Conference 7.286::space

14.0. "Barge Damages Shuttle Fuel Tank" by CASTOR::RABAHY () Tue Oct 23 1984 13:39

Associated Press Mon 22-OCT-1984 16:16                           Shuttle Mishap

   Barge Carrying Space Shuttle Fuel Tank Damages Dock
   VANDENBERG AIR FORCE BASE, Calif. (AP) - The oceanfront dock at
the new $2.5 billion space shuttle launch complex here was damaged
slightly when a barge delivering a shuttle fuel tank broke loose,
the Air Force said Monday.
   No one was injured, and the $21 million external fuel tank was
not damaged. The accident did cause a six-hour delay in unloading
the 154-foot-tall, 139,000-pound tank.
   ``This is not a high-tech sort of problem,'' Maj. Ron Peck said.
``We've been docking barges for 5,000 years now. ... It was just
one of those `Whoops, here we go, plan `B' things.''
   The fuel tank is to be used in ground tests prior to first
shuttle launch here, scheduled for October 1985. The new complex is
for high-security military shuttle flights.
   The ocean barge carrying the tank tied up at the base's
breakwater-protected inlet at 11:18 a.m. Sunday. About 90 minutes
later, the heavily ladened barge suddenly broke loose with a
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Associated Press Mon 22-OCT-1984 16:16                  Shuttle Mishap (cont'd)

screech and a thud, dropping about five feet below the dock's
surface.
   The jolting movement tore loose big timbers and a chunk of
reinforced concrete from the dock, which was specially built to
receive the NASA barges. The damaged timbers were part of a
shelf-like ``lip'' below the dock designed to stabilize the barge.
   Peck said the apparent cause of the mishap was a failure by the
barge to dump its ballast water quickly enough to keep the vessel
level as the tide receded in brisk winds.
   ``It was not a major problem,'' Peck said, adding that ``we just
need to replace the timbers and some minor concrete and steel
work.''