Barge in the Bay: Pumps handle complex task aboard jumbo barge

Two ITT Flygt 2670 submersible dewatering pumps were used to remove sand on board the Eva Joan super jumbo barge, which folded under the weight of its load of almost 3000 tonnes. The collapsed cargo hold of the 76 m-long barge became stuck in 18 m of water. The barge shed most of the sand and gravel during its maiden voyage near San Fransico Bay but many more tonnes were left in the hold. A high-volume BS2670, 152 mm pump and generator were loaded aboard a waiting tugboat and ferried out to the salvage site. Another pump, a BS2670, 102 mm high head, was delivered later in the rescue mission. The pumps were attached to small hydraulic cranes on the stern of the salvage barge and flushed out the sand from the hold of the Eva Joan during a two-week period.

Dean Moore, an engineer with Underwater Resources said that the operation took careful coordination to deal with the amount of needed buoyancy versus the dead weight of the barge.

Selwood deployed two 305 mm S300 Super Silent pumps and 305 mm submersible pumps to help repair a dam at Ulley reservoir in Yorkshire, UK this summer.

The new LB-1500 submersible pump from Tsurumi, suitable for dewatering applications, is an extension of the existing LB series which already lists four smaller models-two at 480 W and two at 750 W.