TAKE A TON OF MANGLED STEEL

摘要

Let's offer a few cheers for people who repair ships for a living. I have always rather admired them, coming upon them unexpectedly early in my sea career, notably when we inadvertently managed to sink a Russian ship in the approaches to Antwerp about five days after I had stumbled up the gangway with all my 'first tripper' gear. A sizeable hole was made in our bow, with a mass of tangled steelwork and a lot of Russian deck cargo stuffed into it, but the repairers in Antwerp took it all in their stride and within a couple of weeks we were on our way down the Scheldt, with our gleaming new bow.