Tanker ablaze NEWS OF A COLLISION between the 76,000-tonne Greek tanker Orleans and a 295-tonne Dutch fishing vessel, Jan Van Toon, reached Cromer lifeboat station at 0815 on the morning of Friday January 24, 1986. The tanker, about 65 miles north east of Cromer had been struck on her starboard side in storm force 10 north-westerly winds and fire had broken out along half her length.

Oil was also spilling from her and she was only about three miles from some gas drilling platforms.

An RAF helicopter was first on the scene and had begun to lift off some of the tanker's crew and land them on a nearby gas rig. However, a second helicopter had to be sent when the first was forced to land on the gas rig after the winch wire had hit the rotor blades.

Although there were some ships on standby in the area, it was not known how many and at 0830 Cromer's new 47ft Tyne class lifeboat, Ruby and Arthur Reed II, launched under the command of Coxswain Richard Davies and set out on the long passage out to the casualty.

The sea was very rough and while at the station the wind was gusting to gale force 8, as the lifeboat neared the tanker some three and a half hours later, winds had reached storm force 10 gusting to hurricane force 12.

On arrival the lifeboat checked the tanker for leaks and the state of the fire which was confined to one tank and under control. For a while, one of the tanker's crewmen was unaccounted for but when he was found to be safe the lifeboat began stand-by duty until the tug Smit-Lloyd 123 was able to take Orleans in tow.

Throughout the 1 '/z hours of standing by, the lifeboat and her crew endured winds up to SOmph, waves between 20 and 25ft, snow, sleet, rain and very low temperatures. At 1335 the tow was safely under way; the lifeboat was now able to leave the scene and began to escort a vessel which had 13 survivors from the tanker aboard back to Great Yarmouth. They arrived at 1830, ten hours after the lifeboat had launched.

The weather had damaged the lifeboat's VHP aerials, her MF radio and radar andvarious repairs had to be carried out before she could go back on station, ready again for service at 1030 on the morning of Monday January 27.

Following this service a letter of appreciation, signed by Cdr Bruce Cairns, chief of operations, was sent to Coxswain Richard Davies..