Monday 3^rd August 2020: It is a public holiday in Port Hedland today – it is usually for the Hedland Races, but that’s not happening this year due to CoVid, but they are still having a holiday.  We are at the Visitors Centre by 9 to book things etc and it is closed too, so we head down to the Missions for Seamen Seafarer Centre and can do the 11.00 talk and harbour tour. John and I have done this before, so know how informative and interesting it is. The Seafarers Centre looks after the welfare of the Seafarers who are at sea for many months at a time – they can come ashore for a few homely comforts, taken shopping if they wish. A Chaplain visits ships on a regular basis, a lot of the time looking after the Seafarers mental health and checking on conditions that they are working under. 

There are currently 19 operational berths in the harbour. 

BHP                8 berths all exporting iron ore. They have berths on both sides of the harbour with an $85m underwater tunnel which has a 1.8 metre wide conveyor belt that shifts 10,000 tonnes of lump ore an hour.

FMG                5 berths all exporting iron ore. (Twiggy Forrest’s Fortescue Metals)

PPA                4 berths (Port Authority) smaller ships – fuel incoming, salt out etc

Roy Hill         2 berths all exporting iron ore. (Gina Rinehart) opened in 2015. It has the longest rail haul of 340km.

The inner harbour has 2 areas wide enough to turn the ships around – all berthed ships must face seaward giving them the ability to empty the port quickly in the event of a cyclone. 

Lithium is the latest product to be exported through Hedland with Chinese contracted to take 200,000 tonnes a year until 2022 – it has become known as ‘white gold’.

Ships can only come in and out on high tide, with outgoing ships getting priority. Ships are up to 330m long and 70m wide.  The trains are 2-3 km long and go 24 hours a day – very evident here at the park. 

Our coffee stop this morning is in a converted US rail dining carriage which was donated to BHP on the anniversary of its 100 million tonnes of iron ore being exported. The US based mining  company "Amax" which owned it was then a  partner in Mount Newman Mining.  It is nestled amongst the trees with a deck one side and tables the other under shade sales and you can formal dine in the carriage if you wish. 

Our Harbour Tour drops off supplies to 2 ships, - one lot hauled up by a rope, due to CoVid, but on the other one a seafarer comes down the ladder to do the pick up.  We see iron ore being loaded and all agree it is a great tour.

Marg & Mark go visiting in the afternoon and John I go into the shopping centre in South Hedland and then fuel up ready for our next leg.  We are going to stay an extra day to do another tour tomorrow.