Maria W: Sandy Haven, Whinnyfold, Cruden Bay, North Sea

Hopes of saving a Dutch coaster trapped on rocks south of Peterhead dwindled last night as huge seas pounded the stricken vessel. The five man crew of the coaster Maria W were rescued by Peterhead lifeboat after their vessel ran aground in thick fog on the treacherous Scaurs of Cruden, near Whinnyfold early yesterday. The owner of the vessel, Mr.J.P.Weber (47) and his son J.P.Weber Jnr. (25) who is captain of the boat, watched grim-faced from the clifftop of Whinnyfold yesterday afternoon as the sea covered most of the Maria W.

The 240 ton vessel was on her way from Ghent to Scrabster, Caithness, with a cargo of fertiliser when trouble struck at 3.30 am.

While her young captain remained on board sending out distress signals, the rest of the crew took to the life-raft. The Grimsby-based trawler Real Madrid sailed to the area, and using radar, guided the Peterhead lifeboat. All five seamen were hauled safely on board the lifeboat and taken to Peterhead. Visibility was nil. The skipper sent out a Mayday signal and put up rockets. The lifeboat succeeded in getting right up to the Maria W, despite the rocks.

(Page 1 - photo of Maria W aground and being pounded by the sea).

Source: Aberdeen Press and Journal, 23 February 1966.

(Classified as M[otor] V[essel], with cargo of fertliser: former name cited as Twin, and date of loss as 22 February 1966). Maria W: this vessel stranded at Sandy Haven, North of Whinnyfold.

Registration: Dutch. Built 1932. 197grt. Length: 33m. Beam: 6m.

(Location of loss cited as N57 23.67 W1 51.33).

I G Whittaker 1998.

MARIA W, struck the Skares, blown stern first into Sandy Haven. Wreck lies in a gully, completely broken up. Scattered plates and diesel engine visible.

Source: Butland & Siedecki, BSAC Wreck register, Scotland 1 1987.

NLO: Peterhead [name: NK 135 465]

Cruden Bay [name: NK 091 364]

Bay of Cruden [name centred NK 090 348]

The Skares [name centred NK 089 331].

The location assigned to this record remains unverified. Sandy Haven is not noted as such on the 1995 edition of the OS 1:50,000 map. The name Whinnyfold appears to apply to an ill-defined area around NK 077 331.

The Scars of Cruden are not noted as such on the 1995 edition of the OS 1:50,000 map, but the name presumably applies to The Skares, a group of exposed rock stacks off the headland at the S end of the Bay of Cruden.

Information from RCAHMS (RJCM), 28 January 2008.

Whittaker ID : 11

Name : MARIA W (EX. TWIN)

Latitude : 572340

Longitude : 15120

Date Built : 1932

Registration : DUTCH

Type : MV

Tonnage : 197

Tonnage Code : G

Length : 33

Beam : 6

Draught : 2m

Position : Position Approximate

Loss Day : 22

Loss Month : 2

Loss Year : 1966

Comment : Stranded at Sandy Haven, north of Whinnyfold.

Cargo : FERTILISER

The motorcoaster " Maria-W' , call sign PFUF, home port Rotterdam, was named after my late mother Maria and owned by my late father Johan Pieter Weber Sr. , who served the whole 2nd. World War in the UK on the Netherlands coasters- also called the little grey Devils - as Chief Engineer. Myself, I went sailing on the "Maria-W" in 1956 as a 15 year old deckhand, later mate and after getting my needed licences, including my unlimited Master's ticket, at the Higher Nautical School in Rotterdam, I became master on it at the age of 21, after sailing as (Chief) Mate on two other Netherlands coasters.

On that final voyage with a cargo of 315 mt basic slags (fertilisers for 'poor' soil), in paperbags from Gent in Belgium to Srabster in Scotland. I woke up early morning after a loud noise and shivering of the ship which, we found out had hit a rocky ledge called the Cruden Scares, near Cruden Bay. It was completely dense fog and the mate, with a so called dispensation licence had failed to wake me up when the fog came in and had underestimated the tidal currents etc. so we were out of our chart track by hitting the rocks in pitch dark. At that time, our vessel like most had no radar or other electronic position devices or echosounder and only a magnetic compass and Radio Directionfinder and with handsteering system ! After ascertaining our position and situation I sent out a "May-day" call on R/T radio and we were fastly and smoothly rescued from the sinking vessel by the Peterhead Lifeboat with radar assistance from the British trawler "Real Madrid" and were finally landed and taken care for by the fishing community (specially by the Buchanan Family) in Peterhead. We flew home in a given 'fishermans outfit" as we lost all our belongings except our passports and seaman's books which I grabbed quickly during sinking.

Now for the vessel's details, which may be of interest: "Maria-W", former "Twin" and built 1932 at shipyard E.J.Smit & Zn., Westerbroek, Groningen, Netherlands. 197 / 255 mts. gt /deadweight, length 36,2 m. beam 6.54 m. and fitted with a 150 HP, 3cyl. "Stork" (NL) 4stroke Dieselengine on 320 rpm. with gear-reverse propeller propulsion. Purchased by Messrs. J.P.Weber and G.Verstoep at Rotterdam in 1956. The main engine was written-off in 1956 and replaced by a new direct reversible 6 cyl. "Deutz", 4stroke gasoil Dieselengine of 240 HP on 600 rpm. The vessel was lengthened by 6 meters in June 1965 at shipyard Martin Jansen at Leer in Germany. The new dimensions (until sinking) were: Length 42,15 m., beam 6,54 m with 241 / 320 mt gt / dwt. and loaded speed about 8 knots.

Information from Mr Johan Pieter Weber, 30th April 2012

UKHO Identifier : 002254

Feature Class : Wreck

Wreck Category : Wreck showing any portion of hull or superstructure

State : LIVE

Classification : Unclassified

Position (Lat/long) : 57.39167,-1.85500

Horizontal Datum : ORDNANCE SURVEY OF GREAT BRITAIN (1936)

WGS84 Position (Lat/long) : 57.39144,-1.85668

WGS84 Origin : 3-D Cartesian Shift (BW)

Position Quality : Precisely known

Depth Quality : Depth unknown

Water Depth : 2

Vertical Datum : Lowest Astronomical Tide

Name : MARIA W

Type : M GENERAL CARGO

Flag : DUTCH

Length : 42.1

Beam : 6.5

Draught : 2.4

Tonnage : 240

Tonnage Type : Gross

Cargo : FERTILISER

Date Sunk : 22/02/1966

Contact Description : Entire wreck

Original Sensor : Reported Sinking

Original Detection Year : 1966

Original Source : Other

Circumstances of Loss : **EX-TWIN '56. BUILT IN 1932 BY E J SMIT & ZOON, HOOSTLAND. LENGTHENED IN 1964. OWNED AT TIME OF LOSS BY J P WEBER & VERSTOEP. OIL ENGINE, SINGLE SHAFT. PASSAGE GHENT FOR SCRABSTER. WENT AGROUND AND LOST PROPELLOR IN HEAVY FOG AND BECAME CTL. (SIBI).

Surveying Details : **H1122/66 8.6.66 POSN 572330N, 015112W [OGB]. ONLY BRIDGE ABOVE WATER LEVEL WITH STERN TOWARDS THE SHORE. ALL HATCH COVERS LOST. (LL & CRUDEN BAY CG). INS AS ST. BR STD.

**H3965/75 1.12.77 WK COMPLETELY BROKEN UP. HEAVILY SILTED. GENERAL DEPTH OVER WK 15-20FT EXCEPT SHAFT OR MAST WHICH STICKS UP WITHIN FEW FT OF SURFACE AT LOW TIDE. (R DAY, LTR). DELETE. BR STD.

**27.5.82 COMPLETELY BROKEN. STANDS UP TO 4MTRS HIGH IN GEN DEPTH 6MTRS. (BSAC WK REGISTER VOL 5).

Charting Comments : EXISTING SCALES TOO SMALL

Date Last Amended : 27/10/2010

Date Position Last Amended : 03/06/1982