THE HIGH WINDS that buffeted our area last week caused surprisingly little damage along the Port Angeles waterfront.
Down on the Port of Port Angeles’ T-Pier where the log ship, Portland Bay, is being loaded with 5 million-plus board feet of logs, a portable toilet was blown over.
Fortunately, no one was in it at the time.
Empty containers, cardboard boxes and odds and ends of wood and metal not otherwise secured were scattered about, but beyond the inconvenience of retrieving errant debris and cleaning up the mess, there was no real harm done.
But there were problems at Tesoro Petroleum.
For the past two months, contractors have been working at the tank farm on Ediz Hook, repairing the 80,000-barrel storage tank that was built in 1985.
The tradesman on the project were just finishing up the process of encasing the entire tank — including the surrounding scaffolding — in heavy plastic preparatory to sandblasting and painting.
The wind left their hard work in tatters — strips of plastic blowing in the wind like shirts on grandma’s clothesline.
The feet of the scaffolding on the west side of the tank were bent.
A decision to continue with the project or to wait and complete it in the springtime is now being deliberated.
Wind speed is quantifiable and therefore can be measured.
Ships, boats, airports and many buildings lining most waterfronts are equipped with anemometers that measure the direction and speed of wind.
In Port Angeles, NOAA has measuring equipment at the marine terminals that is available in real time at http://tinyurl.com/pawinds.
Ab sent an ane mo meter, using the Beaufort Wind Scale is a handy guide in determining wind speed based on the observed conditions of the sea.
Mariners have for centuries used water turbulence to gauge wind speed, but there was no standard scale. As a consequence, their observations could be very subjective — one man’s “stiff breeze” might be another’s “soft breeze.”
In 1805, British Adm. Sir Francis Beaufort (1774-1857), while serving aboard the HMS Woolwich, developed a system for estimating wind strengths without the use of instruments.
Beaufort’s scale was based on the effect of various wind speeds on the amount of canvas that a full-rigged frigate of the period could carry.
He first mentioned it in his private log on January 13, 1806, stating that he would “hereafter estimate the force of the wind according to the following scale.”
[Peninsula Daily News graphic artist Keith Thorpe’s interpretation of Sir Francis’ scale adjoins this article.]
The scale has undergone a number of revisions, the last of which was around 1960.
In my household, a graphic of the scale is kept within reach of the telescope that’s pointed out to sea.
In that way, a user is able to easily observe the waters of the Strait of Juan de Fuca, Admiralty Inlet or Hood Canal, determine the wind speed and then refer back to the real-time data provided by NOAA and make certain their equipment is accurate.
Others along the waterfront have devised their own methodology for measuring wind speed.
Chuck Faires, the harbormaster at Port Angeles Boat Haven marina, told me that his father, Joe Faires, who was the harbormaster from 1952 to 1982, used to cast a glance at the smokestacks of the paper mill to get a sense of the wind.
If the plume of smoke coming out of the stack was going straight up, there was little to no wind.
If the smoke was coming out at right angles to the stack, then the wind speed was about 25 knots.
If the smoke was lying down on the water, the wind speed was approximately 35 knots.
Since Chuck’s youth, this approach was known to him as the Joe Faires wind scale.
Oil spill vessel
Platypus Marine has NRC Cape Flattery sitting on blocks in the Commander Building on Marine Drive in Port Angeles.
She is a 110-foot oil spill response vessel operated by National Response Corp. and is permanently stationed in Neah Bay.
Prior to being converted to her current use, the vessel was an OSV (oilfield supply vessel) named Eleanor G.
According to Capt. Charlie Crane, Platypus’ director of sales and marketing, personnel are sandblasting and refurbishing the interior of the four onboard storage tanks that are used to store recovered contaminants.
Diesel information
On Saturday, Dec. 11, the North Olympic Sail and Power Squadron — in conjunction with Cummins Northwest — is offering a daylong class specifically tailored for boaters whose vessels are powered by diesel engines.
The eight-hour class will cover the principles of diesel engine operation, engine components and maintenance.
Although the course focuses on Cummins engines, much of the information is applicable to diesel engines in general.
Each student will receive printed material of the covered topics, and owners of Cummins engines will also receive specific performance specifications and maintenance information for the model of engine they own.
John Hernandez, the staff diesel trainer for Cummins Northwest, will conduct the class in the meeting room of the Sequim Bay Yacht Club at the John Wayne Marina.
The cost, which is typically $250 when the course is offered in Renton, will depend upon the number of participants who sign up.
However, in no event will the cost exceed $100, and it could conceivably be as low as $50 if the full complement of 20 students enrolls.
To sign up for the course, or for further information, phone Don Stem at 360-683-9444 or send him an e-mail at osogrande.177@gmail.com.
Filling up
On Thursday, Tesoro Petroleum refueled Alaskan Explorer, the 905-foot crude oil tanker that will depart this weekend for Valdez, Alaska.
When refueling was completed, the tug Brian S moved Tesoro’s refueling barge to Commitment, the Crowley-owned articulated tug and barge.
On Friday, Tesoro provided bunkers to Orient Transit, a 590-foot bulk cargo ship.
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David G. Sellars is a Port Angeles resident and former Navy boatswain’s mate who enjoys boats and strolling the waterfront.
Items involving boating, port activities and the North Olympic Peninsula waterfronts are always welcome.
E-mail dgsellars@hotmail.com or phone him at 360-417-3736.
His column, On the Waterfront, appears every Sunday.
