Class 42 “Warship” D832 “Onslaught” performed as we had hoped on the last Saturday of the peak season timetable and so was used again on the Saturday of the Minehead CAMRA Real Ale Festival to bring an hydraulic touch to the event where “Braunton” was “the star” (well that and some rather fine beer – ed.). On the following Wednesday the DEPG were host to visitors from German diesel engine manufacturers “M.T.U.” and transmission manufacturers “Voith” who enjoyed a day as guests of the Group touring the Railway. A special train consisting of D832 and three Mark 1 “Quantock Belle” coaches formed the special from Bishops Lydeard to Williton where the guests detrained to tour the Diesel Depot and Heritage Diesel Visitor Centre and the Association Works. During the visit the guests were shown the restoration work being undertaken by DEPG volunteers on Maybach engines for both “Hymek” D7017 and “Western” D1010 and a Mekydro transmission for “Hymek” D7018.
After departure from Williton the guests enjoyed the run to Minehead where they were joined for lunch on the train berthed in the bay platform by WSR General Manager Paul Conibeare and WSR Chief Mechanical Engineer, Andy Forster. After lunch the guests enjoyed a tour of Minehead Station and shed before several had to leave by road for Bristol International and a late afternoon flight home to Germany. The remainder eventually rejoined the train for the run back to Bishops Lydeard behind “Onslaught” driven by Neil McCann with Graham Perry as secondman. During the trip back through the Quantock Hills they were served a traditional West Country cream tea by Richard Knight and his team before saying their “goodbyes” on arrival at Lydeard. Feedback from Germany to DEPG Chairman Robert Tiller, post the day, has been very positive about the work of the DEPG and the Railway and we would like to thank all staff on duty back on Wednesday 17th September for their help on the day
Back at the depot we hired-in two large road mobile cranes to undertake some lifting tasks including relocating the spare Class 47 Sulzer engine and generator on a purpose-built engine stand we purchased from Crewe Works some six months ago. We also relocated tow of our portable buildings so as to create space for the demolition of our life-expired wooden mess room and prepare the site for the replacement metal portakabin. Several of the Team had great fun demolishing the mess room starting straight after the guests left for Minehead on Wednesday 17th so that all was ready to receive and install the replacement on the last Saturday of the month. The sun shone bright and with the help of another road mobile crane the portakabin was in place before the morning coffee break and by teatime the Team had repainted the exterior of the mess room and the bunkhouse to match in a colour similar to B.R. (W) carriage cream. Work also started stripping out the interior ready to install a new kitchen, toilet, washroom and shower and mess area. Whilst those important facilities are unavailable a temporary mess facility has been created in the Heritage Diesel Visitor Centre that is closed to visitors to the Railway for most of October. For the Autumn Steam Gala a temporary exhibition has been set up in the Diesel Shed and this facility may also be needed for the “Somerset in Autumn” Gala as well, depending on how we progress in commissioning the new DEPG mess facilities that should set a standard once again for the Railway. During the afternoon of the last Saturday of the month we hosted in the Diesel Shed one of the series of meetings being held by Mark Smith, new Chairman of the WSR where he set out to 40 people present how he hopes to rejuvenate the workforce and take the Company forward in the coming months through what will be challenging financial times.
Finally the Depot has been made ready to welcome, hopefully, record numbers of visitors to the Autumn Steam Gala who will be able to wander through a magnificent line-up of our Heritage Diesel Locomotives on their way to find the standby steam locomotive and view more in the Works South Yard.
(John Cronin)