DECKIE TRIMMER

I was signed on the LORD LLOYD as deckie trimmer and for an extra thirty bob (that's shillings) going to Iceland and an extra thirty bob coming home, myself and another deckie trimmed the coal for the fireman. The trawlers could not carry enough coal in their bunkers alone, they had to have the six after pounds in the fish room filled with coal as well. So to get that coal to the fireman you had to have a trimmer.

For the first hour or so it was easy but then you started to get further into the tunnel. The tunnel was at least thirty feet long so by the time you got to the other end you would throw a shovel full of coal it would hit the ceiling of the tunnel and just keep pilling up. When there was only about a foot of space left I would crawl over the pile and begin again, shoveling the same pile of coal out into the stoke hole so the fireman could throw it into the fires. The diagrams below will illustrate this

This went on till the fish room had been emptied of coal, which took about four to five days, we worked six hours on and six hour off till it was done, she burned about twelve tons of coal a day while she was steaming full speed. So because of the length of that tunnel and having to shovel it twice we shoveled a whole lot of coal for our thirty bob.

Coming home was easier there was no tunnel to deal with; we just climbed up the face of the bunker to the little door near the top and into the coal on the other side. We had to move the coal as evenly as possible from each side, too keep the ship on an even keel. I guess that's why they called it trimming; the chief engineer was called Fisher a tall guy with not a tooth in his head but a better guy you could not wish to meet.

Then we were back in dock, picked our money at the office and off to the pub where I think my two thirty bobs lasted me about a couple of hours, after I had paid for my share of the rounds, I was young and foolish then, I'm old and daft now, but we lived life to the full and had a great time doing it, it's like everything we only remember the good times. When we were in dock having a good time we forgot about the bad weather and the hard work, and didn't think about the next trip till we had run out of beer and money, then it was back to sea again.

Denis Thomas ex Fleetwood fisherman.