2 June 1943 Part 1

2 June 1943 Channel Islands Sea Defence diary

Weather: wind 270°, 11 m/sec. In the morning a floating crane at Alderney broke loose during the storm and drifted eastwards to sea. Alderney harbour-protection boats and an M-boat attempted salvage, but the towropes broke because of the rough sea and the crane’s violent movements. At about noon the tide turned and the crane drifted westwards past Burhou.

At 14:00, the Alderney harbour-protection boats resumed the salvage attempt without success. At 15:00, the Casquets reported the crane four nautical miles south-east of the lighthouse, drifting south. At 20:00 it passed out of sight towards Guernsey. The boats returned to Alderney owing to worsening weather. All Guernsey lookout posts were alerted; the harbour-protection boats were informed on their radio frequency and radar searches continued throughout the night, without a contact. The subsequent sightings and recovery are recorded under 3 and 6 June.

T-1022 Roll 2422, scans 0649.