Up she rises! – But Pescado sails into new storm

THE stricken fishing boat Pescado was at long last raised from the seabed this week...but no sooner had she broken the surface than a new controversy erupted.

Lawyers acting for the families of the six crew lost when she sank off Dodman Point nearly three years ago were demanding to know why a security ring was thrown round the vessel, excluding themselves and the boat's owner.

And they want to know why the Pescado was immediately taken to a naval dry-dock at Devonport when the owner, Alan Ayres, firmly believes the boat sank after being struck by a submarine.

The raising of the Pescado from 240 feet of water after 31 months marks the end of the relentless campaign by Mr Ayres and the crew's families to have the vessel recovered so that the cause of its loss can be established.

But its recovery is likely to spark a new row.

After more than a year of fruitless effort by one salvor who was finally sacked, the newly appointed salvage vessel – which looked a much likelier candidate to complete the job – raised the Pescado without ceremony on Monday evening. Fourteen hours later the boat was taken into Plymouth.

Sportsmen plan to run coast of Cornwall

By Leon Prynn

TWO unemployed sportsmen are preparing for one of the longest events they've ever been involved in . . . they intend to run round the coast of Cornwall.

Although they won't be receiving any prizes at the end of the run, Jeff Allen and Steve Blackford, from Penryn, are hoping that their reward will be a sackful of money raised along the route.

Jeff and Steve, who run the Saracen Elite Fighting Fit Club on Penryn's Jubilee Wharf, have set themselves the challenge in a bid to raise money for the under-privileged children in Cornwall.

"We run the gym to attract the unemployed and the under-privileged," said Jeff. "Being unemployed ourselves, we thought it would be a good idea to set up the gym and give the kids a place to go to expend their energies. It's far better that they have somewhere to go like our gym than being out on the streets.

"We decided to run the coast of Cornwall a few months ago," added Steve "but have waited for the hot summer weather to pass before attempting it."

Ill wind blows some good

SHIP and boat repair yards around Falmouth and the Carrick Roads are picking up repair work worth thousands of pounds following the storm of two weeks ago.

Total damage to the property could be around the £1 million mark. Most was caused to boats in the normally tranquil harbour areas of the Carrick Roads and Helford River as the tail end of Hurricane Floyd hit the coast.

One yacht underwriter told the Packet that he was dealing with repair estimates of £100,000 plus.

Mr Joe McCarthy, assistant yacht and cargo underwriter with Groves, Johns and Westrup, said six of the damaged yachts were registered with them. Most had been in the harbour and were damaged after breaking loose from moorings and striking other vessels.

The damage was not so great as caused by the storms in 1988 and 1990. Lessons had been learned then and most owners had better moorings nowadays.