Deconstruction Chronicles: Week 2

Week 2 -  4/03/2024

- Monday, March 4th commenced the second week of De Wadden's deconstruction. Now that the site had been fully prepared for the work ahead, it was time to begin lifting out large pieces of the ship. As always photographs of each described thing will be attached below.

First of all, I will discuss site changes. The fences which were put up in week 1 are now covered with some stylised covers [Photo 1], containing the name of the ship [Photo 2], an inaccurate side profile [Photo 3], and a brief explanation of what is happening to the ship and why [Photo 4 and 5]. A mobile crane has also arrived on site for use in removing and lifting pieces of the ship [Photo 6]. The oxygen and acetylene tanks have also been moved to the other side of the ship [photo 7].

As for the ship herself, her bowsprit has been removed [photo 8] and now rests on the quayside [photo 9]. The rest of her rigging has also been detached from her bulwarks [Photo 10]. More cuts have been made down her bow, following the line that was cut in week 1 [Photo 11]. By far the most intense thing to happen in her deconstruction so far is the mishap that occurred when her foremast was removed. As it was lifted out, the mast snapped under its own weight, half of it falling down into the dock [Photo 12], striking the ship before it came to rest. Footage of this event is attached below (I apologise for the video quality, I didn't have the time to adjust my camera's exposure so I had to use my phone to film it). The pieces of her deckhouse roof have been moved onto the quayside [Photo 13]. Come the end of the day, the ship's other two masts were still waiting to be removed [Photo 14].

Week 2 -  5/03/2024

- I didn't visit the site this day, so there is not much to document, however, I was able to see from across the river some of what was going on. Upon arrival, her aft mast had already been removed and her mainmast was being prepared for removal [Photo 1]. After 30 minutes had passed, I checked again and the mainmast was gone [Photo 2].

Week 2 -  7/03/2024

- After a two-day absence I was able to do some more documenting. Nothing has changed regarding the site itself, so this section will be purely ship-focused.

I could now see the hull, post-mast removal [Photo 1]. She looks quite bizarre without her masts and bowspirt. She now has some orange tubing running through her hawsepipes and two of her portholes, presumably for use by the crane when lifting the bow [Photo 2]. Remember the white circles drawn on deck before work began? They were marking holes for the orange tubes to run through! Some more deck plating has been removed from her raised poop deck and the yellow pipe that was absent on March 4th has since reappeared [Photo 3]. The final piece of her wooden deckhouse roof which also formed a section of the rear side of the deckhouse has been removed [Photo 4]. Additionally, her windlass has been removed from the ship and now rests on the quayside [Photo 5]. The portion of the foremast which had fallen into the dock on March 4th now sits on the quayside beside the half which remained attached to the crane [Photo 6]. Her aft mast and mainmast are also on the quayside, next to the windlass [Photo 7].

Week 2 -  10/03/2024

- This visit to the site turned out to be very uneventful, as nothing had changed between then and the previous visit on March 7th, which wasn't too surprising as the only working day which had passed was Friday. However, I did photograph the ship so I will attach some photos below.