Rick Lakeman-Turner is a Senior Master onthe Britannia Aggregates dredger, the Britannia Beaver. He has been part of the crew for the last 17 years and was one of the ship's first crew members.
As a Senior Master, Rick is responsible for the day to day running of the ship and heads up a team of 10 including a Junior Master, Chief Officer, Chief, Second and Third Engineer, Cargo Operator, two Able Seamen and a Cook. This means Rick is on 24-hour call to respond to emergencies and operational issues as well as working an eight-hour shift pattern. We join him on board for a not so typical day.
"My day can start at any time as we run a 24-hour ship. Duties can range from navigating the busy English Channel, overseeing dredging at one of the many dredge areas, to self discharge at port. When navigating, I form part of a watch system with my Junior Master. This is to ensure the safe passage of the ship and safeguard the welfare of those on board.
Loading or dredging is another important part of my job. This is done using an 80 tonne pipe and pump system (like a giant vacuum cleaner) that rests on the seabed and sucks up 'ballast as dredged' material and discharges it into the hold. For a site such as Area 461,Median Deep, we can load approximately 5,000 tonnes of material in four hours.
Median Deep is a new and important area for Brett as it is a big resource for material. As well as dredged material the pipe sometimes sucks up more interesting finds including fossils, parts of aircraft and even once a 40lb WWII bomb, which managed to blow the ship's pump apart! Of course, all interesting finds have to be reported once on shore.
With an eight-hour on/off shiftpattern we do get free time on board to eat, sleep and sometimes even for leisure. Most crew members have their own computers, TVs and there is a ship gym. Swimming however is not advocated, particularly in the winter when being on board is like being on a rollercoaster. This can lead to some tired employees, as the waves don't stop to let you sleep!
When the ship is full my next job is ensuring its safe passage to port. We visit ports across the UK and Europe including the Brett sites at Cliffe and Northfleet, the ports of Dover, Hull, Ipswich, Marchwood at Southampton, Honfleur and Rotterdam. Thanks to our local knowledge the Masters and Chief Officer hold Pilotage Exemption certificates.This makes it possible to travel up the Thames without carrying a Thames Pilot.
Once in port the ship is discharged, which can take up to five hours. During this time I am able to catch up on paperwork and admin as well as liaise with the office. Taking the ship into port and out again into the open seas is one of my favourite parts of the job. It's what every little boy dreams of - one day having my own ship to play with and navigate!
Of course, nothing beats going home to my family, which I get to do every two weeks. The job can be hard on the families of those that work on board but at least we have each other. We're like one big family or cell mates, as we like to think of it! After two weeks of life on dryland and just as I settle back into a normal sleeping pattern, it's back to the Beaver to start the whole process again. It's one of the most interesting jobs you can have.
You get to work closely with so many different people and really make friends that you keep for life. Mike Meehan, the Beaver's other Senior Master is one of my oldest friends and we have been working together for the last 20 years. I wouldn't change it for the world."