STS Leeuwin II: Iconic tall ship smashed in container ship catastrophe leaves Fremantle to begin repairs

The iconic tall ship STS Leeuwin II is finally being repaired after being smashed by a container vessel at Fremantle Port during a storm nine months ago.

The Maersk Shekou was struggling to berth in port when it slammed into the anchored ship at about 6am on August 30, leaving the training vessel with catastrophic damage and the waterway strewn with debris.

But a huge relief came in October when a “shakedown” cruise confirmed the Leeuwin’s diesel engine and steering gear were functional, and that the ship was seaworthy.

And on Monday, escorted by a tug vessel, the Leeuwin motored from its B Shed quayside home to the Australian Marine Complex at Henderson, where the 344-tonne vessel was lifted from the water, and will be repaired and refitted.

It’s going to be an epic task, involving 3000 lineal metres of Douglas Fir ordered from Canada and “kilometres of wires and rope” from around Australia, Leeuwin Ocean Adventure Foundation chief executive Lawson Dixon said.

The goal is to have her back in the water for the start of the summer sailing season.

Mr Dixon said discussions with insurers were in the final stages and the total price of the damage was yet to be determined, but already ran into “many millions”.

“It’s been catastrophic,” he said.

“None of this stuff is cheap.

“You can’t just run down to Bunnings and pick up three new masts ... we’ve got to build this stuff from scratch.

“There’s been a lot of work going on behind the scenes and we’ve been figuring out the best way to do things.”

The hull was in “pretty good shape”, Mr Dixon said, but the point where the mast was attached would be a critical focal point when she’s inspected in the dry dock.

Fortunately for the venture, which turns 40 next year, corporate support has been strong and the specialist skills required are plentiful locally.

“We’re really lucky ... the last three tall ships built in Australia have all been built here in WA,” Mr Dixon said, describing the Leeuwin as “part of the fabric of WA”.

“There’s a professional group of shipwrights and spar makers and sail makers and riggers, and they’re all the sorts of skills that we need in order to restore Leeuwin back to her former glory.”

Two crew members aged in their 20s and 60s who were aboard at the time of the collision - which was Mr Dixon’s first day on the job - had to jump for their lives.

They were sleeping in the hull when they were woken by a loud crack, and suffered injuries as they escaped the ship.

Mr Dixon said it must have been a harrowing ordeal and it was fortunate no lives were lost.

He is in the process of rebuilding the team after all bar one worker left the company, needing sea time with the Leeuwin out of action.

“We operate with a rotating crew of about eight ... our Master, James Rakich, was the last person standing there for quite a while,” Mr Dixon said.

Captain Rakich said the boat would have the same recognisable look and there was no intention “to change the vessel in any radical way”.

“She’s one of the best boats around and there’s no reason to change the elements that aren’t broken.”

In an ironic twist, the milestone comes after a Mexican Navy tall ship, the training vessel Cuauhtémoc, smashed into New York’s Brooklyn Bridge on Saturday night, killing two people and injuring several others.

Mr Dixon said that very same vessel was in Fremantle Port weeks after the Leeuwin was struck, and when its crew saw the devastating wreckage, they invited their fellow seafarers on board, offering warmth and sympathy.

“Our hearts go out to them,” he said.

Anyone who wants to be part of the repair and re-rigging process can volunteer to community manager Alexandra Sinclair via alex@sailleeuwin.com.

“The ship requires a mountain of work to get her back out and sailing. We will need all hands on deck,” she said.