Hvalur 7 RE-377
Hvalur 7 RE-377 is an Icelandic whaling ship built in 1945 in England by Smith's Dock Company.[1] It has been a part of the Icelandic whaling fleet operated and owned by the company Hvalur hf. since 1961.[2] It was bought, along with its sister ship Hvalur 6, to replace the aging Hvalur 2 and Hvalur 3 which where built between 1920 and 1930.[3][4] In 1965, the ship participated in the first Icelandic scientific expedition to tag whales.[5]
![]() Hvalur 7 at pier in Reykjavík alongside Hvalur 6 in 2010. | |
History | |
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Name | Hvalur 7 |
Owner | Hvalur hf. |
Port of registry | Iceland |
Builder | Smith's Dock Company, Middlesbrough, England |
Launched | 7 October 1945 |
Acquired | 1961 |
Out of service | 1986 |
Homeport | Reykjavík |
Identification | IMO number: 5157339 |
Status | In storage |
General characteristics | |
Type | Whaler |
Tonnage | 426.58 GRT |
Length | 48.32 m (158 ft 6 in) o/a |
Beam | 8.42 m (27 ft 7 in) |
Draft | 4.91 m (16 ft 1 in) |
Propulsion | Steam engine |
The ship was previously named Southern Wilcox and operated by The South Georgia Company in Leith, Scotland from 1945 to 1961.[1]
1986 sinking
In November 1986, Hvalur 7 along with Hvalur 6 where sunk in Reykjavík harbour by anti-whaling activists from the Sea Shepherd Conservation Society. Both ships were raised a few days later.[6] While the steam engines where undamaged, the ships electrical wirings, interiors and various devices where damaged by the salt. While feasible, the ships have yet to be fully repaired and have never gone whaling after the sinking. As of 2015, they are stored on dry land next to the company's whaling station in Hvalfjörður, north of Reykjavík, where they are securely anchored and connected to electricity and heating.[7][8]
Notable captains
- Friðbert Elí Gíslason[9]
References
- Helgi Máni Sigurðsson (2019). "Skip eldri en 1950 á skipaskrá Samgöngustofu" (PDF). thjodminjasafn.is (in Icelandic). National Museum of Iceland. pp. 41–43. Retrieved 30 July 2022.
- "Nýr hvalbátur". Vísir (in Icelandic). 26 August 1961. p. 12. Retrieved 30 July 2022 – via Tímarit.is.
- "Tvö hvalveiðiskip til Seyðisfjarðar". Alþýðublaðið (in Icelandic). 1 May 1962. Retrieved 30 July 2022 – via Tímarit.is.
- "Öldungar í hvíldarstöðu". Ægir (in Icelandic). 1 February 1996. pp. 14–15. Retrieved 30 July 2022.
- "Merktu nítján hvali". Vísir (in Icelandic). 22 May 1965. pp. 16, 6. Retrieved 30 July 2022.
- Kristján Már Unnarsson (27 June 2022). "Sjötti hvalur vertíðarinnar kominn á land í Hvalfirði". Vísir.is (in Icelandic). Retrieved 25 July 2022.
- Ágúst Ingi Jónsson (12 November 2015). "Verkefni sem varð að leysa". Morgunblaðið (in Icelandic). Retrieved 26 July 2022.
- "Sem hvalreki í fjörunni". Fréttablaðið (in Icelandic). 5 April 2012. p. 10. Retrieved 30 July 2022 – via Tímarit.is.
- "Tveir í skoti". Fálkinn (in Icelandic). 3 February 1964. pp. 20–21, 39–40. Retrieved 30 July 2022.
External links
- Skipaskrá - The Icelandic ship registry
- Profile on teesbuiltships.co.uk