Maiden has left the building.....
Well they say that a picture is worth a thousand words and these certainly tell a wonderful part of the Maiden Rescue story. On Sunday 26th March, Maiden was put back into the water so that her cradle could be taken by road to the docks in Victoria, Mahe.
On Monday 27th March a very welcome sight appeared on the horizon, the long awaited ship that would be bringing Maiden home.
For the past few days, our man on the ground, Howard Gibbons, had been working with Peters & May, Taylor Smith Shipyard and Mahe Shipping making sure everything was ready to get Maiden safely on board. So, at 9am Maiden left TSS and was towed round to Victoria.
Two divers waited for her and helped get the straps from the massive cradle on the deck of the ship, carefully underneath her and in the right position.
And then the moment we have waited so long for actually arrived and Maiden was lifted from the water
Carefully they swung her onto the deck and into her waiting cradle where she was strapped in for the ride home. She now sits nestled in her new home for the next month.
At 19.35 the ship left Mahe with her precious cargo and is now heading for Southampton.It was an emotional day for all of us and I want to finish by saying a heartfelt thank you to those who helped make it happen; our sponsors, partners and friends of Maiden, those of you who made a contribution or called to offer your help or follow our progress, the people who have encouraged us and my family and friends who once again have stood by me through thick and thin and kept me going when sometimes rescuing Maiden seemed impossible.A special thank you to Craig and Kyle at Peters & May and everyone at TSS and Mahe Shipping. Thank you also to Chris Openshaw for the wonderful pictures.THANK YOU - our girl is coming home...........
