Team Philips designer Adrian Thompson in his own words
by Adrian Thompson 30 Mar 2000 17:31 BST
Team Philips' designer's comments after inspecting the damaged hulls today in St Mary's, Isles of Scilly.
"We've had a really good look at the boat today. The good news, if there is such a thing in these circumstances, is that the damage on the starboard hull gives us a good indication of where the crack started. We believe both hulls failed in the same manner.
"Our priority is to make sure the boat is safe to be towed back to the mainland. We need to pump about 70 tonnes of water out of the port float in order to minimise the loads on the rest of the craft.
"This project has so many supporters and we are not going to let them down. We are going to get this thing fixed and sorted. Obviously this is a huge set back to the campaign, but morally it has if anything strengthened the team. The way the team has come together in adversity has been absolutely incredible, amazing.
"We have nothing to hide. Something has happened that we cannot understand at the moment. The hulls needed to be subjected to 70 tonnes of side force to fall off. Obviously conditions were nowhere near as bad.
"I don't think we can attempt to repair this until we completely understand what caused the problem. This is not a time for knee jerk solutions. Next time this boat has got to be bullet proof."
More Information: teamphilips.com