OCEAN CABLES 

 AND 



DEEP-SEA 

 TRAWLERS 



A cable vessel loaded with an expensive stock of repair cable ready to proceed on a repair mission 



By Joseph W. Lermond, Maritime Safety Division, U. S. Naval Oceanographic Office 



From the very beginning of recorded history, and probably be- 

 fore, the Hves of mankind have been influenced by the oceans. From 

 the writings of Homer, which make reference to the sea, to our vastly 

 expanded knowledge of the oceans today, man has ventured upon, 

 lived, worked, studied, fought on and used the sea for his economic 

 gain. Among the vastly expanded oceanic activities is found the 

 problem confronting two important industries using the sea today; 

 the deep sea fishing industry and that of undersea communications. 

 Each is important and provides basic needs or economic wants. Both 

 are carried on in a "No Man's" wilderness of ocean depths. 



The economic success of both of these industries is subject to 

 frequent mishaps in the ocean depths. Communication cables are 

 broken and service is interrupted frequently by deep sea trawls. New 

 and improved cables are laid out, and broken cables are repaired on 

 a continuing basis by the cable companies. Fishing trawls are fouled 

 and lost daily in the depths. Service to the public and economic gain 

 are the motives of both industries. That these two may better serve 

 humanity with a clearer understanding of their mutual interests is 

 the objective of this article. 



During recent years the fishing industry and the submarine cable 

 companies have been plagued with rising operating costs because of 

 the fouling of submarine cables by deep sea trawling gear. This seri- 

 ous development poses a problem that is the concern of all maritime 

 nations. Solution of the problem with its manifold complexities, is 

 indeed, a most formidable task. The annual cost for cable repairs to 

 one company alone has been as much as one half million dollars. The 

 inconvenience to the public caused by disrupted cable service cannot 

 be figured. The number of breaks and the loss of cable service increase 

 each year. The cost of labor and materials have also risen steadily. 

 The mounting costs incurred by the breakages are significant finan- 

 cial losses paid for indirectly by the general public. Widespread 

 knowledge of the problem is desirable, as cooperation between the 



two industries is the only immediate way known to reduce the tre- 

 mendous losses in time, labor and material. 



In the early days of the ocean cable industry, fishermen seldom 

 damaged cables because most commercial fishing was carried on 

 largely with hand lines from dories. With the advent of the steam 

 trawler with otter boards, damage to the cables became appreciable. 

 The otter trawl at present is still the most efficient method of bottom 

 fishing, its general and widespread use has both generated and aggra- 

 vated the problem with respect to ocean cable communications. In- 

 creased demand for fish, along with the development of refrigerated 

 transportation, have influenced the growth of the fishing fleet. These 

 fleets now fish in greater depths and constantly extend their area of 

 operations. 



The science of communication by cables under the sea has also 

 progressed. A telegraph cable previously utilized to carry 55 words 

 a minute now carries 300. A transatlantic telephone cable may carry 

 as many as 36 two-way conversations simultaneously on each pair. 

 Messages now transmitted include high-priority-government, mili- 

 tary and diplomatic traffic in addition to the many business and per- 

 sonal messages. The prediction 40 years ago that radio would in 

 time replace cables as the medium of overseas communication has 

 proven to be only partly true. The cables are the "work horse" of 

 transoceanic communications and perform a very vital role in the 

 world's business. 



Outbreaks of cable interruptions are often sporadic and may oc- 

 cur in an area which has been free of damage for years. In 1946, 

 cables landing in Trinity Bay and Conception Bay, Newfoundland, 

 were broken a number of times, after being trouble free for 75 years. 

 Within 10 weeks three separate breaks on one cable were reported. 

 By 1950, the breaks in this area had increased to as many as 15 fail- 

 ures in a year, with as much as 130 days of cable time lost. This is a 

 serious interruption in service, in addition to being a heavy financial 



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