Wick Harbour and "The Perfect Storm"

[Mister Squiggle]

I'm reading the book "The Perfect Storm" at the moment. In it, there is a reference to breaking waves "which lifted a 2,700-ton breakwater, en masse, and deposited it inside the harbour at Wick, Scotland".
This incident at the harbour is not in direct reference to the storm of 1991 which is covered in the book, but is used by the author to describe the power of waves and he gives other examples of freak waves which have caused damage etc.
I was wondering when this happened in Wick and if any Orgers know more about it?

[NickInTheNorth]

I'm reading the book "The Perfect Storm" at the moment. In it, there is a reference to breaking waves "which lifted a 2,700-ton breakwater, en masse, and deposited it inside the harbour at Wick, Scotland".
This incident at the harbour is not in direct reference to the storm of 1991 which is covered in the book, but is used by the author to describe the power of waves and he gives other examples of freak waves which have caused damage etc.
I was wondering when this happened in Wick and if any Orgers know more about it?

Quick search on google reveals this:


And at ground level, Wick's harbour breakwater is the most impressive example of wave power. Its 2,500-ton stretch of reinforced masonry was lifted off its foundations during a storm at the turn of the century.

and this:


Little wonder, then, that man-made piers and harbours suffer greatly when the sea turns on them in fury. The town of Wick, on the North Sea coast of the Pentland Firth, has long been visited by waves of outrageous size and strength. A century and a half ago the harbour there was destroyed in a storm. Not to be outdone, the locals rebuilt it, adding a massive breakwater to make sure the same thing wouldn’t happen again. But in 1877 a freak wave swept ashore, wrenched the harbour from it foundations, breakwater and all, and carried the entire lot away with it. The end stone of the breakwater was estimated to weigh about 2,500 tons, but even this was no match for that one wave.

Hopefully someone may know more. It's an interesting read "The Perfect Storm"!

[jimbews]

Little wonder, then, that man-made piers and harbours suffer greatly when the sea turns on them in fury. The town of Wick, on the North Sea coast of the Pentland Firth, has long been visited by waves of outrageous size and strength. A century and a half ago the harbour there was destroyed in a storm. Not to be outdone, the locals rebuilt it, adding a massive breakwater to make sure the same thing wouldn’t happen again. But in 1877 a freak wave swept ashore, wrenched the harbour from it foundations, breakwater and all, and carried the entire lot away with it. The end stone of the breakwater was estimated to weigh about 2,500 tons, but even this was no match for that one wave.


Is this not the outer breakwater which was attempted by Robert Louis Stevenson's father; and the explanation why he was so derogatory towards Wick?

[golach]

Is this not the outer breakwater which was attempted by Robert Louis Stevenson's father; and the explanation why he was so derogatory towards Wick?

http://forum.caithness.org/showthread.php?t=23921

I am not sure, but here are allegedly direct quotes from RLS himself. check post #5 & #1

[George Brims]

I believe the story refers to the outer breakwater the Stevensons tried to build. The whole sorry tale is in "The Lighthouse Stevensons" - a really great book. I remember when I was in my teens the "100 years ago" section in the Groat would often have items about how many feet of the new breakwater had been completed one week, and how many washed away in a storm the next. It was a constant chain of "one step forward, two steps back". I suspect a modern analysis of the shape of the bay might show they were building the thing in exactly the wrong spot, where the waves focus in some way.

[northener]

I think the marker outside the South arm of the harbour marks where the Stevenson breakwater was. If you follow the path on past the old lifeboat station you can see where the breakwater began. Interesting little walk if you've got a few minutes on your hands.

Quite ironic that all the wrecked breakwater is now looked down on by the memorial to Mr Bremner, harbour builder extrodinaire.

.

[south view 7]

http://i169.photobucket.com/albums/u217/southview7/b0110.jpg
I'm reading the book "The Perfect Storm" at the moment. In it, there is a reference to breaking waves "which lifted a 2,700-ton breakwater, en masse, and deposited it inside the harbour at Wick, Scotland".
This incident at the harbour is not in direct reference to the storm of 1991 which is covered in the book, but is used by the author to describe the power of waves and he gives other examples of freak waves which have caused damage etc.
I was wondering when this happened in Wick and if any Orgers know more about it?
I think this will be the storm referred to as stevenson"s breakwater was washed away in 1872.......

[Mosser]

I'm reading the book "The Perfect Storm" at the moment. In it, there is a reference to breaking waves "which lifted a 2,700-ton breakwater, en masse, and deposited it inside the harbour at Wick, Scotland".
This incident at the harbour is not in direct reference to the storm of 1991 which is covered in the book, but is used by the author to describe the power of waves and he gives other examples of freak waves which have caused damage etc.
I was wondering when this happened in Wick and if any Orgers know more about it?
Stevenson's breakwater was never destroyed by any one storm but was severely damaged in successive storms in 1868, 1870, 1872. After huge damage in December 1878 it was simply abandoned and gradually over the years nature took care of the rest, today only the "flaggie" marks the outer point.

[trinkie]

There's a poem on the Lit page referring to a storm in 1952...
Might not be the one you are looking for, but it was a very bad storm by all accounts.

Trinkie

[Mister Squiggle]

Thank you all for posting - I finished the book today and what a cracking read (if somewhat sobering). I knew if I consulted the Org, answers would be forthcoming.
I can remember previous posts about the work done in Wick Harbour by RLS's father and the storms which battered his efforts. In the book they mention wave heights during the storm of 1991 which top 75ft - I just cannot comprehend seas like that, but when you look at the picture posted by South View of the damage of 1913, it gives some idea of the full force of nature. Cheers all.