Maritime record MWX4942 - Sand Dart

The Sand dredger Sand Dart is was stranded at St Aldhelm's Head in 1962. (1)
On March 10th 1962, there was a casualty which turned into a long drawn salvage operation. Soon after three in the morning the coastguard on top of St Alban’s [Aldhelm’s] Head realised that a vessel had gone ashore almost exactly below his lookout. He could not see her as there was fog and drizzling rain, but he at once informed the lifeboat. The lifeboat was launched into a moderate sea and found the motor sand dredger Sand Dart on the rocks, bumping heavily with the swell. Five of the crew were taken off at the masters request, but he stayed aboard with the mate and engineer to do what was possible towards salvage.
Salvage prospects looked grim, but some rocks were blasted away, motors were put aboard to pump and all accessible leaks stopped. However there was no success on the next high tides in April and then gales blew up which drove her farther inshore. Early on the morning of May 25th, when there was nobody on board, fire broke out. By a happy mischance a signal rocket was ignited an this warned the Coastguard. Firemen were brought quickly to the scene as the salvors had left gelignite on board to blast rocks, but fortunately this was saved before the fire got near. They extinguished the fire in a few hours after the bridge and accommodation were completely gutted.
It now looked a hopeless case for salvage but the little ship was strongly built, and the salvors were not the sort to give up easily. They finally refloated her on October 14th , and towed her to Portland to be beached and patched.(3,4)

Salvaged

<1> Le Pard, G, 1995-2003, Dorset Coast Forum Maritime Archaeological Database (Digital archive). SWX8707.

<2> Boddy, M, 1975b, Dorset Shipwrecks part 2 (Article in serial). SWX7302.

<3> Le Pard, G F, 2005, Shipwrecks of the Dorset Coast (Monograph). SDO9637.

<4> Farr, Grahame, 1971, Wreck and rescue on the Dorset coast (Monograph). SWX1056.

Record last edited

May 6 2004 10:34AM