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All in all, it took about twelve hours, but in the end it stood proudly upright; the restored steam crane ‘Schelde № 38’ was successfully tested on Saturday 27 March on a site on the Voltaweg in Vlissingen.
Wesley Sekewael is the man who saved the crane from ending up in the scrap yard in 2015. With a team of enthusiastic volunteers, he has since then reassembled it piece by piece.
Early on that Saturday morning, the monumental crane, which dates back to 1946, was driven out of a warehouse of local earth-moving company Harthoorn. This was carried out with the help of a special frame that could manage the 40-tonne load.
Wesley explains that there were some initial problems with the burner, but after it was cleaned and unclogged, the crane could be prepared for the test run. “After we had stoked for an hour and a half, we could sound the steam whistle and the special steam siren at 8 bars of pressure; a beautiful and penetrating sound that could be heard throughout Vlissingen,” says Wesley. In clouds of steam, the boom of the crane was then slowly lifted from its horizontal position to the highest point. A Dutch tricolor was attached to the hook, which waved proudly as the former Schelde crane was finally – and literally – fully resurrected.
“We are very grateful to Damen for this”
Wesley received an inspection certificate from an inspector – the official proof that the steam boiler had been approved. As icing on the cake, the driver’s cabin was then lifted over the crane with a Harthoorn telehandler. Wesley is extremely proud of the result. He is pleased that Damen Naval employees selflessly helped with building the crane housing and with the construction work on the existing transport frame and boom. “We are very grateful to Damen for this,” he says. Wesley also thanked the Vlissingen fire brigade, which selflessly provided extra water on the test day.
The boom of the steam crane is inspected. Photo: Bo van Scheyen.
Now that the renovated steam crane has been up and running, it only needs a few finishing touches. Wesley and his team of volunteers hope that the ‘Schelde № 38’ will be ready for installation in May. As a tangible piece of Schelde history, it will be given a nice place at De Oude Verbandkamer, where it can be viewed by the public. The ‘Schelde № 38’ is one of two rail cranes built by Koninklijke Maatschappij De Schelde after the war to work at the shipyard’s industrial rail yard. Together with its sister crane Schelde № 39, it served until the 1970s.