Trial of patience A MESSAGE from the 1,100-ton coastal tanker Olga, on passage from Liverpool to Bergen, stating she was aground on Bhride Island and that the crew of 10 aboard required assistance, was intercepted by Portpatrick radio station at 9.37 p.m. on May 27, 1973. It led to the launching of the Islay (Inner Hebrides) lifeboat within half an hour. MV Whithorn, engaged on survey work in the area, advised the Coastguard that she would stand by Olga until the lifeboat arrived.

The lifeboat, a relief 46' Watson, Mabel Marion Thompson, set a southeasterly course from Port Askaig towards the stricken tanker some 14 miles away. The weather was overcast with a south-south-westerly wind force 5, moderate sea and swell. Visibility was two miles.

Just before midnight the crew of the lifeboat, abeam of Chiurn Island with three and a half miles further to steam, sighted Olga's deck lights, and at 12.27 a.m. on March 28, Acting CoxswainCoxswain Malcolm MacKay conned the lifeboat alongside Olga's starboard quarter. Three of her crew jumped aboard the lifeboat, but the remainder said they wished to remain aboard.

At 12.42 a.m. the coxswain cleared Olga, and in doing so slightly damaged 2' of belting in way of the starboard side.

By now the wind had risen to force 6, with the tide setting north at 4 knots.

Olga developed a starboard list, but her captain was sure there was no immediate danger and insisted on remaining aboard. Coxswain MacKay decided, in view of the worsening weather, to lay off the casualty and stand by until the arrival of the salvage tug Warrior, which was due at 10 o'clock.

After only a few hours in the lifeboat the three survivors aboard were insistent that they should be put ashore as soon as possible, and therefore, after a discussion on VHP with the honorary secretary, it was agreed that at daylight the lifeboat would steam the five and a half miles to Ardbeg Pier and land these men.

At 6.40 the lifeboat set course for Ardbeg and at 7.15 landed the three survivors at the pier, returning to stand by the casualty by 9.10. At 10.40 the salvage tug Warrior passed Port Askaig bound for the casualty, which she reached shortly after 11 o'clock. As the tug had no echo sounder her master requested the lifeboat to lead her in to Olga, which she did. Warrior spent the next hour and a half unsuccessfully attempting to tow the casualty clear, but, after two towing hawsers had parted, at 1.05 p.m. she fouled her own screw with a hawser and by 1.50 it was decided no further salvage attempts would be made that day.

In view of these developments Coxswain MacKay again closed Olga but the master and remaining crew still refused to leave their vessel, asking that the lifeboat should stand by. The honorary secretary considered that as the crew refused to abandon ship, and bearing in mind the time already elapsed since launching the lifeboat, she should sail the eight miles to Port Ellen to allow for some of the crew to change over, for the remainder to have a hot meal and to re-fuel the boat. The lifeboat therefore steamed to Port Ellen but by 5.50 had returned to stand by Olga once again.

At 10.4 the honorary secretary grew concerned about the lifeboat standing by all night with little prospect of performing a lifesaving mission and, fully aware that the Coastguard had the stricken vessel under continuous visual surveillance, he conferred by telephone with the Staff Inspector (Scotland) and it was agreed that the lifeboat should be withdrawn to stand by at Port Ellen, one hour's steaming away.

Coxswain MacKay was instructed to sail to Port Ellen, which he did, arriving at 2.10 a.m. on March 29. At 7 o'clock, after discussion between the Coastguard rescue HQ and the honorary secretary, it was decided the lifeboat should return to Port Askaig and await developments.

By 12.15 p.m. she had berthed alongside and been re-fuelled, and Coxswain MacKay, Acting Mechanic Archibald Campbell, Assistant, Mechanic Lamont Campbell, Deck Hands Andrew Swanson and Murdo Macdonald stood down for a rest, having been on duty for 38 hours without a break.

Some hours later, at 10.46, the Coastguard telephoned the honorary secretary to advise that the weather had worsened, with a forecast of south west force 9 in the casualty area and that Olga's master had passed a message stating his position was critical. Thus at 11.15 Islay lifeboat was again launched and at 1.29 a.m. on March 30, as Coxswain MacKay closed the casualty, it was relayed by VHP that the Olga crew wished to be taken off immediately and that a bed should be prepared in the lifeboat as the captain was very ill.

In view of this news Coxswain MacKay ruled out use of breeches buoy or of lying alongside the casualty again.

Worsening weather had resulted in rough seas and a heavy southerly swell, considered too severe for transferring the captain in a stretcher. The coxswain closed to within 30 yards of Olga's stern and dropped anchor, but as it started to drag he weighed and reanchored in 2£ fathoms of water some 60 yards off Olga's starboard quarter.

At 2.48, after a failure with one line, a second rocket line was secured aboard Olga and this was followed by a 2£" nylon line. The coxswain instructed the crew to launch their rubber raft, make the nylon line fast to it and alsoto make another line fast aboard Olga and to pay this out from the raft. The captain and six crew were safely aboard the raft by 3.20 and the lifeboat crew hauled them the 90 feet to the lifeboat, on which they were all safely aboard by 3.39a.m.

The lifeboat steamed to Port Askaig, arriving at 6.5. The survivors were landed, met by doctors and taken by ambulance to hospital. By 7 o'clock the lifeboat had been re-fuelled and returned to her moorings.

Coxswain MacKay and his crew showed great patience and determination and the demands on the coxswain's navigation and boathandling were considerable due to the length of service both in time and distance along a difficult and dangerous coastline. A bar to his bronze medal has been awarded to Coxswain MacKay and medal service certificates to Acting Mechanic Archibald Campbell, Assistant Mechanic Lament Campbell and Crew members Andrew Swanson, Evan Cattanach, Alister Campbell, Frank Davidson, Donald MacGillivray, Iain Campbell and Murdo Macdonald..