Ocean Research - 24. IOR Chapter 24

When I heard a heap of activity happening outside, I went out to investigate, and I was surprised to see that the cargo ship was now quite close to the research facility, and it was in the process of unloading something, using its giant crane. “What is this?” I asked Amanda who was smiling.

“You retreated to your office without finding out if that was all the ship has on board. It is another extension for your facility, a top deck, that neatly fits on top and in the centre of the facility, according to the working crew, all is needed to do is remove a cover over the on stair well, place some sealant rubber around the edges and lower the section into place,” Amanda responded.

Once the top extension was in place and secured into place, I went to inspect the extra space, and from the one set of stairs to the top deck, I entered a large office space with all the office furnishings and equipment already in place. A large window gives a clear view of the surrounding ocean, and the nearby Ocean City, and two doors lead to male and female toilets.

Entering a short passage, on each end was a clear door that leads out to a large patio on each end, and opposite the door to the administration office, there is a single door, with the sign “Chief Scientist” and I opened it to find a very large office, with a large desk and comfortable chair, plus three single lounge chairs and a coffee table nearby.

In each back corner there are doors, one to a private bathroom, the other to a small kitchen, with a sink, microwave, fridge, coffee machine and three sets of draws with cups, glasses, small plates and cutlery. Leaving Amanda and her crew to settle into their new base at my facility, I headed back to the city with my team, so I could catch up with Joshua, and I found him in the sky café enjoying a late afternoon snack.

“Hi mate, I have received the surprise from your grandfather, when you speak to him next say thankyou for me please,” I said to Joshua, as I sat down at the table. “Not a problem, so do you like the three extensions to your facility?” Joshua replied, “So you did know all about it then?” I asked my friend, and Joshua chucked.

“Yes, but I decided to keep it a surprise for you. I will come over with you tomorrow to check it out with you, and I presume that you will need regular supplies brought over, to keep your team and the Crew of the Silver Cloud fed?” Joshua said, “Yes that is fine and yes please.

It appears that the crew prefer a less crowed and quieter environment, which the city does not have. My research team will move into their new quarters tomorrow, so that will free up some more staff accommodation for you in the city,” I replied, as a steward approached and I ordered a cup of tea and a slice of cake.

“I am happy to report that the city is running very smoothly, with the first two weeks of hotel guests now behind us, and the fishing crews are very happy about their new surroundings, although they do get a few complaints about their fishy smell when they come in every afternoon. So, I am hoping that the new fishermen accommodation barges will be here soon to over come that problem,” Joshua informed me.

“What about all the other additional bares, for families and the defence?” I asked, “The defence already have their new facilities, which were dropped off first before your extensions to your facility, which is mainly just recreational space, some offices, parade hall, dining hall and galley, plus mooring bays for the submarine and 4 large boats,” Joshua informed me.

“You mentioned some sort of boats before, has Mr Lloyd decided on what they will be?” I asked, “Yes he has, for now apart from the submarine Poseidon, there will be two Austal 22 Patrol Boats, each have had their internal layout adjusted slightly, with the lower deck having a secure seating area, with 26 seats and two bathrooms for any detainees, while the main deck remains the same with a crew of three on each boat.

They have a maximum speed of 25 knots, and a range of 312 nautical miles, so when they can travel to Geraldton quite easily if need be. The patrol boats will patrol within the Abrolhos reefs, while the Poseidon will patrol around the outskirts of the Abrolhos Islands,” Joshua explained.

“I see you have been using the MV Storm for all of your tours around the islands so far, do you plan to have another boat for doing the tours when guest numbers increase?” I asked.

“Yes, we will soon have two aluminium open coastal tour boats, which have a draft of just under half a metre, that can seat 48 passengers and two crew, they have a bathroom, and a roof over the top for sun shelter. Each one has four 300 horsepower motors, giving the boats 28 knots of cruising speed, and a range of 38 nautical miles or 70 kilometres, which is a perfect distance to get to any of the Pelsaert Islands or the two Wallabi Islands and back from here,” Joshua explained.

“That sounds good, where are you going to put the fishermen’s accommodation barges?” I replied, “I am going to leave that up to the fishermen to decide, and I have a planned meeting with them this evening actually, to discuss it with them, and let them know of the mooring points at North Island, Long Island and at Fish Hook Bay,” Joshua replied.

“So, you are keeping them away from the Easter Group of Islands?” I asked, “Yes, with the defence base on the East side, and the city and your research facility near the middle, I think we are crowed enough as it is, although there is an exception to that, with the new family Barge to be located close to the city,” Joshua answered, and I nodded my head in agreement.

“Where exactly are you putting the family barge?” I asked, “Exactly 150 metres due south of the city, with it facing East & West, and it will be right on the edge of some rocks, just 40 metres North of Morley Island, I have also included two 3-metre wide walkways into the design, to allow the families easy access to that island. We have also reduced the number of suites from 16 down to 12, and added some activity rooms, so as to make it less crowded on the barge” Joshua said.

Over the next three months, cargo ships came every six weeks, delivering new barges each time, firstly the one family barge, which was carefully pushed into place with the MV Storm and MV Warambie, and within a week of its arrival, the City staff who had families moved into their new accommodation, with their families arriving two days later, on board the Silver Cloud, which made a special trip to Geraldton to collect the families.

The ships also brought with them the two aluminium coastal tour boats, and the additional patrol boats for the islands defence. The department of Fisheries and Parks and Wildlife has sent an additional one person from each department, to assist with monitoring everything in the Abrolhos Islands, making sure that the city was keeping to its commitment of not polluting the waters around it, and monitoring tourist activities around the islands, not just from the city, but also the tour cruises and tour flights that come over from the mainland each day.

The airport at Rat Island was now receiving an average of 3 flights a day, six days a week, and Joshua now has a permanent team at the island, to manage airport operations there, while Air Traffic control is managed from the Air Control tower at Ocean City.

Also during this time, with the fishing crews now relocated to their accommodation barges, located at the three mooring areas, Joshua had a building team empty the 32 single fishermen’s suites, and had them disassembled, to make way for new areas, when they are required, and for now that area would remain bare.

The 32 double suites and all the other facilities would remain, with the suites to be used for additional staff when required, further down the track, and in the meantime, they too would remain empty, but the café, gymnasium, recreation hall, laundry and changerooms, would be available to the current staff.

For me and my team, we have been very busy doing detailed marine mapping of the Easter Group of Islands, and I usually slept in my suite on the ARF barge instead of my luxurious suite on the city, although I was spending most weekends on the city to make sure that I don’t get overworked.

Amanda and Olivia took over residence in the other suite on ARF, and when not doing trips to the mainland, they stayed on the facility, instead of their allocated luxury suites at Ocean city. With only 30 double and 6 family suites available at the city for guests, we have been booked out for the next four months, which Joshua was very pleased about, and on average we had 2 visiting yachts stop by for a few days, about twice a week.

Mr Lloyd dropped in for a surprise visit from time to time, and he was very pleased with how everything is running at the city, and around he Abrolhos Islands in general, and I was very happy with my life here on the islands, getting to scuba dive and snorkel amongst the thousands of ocean fish and mammals, in an area that has a good amount of sunshine all year round.

The End