SATURDAY, FEBRUARY 9, 1980
PRINCESS ALEXANDRA STARTS PUMPS AT HIGH ISLAND RESERVOIR
*****
PRINCESS ALEXANDRA TODAY (SATURDAY) TOURED HIGH ISLAND WATER SCHEME THE WORLD'S LARGEST MAN-MADE RESERVOIR - AND STARTED PUMPS TO DRAW WATER FROM THE RESERVOIR FOR THE FIRST TIME.
ACCOMPANIED BY THE HON ANGUS OGILVY AND THE GOVERNOR, SIR MURRAY MACLEHOSE, THE PRINCESS ARRIVED AT THE QUAY BELOW THE WEST DAM OF THE RESERVOIR ON THE LAUNCH +THE LADY MAURINE+.
HER ROYAL HIGHNESS WAS GREETED ON ARRIVAL BY MR DAVID MCDONALD, DIRECTOR OF PUBLIC WORKS, WHO THEN PRESENTED MR W.D.A. TÜCKER, DIRECTOR OF WATER SUPPLIES.
THE ROYAL PARTY THEN BEGAN A TOUR OF THE RESERVOIR, WHICH HAS A STORAGE CAPACITY OF 273 MILLION CUBIC METRES.
THE PRINCESS FIRST STOPPED AT THE TOP OF THE EAST DAM WHERE THERE IS A MONUMENT IN MEMORY OF THOSE WHO HAD LOST THEIR LIVES DURING THE CONSTRUCTION OF THE PROJECT.
THERE, PRESENTED TO PRINCESS ALEXANDRA BY MR MCDONALD, WERE MR T.H. TOMLINSON, PRINCIPAL GOVERNMENT WATER ENGINEER- MR A.J. VAIL, PARTNER OF BINNIE AND PARTNERS, THE CONSULTING ENGINEERS FOR THE SCHEME, AND MR A. DE GIULI, CONTRACTS MANAGER OF VIANINI SPA, THE MAIN CONTRACTOR FOR THE PROJECT.
THE DIRECTOR OF PUBLIC WORKS ALSO BRIEFED THE PRINCESS ON THE CONSTRUCTION OF THE $1 348 MILLION WATER SCHEME.
HER ROYAL HIGHNESS LATER DROVE TO THE EASTERN COFFER DAM WHERE SHE SAW THE SPECTACULAR VIEW PRESENTED BY THE 7 000 CONCRETE
'DOLOSSES' EACH WEIGHING 25 000 KILOGRAMS - DESIGNED TO DISSIPATE THE FORCE OF OCEAN WAVES WHICH CAN REACH A HEIGHT OF 12 METRES AT TIMES.
CONTINUING HER TOUR, THE PRINCESS PROCEEDED TO THE MAIN PUMPING STATION ON THE WESTERN SIDE OF THE RESERVOIR WHERE THE DISTRICT OFFICER, SA! KUNG, MR C.S.T. BOSHER, WAS PRESENTED.
ALSO PRESENTED WERE TWO REPRESENTATIVES OF THE VILLAGES AFFECTED BY THE CONSTRUCTION OF THE RESERVOIR MESSRS LEE YUN-SAU AND LEE SIU-YAM- THE CHAIRMAN OF THE SAJ KUNG RURL COMMITTEE, MR CHUNG PUN, AND THE CHAIRMAN OF THE HANG HAU RURAL COMMITTEE, MR YAU KEI.
LATER, AT A CEREMONY ATTENDED BY SOME 100 GUESTS, THE PRINCESS STARTED A PUMP TO DRAW WATER FOR THE FIRST TIME FROM THE HIGH ISLAND RESERVOIR INTO THE SUPPLY SYSTEM.
AT A RECEPTION THAT FOLLOWED, PRINCESS ALEXANDRA HAD A CLOSE LOOK AT THE PRESTIGIOUS INGERSOLL RAND ITALIA 1979 PRIZE WHICH WAS AWARDED TO THE PUBLIC WORKS DEPARTMENT FOR THE CONSTRUCTION OF THE HIGH ISLAND RESERVOIR. SHARING THE PRIZE WERE VIANINI SPA AND BINNIE AND PARTNERS.
THE PRIZE AIMS TO DRAW PUBLIC ATTENTION TO SOCIAL, TECHNICAL AND AESTHETIC ACHIEVEMENTS IN IMPORTANT CONSTRUCTION PROJECTS THROUGHOUT THE WORLD INVOLVING ITALIAN ENTERPRISE.
/2...