Classified as a Historic Monument, is the old port dredger doomed to sink?

IIt is not good to be a boat classified as a Historic Monument in La Rochelle. On October 15, the “Manuel Joël” sank in the Chalutiers basin – where it is still waiting to be refloated. However, its fate seems almost enviable seen from Pallice, where another emblem of La Rochelle maritime history has languished in a cell in the floating basins since 2004: the “TD6” dredger. “She removed the silt in the channel, in the Old Port, in the basins, in Minimes… It made a lot of noise,” recalls Johannes Raymond, former technical director of the Maritime Museum.

She made noise again on November 19, when an alarm sounded, signaling a new leak in her hull. With the effect of putting this thorny issue back on the desk of Mayor Jean-François Fountaine, who went to the Grand Port a few days later to see the damage. It is impossible to know precisely what he saw, with no one rushing to discuss the case of this dying historical monument. But we can guess his conclusion: the state of the dredge is more than alarming. Secured by a pumping system, it floats artificially and going on deck is out of the question. If nothing is done quickly, “it will end up sinking, that’s for sure,” says Johannes Raymond.

Dilemma

The City – owner of the boat, which is part of the Maritime Museum’s collection – has this disaster scenario in mind, and for a long time. In 2018, already, the deputy mayor in charge of culture Arnaud Jaulin told “Sud Ouest” that he wanted to remove flirting from its cell “during the course of this mandate”. Six years later, nothing has changed in this soap opera where the town hall procrastinates for an obvious reason: money. Today, even more than yesterday, removing the boat from its box would cost hundreds of thousands of euros. The matter is not simple: there is asbestos, fuel oil and its condition means that the hull would certainly have to be cut up.

How can we imagine, in a tense economic context for public finances, seeing the town hall invest such a sum to save what appears to be a ruin? Conversely, can it afford to see a historic monument sink? Faced with this dilemma and the urgency of the situation, the City recently relaunched discussions with the two other stakeholders in the matter, the Regional Directorate of Cultural Affairs (Drac) and the Grand Port (1), in order to find a solution. .

Among the hypotheses, decommissioning, “in view of the state of the dredger, is being studied,” specifies the City. Very long, the procedure has however already been completed in the case of ten boats, according to 2022 figures from the Ministry of Culture. But it seems improbable to see the Drac, guarantor of the preservation of heritage, be satisfied with this option. Especially since it will be necessary, at one point or another, to take the dredge out of its socket.

Meeting in January

So, what to do? “In the short term, it is a question of strengthening the monitoring of the hull through a weekly check and ensuring appropriate intervention on this type of hull,” says the City. Then, a meeting in mid-January between the different protagonists, while the City collects quotes and expert opinions, is already on the agenda. We have known, from the start, that the Drac is ready to finance 50% of the bill, on the condition that there is a development project behind it. Which goes further than the room at the Maritime Museum dedicated to the boat, entirely scanned and digitized a few years ago.

At this time, it is obvious that the dredger will no longer sail and that in the best case scenario, it will be dismantled after being placed dry. Which is not contradictory with the classification as Historic Monuments, the various saved elements being able to retain this status. Some have already been sheltered for a long time. The steam engine is at the Maritime Museum and the buckets are stored at the municipal technical center.

(1) When contacted, the Grand Port and the Drac did not wish to comment, putting the ball back in the court of the owner, the City.

Classified in 1992

Built in Saint-Nazaire in 1906, the “TD6” dredger began its career in the Loire estuary before arriving in La Rochelle in 1956. The boat, nearly 30 meters long, worked until 1987, before to be saved from scrapping thanks to the mobilization of a preservation association chaired by the founder of the Maritime Museum, Patrick Schnepp. It was in 1992 that it was classified as a Historic Monument.