Installing the Buoy

    The Field Team arrived at BAMSI at 7 am to do final preparations of the buoy before the crane truck arrived at 8 am.

    Unfortunately, the Field Team's deployment boat Captain did not show up at 9 am (nor did he call to say he couldn't make it), so the Team was left scrambling to find a boat and captain.  Meanwhile, the weather forecast did not improve, but at least we saw no lightning. Fortunately, Dr. Lightbourne found another boat for the Team, but the owner of the original boat, Mr. Saunders, found another Captain for his boat, a local fisherman who took us out on the final trip. AJ did pay the previous boat Captain for his efforts. KW made the decision to take whatever boat comes first.

    In the meantime, the crane truck was able to load the CREWS buoy after Albert Jones was finished with some final preparations, and the Field Team was able to drive to the Morgan's Bluff Dock and Harbor. 

    After preparations of the CREWS buoy for lifting into the water, the Team was finally able to leave for the deployment site by noon, towing the buoy very slowly until we reached the correct spot.  

    Although, the seas were choppy, the Dive Team was able to attach the buoy and lines to the U-anchors and call the deployment of the CREWS Buoy complete.

Preparing the Buoy for Deployment

     Marijn came up with the design of the mooring layout for the buoy:

    This morning the Field Team arranged to have a crane truck pick up the CREWS Buoy from the BAMSI warehouse and transport it to the Morgan's Bluff Dock and Harbor.  Shortly thereafter, the Captain and Dive Team arrived with the boat, dive gear, two personnel from the Department of Meteorology, and Skye Minnet.  

U-Anchors Installed

 It was a hot day, with air temperature to reach 93 degrees and humidity to reach 78%, but fortunately by 11 am the Captain and First Mate and Dive Team (including Skye) were able to begin the dive to install the U-anchors at the designated two locations, NE and SW of each other.

Kai handing cement bag to Jim.

Skye handing cement bag to Kai.

Skye giving Kai the OK sign.

Various images of the final U-anchor installations:

Getting the Buoy Ready

 While the Dive Team was working in the field and pursuing the acquisition of the replacement equipment, Albert Jones (left) and O'Mar Theophilus of the Bahamas Department of Meteorology were assembling the instrumentation into the CREWS Buoy.

U-Anchor Holes Measured and Drilled

The Dive Team, after some unanticipated delays, left the dock at Morgan's Bluff around 11:30 am.  They found the designated site location and deployed a two-anchoring system, bow and stern.  All  total, the Dive Team (including Skye Minnis) conducted three dives and, after several hours, finished the drilling of the four required holes for the U-anchors.  

Marijn and Kai measuring drilling spot.

Marijn drilling with Nemo electric drill

After returning to the dock, Dr. Camerone Lightbourne (of BAMSI) met the Dive Team with a pick-up truck and helped move the hydraulic and drilling equipment back to Pleasant Dreams for cleaning and holding until further actions at a later time.

Installation Site Established

 The Dive Team, together with a local boat captain, established the site of the new CREWS station at approximately:

25o 10.2664' N

78o 00.4081' W

near Morgan's Bluff, North Andros, Bahamas.

Reef at the installation site.

Replacement of Missing Equipment

Unfortunately, the buoy counterbalance weights, cement, and U-anchors had disappeared somewhere between Belize and BAMSI, so the Field Team went about logistics to re-acquire those materials from Fort Lauderdale, FL.  Fortunately, Jim Hendee's daughter Katy was able to spend a couple of days picking up those materials, after pre-payment from the Field Team members, and delivering them to Executive Airport so a flight could be arranged from Fort Lauderdale to North Andros Airport.  This effort took a few days total.

Pallet and buoy of equipment stored at BAMSI.

All the hydraulic equipment for drilling stored at BAMSI.

Installation Crew Meets Bahamian Hosts

In the morning, the CREWS Dive Team of Kai Wulf, Marijn Van Der Laan, and Jim Hendee (from the Saba Conservation Foundation) met with the Caribbean Community Climate Change Center (CCCCC) representative, Albert Jones (Instrumentation Officer) for breakfast to discuss the upcoming logistics.  These four individuals constitute the CREWS Field Team.

At the Bahamas Agriculture and Marine Science Institute (BAMSI), on Andros, the CREWS Field Team met with Dr. Raveenia Hanna, Director of BAMSI, to discuss logistics of gathering all the CREWS buoy and instrument components and the timeframe for conducting the fielding diving operations, as well as the assembly of the instruments (from Fondriest) onto the CREWS Buoy (Nexsens).  Dr. Hanna introduced the Field Team to Ms. Skye Minnis of BAMSI, and who would assist us in the field as a support diver.