devonport yacht club tasmania

Mersey Yacht Club still recovering from loss of 17 vessels in 2016 Tasmanian flood

A year after a record flood trashed its marina and destroyed numerous boats, the Mersey Yacht Club in Devonport, Tasmania is concerned about its ongoing viability.

A rebuild looks to be a while off yet, and members still grieve and even search for lost boats.

In all, 17 vessels were lost to the club. Some sank in the river, some were smashed to pieces on offshore reefs, and two have completely disappeared with no wreckage found.

For most of June 6, 2016, members of the Mersey Yacht Club fended away logs and other heavy debris charging down the Mersey River.

And all the while, members battling the elements were in more danger than they could have known at the time.

Late in the day, a sound of creaking and snapping metal preceded the shocking sight of half the club's marina being dragged rapidly away with the current.

It was followed by another shocking sound of crunching wood and fibreglass.

People were lucky not to lose their lives

Club member Jacques Sapir described the sound of the heavy steel pontoon breaking away as sickening.

It was sickening because in that instant, the club's future was threatened and it was the death knell for the yachts still attached.

"We were very lucky not to lose three people," Mr Sapir said.

"A couple of blokes ended up on their boat, hanging onto the mast for grim death while they were being rolled out there.

"The police came down and rolled up to the boat. It was getting dark by then. They ran up to the pontoon and got the people off.

"It got too dark after that and they abandoned the whole lot. It was dreadful conditions.

"The river was running at about 11 knots at that point. It was very touch and go."

Loss of marina reduces club's income

Committee member Lance Harvey said the loss of berthing capacity and subsequently, rent, had left the club teetering precariously for the past year.

On the upside, insurance is sorted and a new marina is planned, although engineering reports and the coming winter might delay any rebuild for several months.

Mr Sapir and Mr Harvey lost much-loved classic wooden boats that day.

Prospector N had been Mr Sapir's, who sold the classic 1969 yacht to Mr Harvey.

Noss was Mr Sapir's latest love, a little 32-footer around the same age.

At least three replacement vessels have been found by those who lost boats, and Mr Harvey and Mr Sapir are among those back at the "restoration stage" of boat ownership.

Boats and pontoon washed away

Walking along the surviving pontoon, the men stop to stare, as they no doubt have many times before, at the point where the main pontoon structure sheared away.

"At least this part survived because there were people standing here as the whole lot went," Mr Harvey said.

"It looked very nasty, A bridge went straight out and then it was a solid pontoon walkway, the main part of our marina.

"That whole thing slewed around and slid along and slammed along the side of the remaining pontoon and took boats off with it.

"There were eight boats on the pontoon and four went out the river with it.

"Fortunately the largest boat, Miss Eve, was bravely rescued when the pontoon came alongside the Spirit of Tasmania. She is a special boat."

TasPorts cameras showed that boats had gone underneath the Bass Strait ferry, but subsequent sonar scans found nothing remained there.

Several yachts had also broken moorings over the day; some ran up onto breakwalls inside the river or were wrecked on the coastline outside, some went well out to sea propelled by the raging current.

There was a real concern that vessels could be sitting on the bottom of the river in the navigation channel.

Tasports, understandably, played it safe and delayed the departure of the ferries.

The vessels would eventually stay in port on either side of Bass Strait a further three days before sailing.

"The four boats that were still on the pontoon ended up smashed into small pieces on the reefs offshore from the airport [just east of Devonport]," Mr Sapir said.

"Some ended up along the beach … a couple just went out to sea and have never been seen again."

Members search for lost vessels

Mr Harvey said the club had come together to deal with the problems created by the flood.

"There was a lot of kindness showed at the time towards the people who lost boats — because boats get you emotional."

Most club members have spent their share of time combing the beaches east of Devonport, hoping to find anything significant that might remain of their lost vessels.

Mr Sapir found one seat and a few small pieces of the hull.

Somebody else found Mr Harvey's radio operator's licence, intact, and dropped it off at the club.

"One of our members walked from Devonport around to Hawley, looking for his boat," Mr Harvey said.

"It's a very long walk. I wouldn't like to do it but he did do it, and unfortunately he found no sign of his boat, and still hasn't.

"It was a 100-year-old boat that he'd done a lot of work on and it was just gone. It went from a mooring."

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About The Mersey Yatch Club

Situated in a picturesque location on the banks of the Mersey River in Devonport, Tasmania, The Mersey Yacht Club has a history dating back to 1923.

Our club attracts a diverse membership base; sailors, power boaters, dragon boat paddlers, divers, junior sailors, and people who just love relaxing beside the water enjoying the appealing view across boats moored on the river. Even if you just like taking in the view, the Mersey Yacht Club welcomes you as a member.

In fact, the definition of yacht is far more that just a sailing boat; “ a vessel used for private cruising, racing, or other noncommercial purposes” (www.dictionary.com).

If it floats it likely fits the definition – so all are welcome.

The Mersey Yacht Club recently hosted a very successful Australian and Oceania Laser Titles, with competitors, including a world champion, coming to Devonport from many countries around the world. Our testing courses set off the Mersey Bluff in Bass Strait offered a variety of weather conditions including big seas and wind, testing the competitors. Such offshore conditions are not usually experienced at regattas and feedback indicated they loved the challenge Bass Strait offered.

Each year between Christmas and New Year the Mersey Yacht Club hosts the finish of the ORCV Melbourne to Devonport Ocean Race. The final race of the Rudder Cup series for competing yachts is the Top of the Island Race, conducted by the Club off the Mersey Bluff on a triangular course.

Recognising that not everyone races, the Club encourages everyone to bring their boat out for each event to have a “boating experience” - those who want to race can race, and those who don't can enjoy being on the water.

From CruisersWiki

Devonport is a small city (pop 25,000) on the NW coast of Tasmania . The port is the terminal for the Spirit of Tasmania ferry service from Melbourne .

The Mersey River, although it could be dangerous in extreme Northeasterly conditions, is a substantial, well sheltered all weather port. The river is navigable for about 1.5 nm until it reaches the bridge carrying the Bass Highway. This has a height limit of around 8 metres. Much of the river is taken up with commercial wharf operations and recreational vessels are moored mostly at the southern end of the river in the vicinity of the Mersey Yacht Club.

See Tasmania .

Communication

See Australia .

The Mersey Bluff light (Gp Fl 4, 20 sec) provides good guidance approaching Devonport. It has red sectors which define danger areas to the west and east. In particular, the eastern red sector provides warning of the Horseshoe Reef area which lies 2.5 nm to the east of the Mersey River. On approaching the river mouth, the leads bear 204 degrees. There are lit port and starboard markers defining the channel once in the river.

Devonport is a port of entry for Australia. For details see Entrance: Australia .

Department of Immigration and Border Protection contact details:

Devonport is a commerical port. On arrival contact Port Control for advice on where to anchor or berth.

Marinas & Yacht Clubs

Mersey Yacht Club

Some visitors' berths also moorings. All facilities, fuel, chandlery, and a bar in the club. Haul-out and hard-standing facilities, local repairers for engines, rigging, sails and engineering.

List anchorages including the ones of nearby islands list under "Islands" above. If there is more then 1-3 paragraphs for a given anchorage, create a dedicated page for it ( Port/Stop Template ). Remove this section if not applicable.

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Provisioning

Give the names and locations of supermarkets, grocery stores, bakeries, etc.

Give the name of recommended restaurant, tavernas, pastry stores, etc.

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List transportation (local and/or international.)

Give a short history of the port.

Places to Visit

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Contact details of "Cruiser's Friends" that can be contacted for local information or assistance.

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• Devonport at the Wikipedia
• Devonport at the Wikivoyage
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Concept designs released for $240 million TAS port redevelopment

The new concept designs for the Port of Devonport have been released, as part of the $240 million Devonport East Redevelopment which will support the arrival of a new fleet of Bass Strait ships.

The Port of Dev onport is one of the fastest growing ports in Tasmania and is a major gateway for tourism and the Tasmanian Government is backing the redevelopment, now renamed QuayLink.

Minister for Infrastructure  and Transport, Michael Ferguson, was joined by TasPorts Chief Executive Officer, Anthony Donald, to announce the next stage of works proposed under TasPorts’ Port Master Plan.

The Plan is set to deliver two state-of-the-art roll-on-roll-off (RORO) berths and terminals to support the arrival of new and larger Bass Strait vessels for TT-Line and SeaRoad, as well as a multi-user berth to support future opportunities at the Port of Devonport.

The project will also see upgrades to improve navigation as well as facilitating electric vehicle charging stations, LNG ship refuelling and renewable energy shore power. Further improvements to the local amenity of the port precinct will be achieved through enhanced traffic management, landscaping and street scaping.

The new wharf and port facilities are expected to create 2,000 jobs between 2021 and 2027.

These port infrastructure upgrades will support the arrival of commissioned new vessels for Bass Strait operators, which will see an anticipated increase in freight capacity by 40 per cent.

The project will deliver a deepened berthing pocket for the new vessels, upgrades to navigation, electric vehicle charging stations and LNG ship refuelling as well as shore power.

The project will also deliver a three-dimensional vessel port monitoring system, providing an additional layer of safety for all vessels operating in the Mersey River.

To further support community connection with the new port precinct, TasPorts is investigating the development of a new commercial precinct as part of the project. This will offer unique business opportunities for East Devonport, providing further benefits to local communities.

Anthony Donald, TasPorts CEO said, “Aptly named Project QuayLink, the name recognises the important history of East Devonport, previously known as Torquay and the critical future that the port will provide as a key link between Tasmania and the mainland.

“As part of Project QuayLink, two state-of-the-art roll-on-roll-off berths and terminals will be developed, as well as a multi-user berth to support future growth opportunities at the Port of Devonport. 

“QuayLink will also improve the local amenity of the area through improvements in traffic management, landscaping and streetscaping to create a unique place port visitors and users want to visit.

“To support community connection with the new port precinct, TasPorts is exploring opportunities to develop a commercial precinct as part of the proposed project works. This will offer unique business opportunities for East Devonport, providing further benefits to local communities.

“Project QuayLink will set the sustainability standard for TasPorts’ future infrastructure developments and through this project, we are seeking to gain certification from EcoPorts, the key environmental initiative of the European port sector.”

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