News
Minesweeping Trawler ‘Arfon’ Untouched on the Seabed for 100 Years Protected

Rare and exceptionally well-preserved First World War trawler and minesweeper given special protection
First discovered off the Dorset coast in 2014, the wreck is considered to be ‘at risk’ from uncontrolled salvage
Lying undiscovered on the seabed for a century, a rare steam fishing trawler fitted out as a mine sweeper for the Royal Navy during the First World War has been given special protection by the Department for Culture Media and Sport on the advice of Historic England.
The Arfon was built in 1908 in Goole, East Riding of Yorkshire. It worked out of Portland Harbour Naval Base during the First World War, sweeping mines laid by German U-boats along the inshore shipping lanes off the Dorset coast for three years before striking a mine in April 1917 and rapidly sinking with the loss of 10 of the crew of 13.
The Arfon is exceptionally well preserved with the trawler’s key features such as its mine-sweeping gear, deck gun, portholes and engine room still intact on the seabed off St Alban’s Head.
Most of the wrecks around England’s coast that date from this period have been salvaged for their fixtures and fittings. The Arfon is unique in that it had been untouched for 100 years, until it was first dived in 2014. It is considered to be vulnerable to souvenir hunters and uncontrolled salvage.
Joe Flatman, Head of Listing Programmes at Historic England said: “The Arfon shipwreck is a rare survivor of a type of vessel once very common around the coastline of Britain but which has now entirely disappeared, surviving only in documents and as wrecks like this one.
“Trawlers, minesweepers and other coastal patrol vessels played a crucial role in keeping the sea lanes around the British Isles open during both World Wars, a part of the war effort that is often overlooked. The crews who served aboard such vessels faced tremendous dangers with unstinting bravery and devotion to duty. Historic England is proud to help tell part of this hidden story of naval endeavour during the First World War as part of our work.’’
The finders of the wreck, Martin and Bryan Jones who run a family dive charter business, are now working to secure preservation of this important site. Martin Jones said: “We are delighted to be working with Historic England to protect and investigate the Arfon and we’re planning a special commemoration to mark the centenary of its sinking next April.”
The Arfon is protected under the Protection of Wrecks Act 1973, which means that access to the site is restricted only to divers who have been granted a licence from Historic England.
More information about Protected Wrecks can be found here.
Marine Life & Conservation
Jeff chats to… Veronica Cowley, a contestant in the See You at the Sea Festival Film Competition (Watch Video)

In this exclusive Zoom interview, Jeff Goodman, Scubaverse Editor-at-large, chats to Veronica Cowley, a contestant in the See You at the Sea Festival Film Competition. The See you at the Sea Festival was an online film festival created by young people, for young people.
Veronica’s film – Worse things Happen at Sea – can be seen here:
Sixth and final in a series of six videos about the competition. Watch the first video HERE with Jenn Sandiford – Youth Engagement Officer with the Your Shore Beach Rangers Project and the Cornwall Wildlife Trust – to find out more about the Competition. Each day this week will be sharing one video in which Jeff talks with the young contestants about their films and what inspired them.
For more information please visit:
- Project website: www.beachrangers.com
- Cornwall Wildlife Trust: www.cornwallwildlifetrust.com
- Cornwall College: www.cornwall.ac.uk
- Our Bright Future: www.ourbrightfuture.co.uk
News
Peli proud to support COVID-19 vaccine distribution

We know Peli from its popular camera cases, but from discovery to distribution, Peli’s temperature-controlled packaging is now delivering COVID-19 vaccines all over Europe and the Middle East
With the pandemic recovery just underway, COVID-19 vaccines and therapies are rapidly becoming available for use and they must be safely distributed worldwide, within their required temperature range. Peli’s BioThermal™ division is providing temperature-controlled packaging to meet this critical moment, protecting these crucial payloads.
Peli’s innovative cold chain packaging has been trusted for nearly 20 years by pharmaceutical manufacturers to safely ship their life-saving products around the world. To meet the current challenge, they have adapted their existing products to provide deep frozen temperatures when required for the newly developed life sciences materials. Current and new offerings will ensure the cold chain is maintained throughout the vaccine or therapy’s journey, maximising efficacy and patient health.
“We know that pharmaceutical companies are in all phases of the development process for vaccines and therapeutics and working tirelessly to bring safe and effective drug products to market quickly,” said Greg Wheatley, Vice President of Worldwide New Product Development and Engineering at Peli BioThermal. “Our engineering team matched this urgency to ensure they have the correct temperature-controlled packaging to meet them where they’re at in drug development for the pandemic recovery, from discovery to distribution.”
Peli BioThermal’s deep frozen products use phase change material (PCM) and dry ice systems to provide frozen payload protection with durations from 72 hours to 144+ hours. Payload capacities range from 1 to 96 litres for parcel shippers and 140 to 1,686 litres for pallet shippers.
New deep-frozen solutions are ideal for short-term vaccine storage, redirect courier transport of vaccines from freezer farm hubs to immunisation locations and daily vaccine replenishment to remote and rural areas.
Peli BioThermal temperature-controlled packaging is currently being used to distribute COVID-19 vaccines and therapeutics, either directly or through global transportation providers, in Denmark, France, Italy, Germany, Spain, Sweden, and the UK as well as in Kuwait and Saudi Arabia in the Middle East, with more countries set to join the list as the pandemic recovery process rolls out.
To learn more about the wide range of deep frozen Peli BioThermal shippers, visit Peli.com and PeliBioThermal.com for more information.
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