Fascinating and so sad to read this. I remember the Earl William and her compadres in Weymouth and Portsmouth so so well. Amazing ship and quite a life. I wish she could have been preserved. Still, if she was being sold for scrap, then sinking perhaps means her legacy lives on - lying there at the bottom of the ocean. I would have loved to have seen her again.

You are very welcome Mike.

Thank you Robert for this very interesting commentary.

The vessel was renamed Windward II, and is now lying at the bottom of the Caribbean, at a point about 20 miles from the coast of Venezuela and 25 miles from Trinidad. Whilst being towed from Trinidad to Venezuela, she was in collision with the Drillship Petrosaudi Saturn. The collision took place at 21.00 on April 2nd 2011, The result of which, caused her to sink soon after. Unfortunately for her owners, she had to collide with the most expensive object in the area. The damage caused by the collision to the Petrosaudi Saturn was $100 million. The sum was so much as the Petrosaudi Saturn had just completed an oil well for the Venezuelan state oil company PDVSA. The collision resulted in the destruction of this oul well, which had cost £100 million. The loss of $100 million was apparently Lloyds second biggest loss of 2011. At the time I was Driller on shift, and so witnessed the effects of the collision. However, as I was too busy dealing with the effects of the collision and subsequent emergency procedures, I was unable to witness the vessel sinking.