FV Gaul
| History | |
|---|---|
| Name: |
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| Owner: |
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| Operator: | British United Trawlers (Hull) Ltd |
| Port of registry: |
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| Route: | Arctic Ocean |
| Builder: | Brooke Marine Ltd, Lowestoft. |
| Way number: | 375 |
| Launched: | 6 December 1971 |
| Completed: | 1972 |
| Out of service: | 1974 |
| Identification: |
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| Status: | Lost with all hands |
| General characteristics | |
| Class and type: | Stern trawler/factory ship |
| Tonnage: | 1106 |
| Length: | 216.9 ft |
| Beam: | 40.2 ft |
| Ice class: | III |
| Propulsion: | 2600 hp 16 R.K.3M by Ruston Paxman |
The fishing vessel Gaul was a deep sea factory ship based at Hull, United Kingdom. She was built in 1972 by Brooke Marine of Lowestoft for the Ranger Fishing company and registered at North Shields as Ranger Castor, SN18 but renamed when Ranger Fishing was bought by British United Trawlers and re-registered at Hull as Gaul, H243. She sank some time on the night of 8-9 February 1974 in storm conditions in the Barents Sea, north of Norway. No distress signal was received and her loss was not realised until 10 February after she twice failed to report in. An extensive search operation was launched but no trace of the ship was found, apart from a lifebuoy recovered three months later. All thirty-six crew were lost. The president of the British Trawler Federation described the loss of the Gaul as "the worst ever single-trawler tragedy".
Gaul sailed from Hull on the morning of 22 January 1974. Mate George Petty became ill and was put ashore at Lødingen on the 26th. Maurice Spurgeon joined the crew on the 28th at Tromsø and Gaul arrived at the fishing grounds off the north coast of Norway the following day. On 8 February the sea state became severe. Reports from the skippers of other trawlers in the area give the wave height at between 6.5 and 9m, wind between 7 and 10 on the Beaufort scale.
At 09:30 Gaul reported to British United Trawlers that she was "laid and dodging off the North Cape Bank". At 10:30, as was company policy, she reported to the Orsino on the "Skipper's Freezer Schedule" - a summary of position, weather conditions, catch etcetera. A further report was due at 16:30 but Gaul alone of the 17 British United Trawlers ships in the area at the time, failed to report.
By the afternoon of 10 February British United Trawlers had alerted their insurance company, UK Trawlers Mutual that Gaul had failed to report for two days. On the following morning the insurance company sent out a message to all the trawlers they insured reading
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