addition to the Milford fishing fleet, the 115ft. long Gilmar arrived at the port last week from Barking in London.  The vessel, built in 1960, brings the total of vessels operating under the Trawler Owners' Association to five.  However, it will be some time before the Gilmar takes to sea, under the direction of her skipper Mr. Bob Foster, while repairs are carried out to the vessel.

    Meanwhile, the other vessel purchased in the deal from London, the Kinellan, under Skipper John Rogers, landed a £12,000 trip recently, and £7,300 last week.

 

[Both these vessels belonged to the newly formed firm of Southard Trawlers.]

 

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

From the Pembrokeshire Telegraph & Cymric Times of Wednesday 5th November 1986:

 

Port Mourns tragedy of two trawlermen

 

    The fishing industry in Milford Haven has been plunged into mourning following the tragic deaths in Ireland of two of its most popular trawlermen.

    Still reeling from the news of the death of Skipper Alfred James while boarding the Kinellan in Dun Laoghaire on Thursday, the industry was further stunned to learn that his shipmate for almost 15 years, Mr Hugh Picton, had been lost in similar circumstances while boarding the Gilmar just over 24 hours later in the same port. 

    Four of the Milford Haven fishing fleet, the Norrard Star, Bryher, Kinellan and Gilmar, had put into Dun Laoghaire to shelter from storms after fishing the Irish Sea.

    At midday on Thursday, Captain James, of 23 Ramsey Drive, Milford Haven, and affectionately known as 'Jaffa', had been crossing from his own vessel Norrard Star to her sister ship Kinellan for a meal.

    "He was going down a ladder on the Kinellan when either the ladder moved or he slipped and went into the water," Mr Ivan Harvey of Norrard Trawlers told the Telegraph.

 

TREATED

    Two crewmen of the Kinellan, 41-year-old Tony James and William Hamilton, 43, and the bosun from the Norrard Star, Keith Leggett, all jumped into the water to try and save 55-year-old Mr James, but he was dead when they got him out of the water.

    Mr James and Mr Hamilton were both treated in hospital for hypothermia but were later released.

    With details of Mr James' death still filtering back to Milford Haven on Friday, the industry was hit with a second tragedy. 

    Mr Hugh Picton, aged 63, of 75 Shakespeare Avenue, Milford Haven, a deckhand aboard the Gilmar, had been boarding the vessel when he slipped and went over the side.  Immediately the cook aboard the Gilmar, Keith Dyble, jumped in after him, but on arrival at hospital Mr Picton was found to be dead.

 

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

From the Fishing News of Friday 15th March 1991:

 

Lay-up looms for Milford company

    The issuing of redundancy notices to 30 shore based workers at Milford Haven has raised fears that the port's oldest firm, Norrard and Southard Trawlers, will soon lay up its seven aging trawlers.

    Ways are being sought out [sic] of financial difficulties facing the firm, which has been hit by shrinking quotas and soaring costs. But the problems of the trawler firm are seen as 'the tip of the iceberg' at the troubled Welsh port.

    ..................

    The Milford Haven company is the remains of a once powerful fleet that made the Welsh harbour a top landing port 30 years ago.

    .................

    Meantime it appears inevitable that Norrard's seven vessels — Norrard Star, Bryher, Antigua, Anguilla, Kinellan, Gilmar and Dawn Spray — will be laid up until a solution to the present crisis is found.

 

[In May 1991, only the Kinellan and Gilmar were still fishing; the other vessels were laid up.]

 

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

From the Pembrokeshire Telegraph & Cymric Times of Wednesday 13th November 1991:

 

Port Authority in talks on future of trawlers

    The future of three local trawlers is to be considered by Milford Haven Port Authority on Friday.

    Port Authority Mike Hyslop said the board would be considering the outlook for the fishing industry, including the future of the trawlers Gilmar, Kinellan and Bryher.

    The Authority says the experiment to lease the Gilmar had proved successful, with the 110 foot long trawler and its local crew grossing £1,000 a day at sea.

    All seven trawlers previously operated by Norrard and Southard Trawlers, now in receivership, have been idle since the summer apart from the Gilmar.  She put back to sea three months ago following a lease arrangement between the Authority and the administrative receivers of the vessels.

 

SUPPORT

    The Authority has spent more than £300,000 on building a new fish market at the Docks, where the catches from the Gilmar were landed.

    ...................

 

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

From the Pembrokeshire Telegraph & Cymric Times of Wednesday 18th March 1992:

 

Trawler fleet is sold to Ireland

BY JIM SMITH

    Milford Haven's fleet of seven trawlers has been sold to Ireland and will leave the port shortly,

    Even though the administrative receivers, Cork Gully — representing the creditors of the previous owning companies — refused to make any comments on the sale of the trawlers it is known they will shortly go to both Northern and Southern Ireland.

    This follows the recent announcement by the government that decommissioning grants for the vessels will now be considered.

    The trawlers include the Gilmar, which has been leased to the Milford Haven Port Authority and has been successful since returning to sea with its local crew.  They have now been laid off.

    The Gilmar, Kinellan, Dawn Spray, Norrard Star, Bryher, Antigua and Anguilla, were stopped from fishing last summer when the owning companies went into liquidation.

    All the vessels have since been for sale and it was only the Gilmar which went back to sea — earning an estimated £1,000 a day.

    ..................

    Port Authority manager, Mr. Mike Hyslop, said they were now hoping to encourage the new owners to operate the trawlers from Milford Docks and to, hopefully, employ local crews.

 

 

 

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