28 THE FISHING PAPER & HUNTING NEWS - JUNE2018 The November 2016 earthquake rattled Burkhart Fisheries in the small town of Ward, presenting the company with unprecedented obstacles: the inability to launch their vessels from Ward Beach having significant impact. Then, isolation to the remaining fishery south of Ward provided logistical problems in servicing the southern fishermen. In reality, being cut off from fishermen south of Waipapa Bay was a nightmare. With Ward Beach now back in action, Larnce Wichman tells a story of…
Prior to the devastating earthquake, lobster pick ups served a greater purpose: there was time to chew the fat — first discussion the weather, then sea conditions, what the lobster were up to; all important things to get a sense of what’s happening. Even debate as to which rugby team was going to win was important. This integral personal contact was disrupted after a mere few minutes of chaos, leaving only phone conversations — a poor distant cousin to real connections. The unreliability of the road, coupled with the long distance made continuity of smooth operations untenable, so a new
BAD DREAMS AND BEDROCK structure to service the southern fishermen had to be established. This relied on the goodwill of fishermen to assist or play a greater role in the management of the lobster.
Safe launching is a priority
One of the biggest transitional shifts for Burkhart Fisheries was having to stop the packing of the live lobster for exporting of the out of Ward. The distance and difficulties of driving through the central route made it unreliable: hours of driving, snow, and truck crashes factored in having to stop exporting from Ward. We started freighting the lobster from Blenheim and Christchurch by chartering planes to Auckland, where another company packed our lobster for export. Even
Special flights had to be chartered
though the road is now open, we continue to use Auckland as the export point, because traveling down the coastal road at 2:00am in the morning is still too risky — mostly due to weather conditions.
disaster; the boat hit the bottom hard and smashed the outboard motor off the transom, dragging it in on the steering cables. It was too risky for the other boats to consider going out, although one boat did test the water several times closer to high tide but came too close for comfort. We had to make the beach safer if we were to get out fishing.
I need a bigger digger Given the beach’s changing character, Burkhart Fisheries applied for consent to remove several rocks
and boulders from the launching spot, that had been used for over 40 years. An exploratory consent permitted us to dig rocks down to bedrock, so that we could launch and retrieve safely. The rocks are made up of hard limestone and marble, so we considered using a 35 tonne digger to break them up but were offered a 75 tonne brute of a machine instead. It’s engine didn’t change pitch while dealing to the rocks and we realised the 35 tonne digger might have struggled. A good operator and the big
machine made the job look easy. The excavation has allowed a safer launching location for now, but we’ll continue to monitor the hole. Will it fill up in the next big swell? We hope not. We realise this is not a permanent fix and are still seeking a more permanent solution. In the meantime, we are also pleased this allows the launch of a Search & Rescue vessel, should it be needed. This will also give peace of mind to recreational vessels in the area.
Launching a hairy experience The launching of vessels at Ward Beach has also been a bit of a bad dream. A year-and-ahalf of negotiations to access a launching spot at Chancet Rocks, 1.4km north of Ward Beach, foundered, with no solution in sight. The exercise was costly.
The bar crossing turned into a hellish nightmare
Over this time, Ward Beach, uplifted 2.8m by the earthquake, became a surf break with significant tidal and current changes. A bar had formed 20m off the beach, resulting in a small channel appearing close to the northern rocks where they used to launch. Consequently, the running beach pea gravel was replaced by hard packed sand and silt, enabling the launching of a light vessel two hours either side of high tide. However, there was now a high risk in crossing the bar so, when coming in, timing was critical. Even a small swell presented challenges; several times the boat made contact with the bar. The risk, based on Safe Vessel Management, was right on the limit but the skipper also had to weigh up that his business and livelihood was on the line the crew’s livelihood also. Then
The big digger made life easy
Ward Beach