I am just back in sleepy old Hermanus after the third week at Salt River depot and thought I'd update the situation, as seen through the eyes of a volunteer.

After that first week of moving around various jobs as required by the team leaders, I eventually settled down to steady employment in the first of the two washing sections, where I have been busy ever since, in the role of washer.

Each section consists of two washbays, being converted showers and washrooms previously used by the railways employees; a rinsing section, being the ex-toilet area, and the drying rooms, being the old changing rooms. Each washbay is equipped with 10 overturned plastic 45 gallon drums which act as the bearers for 5 :gallon plastic washing basins, which are filled with warm soapy water by the "water boys". Depending on the number of volunteers available, each bay will be manned by between four and seven pairs of washers - one holder and one washer to a team.

A team will collect a bird from the holding pen outside the door, where, at any given time, about 15 pre-treated birds wait for about 20 minutes for the vegetable oil solvent to do its work prior to washing. The bird is then unceremoniously lowered into the warm soapy water, where a combination of its kicking and struggling, plus some vigorous rubbing from the washer soon removes about seventy-plus percent of the oil.

The bird is then swung into a second basin and the procedure is repeated - the dirty basin being quickly replenished by the tireless water carriers - until the bird is clean from the neck down. This takes anything from two to five basins to achieve, although the record stands at 15 basins for one poor specimen.

The next basin is dedicated to cleaning the neck and face, which is naturally the most sensitive area, which needs to be done with a great deal of care using a toothbrush, and having a rinsing bottle of fresh water handy for when a bit of soapy water gets in the eye. (The bird's that is, not the washer's!). The cleaning process is repeated and repeated until the suds coming off the feathers are clean and all traces of oil are gone. It is easy to see when the white plumage is clean, but the only way with the black areas -the majority - is to carefully monitor the quality of the water and the suds coming off the bird.

Once the washer is satisfied - usually about five minutes after the holders forearms go into cramps! - the bird is carried through to the rinsers, where every vestige of soap is sprayed off using a Gardena nozzle on a hose. A washer's ultimate insult is to have his/her bird returned by the rinsers as "not completely cleaned", so this acts as a pretty good quality control.

The time required to wash a bird varies from 10 minutes for a lightly soiled bird (three basins) to 40 minutes for one heavily oiled (six to nine basins). My worst one came at about eight pm on Wednesday night. After a hard day of cleaning, I was starting to phantasize about that Windhoek lager sitting in the fridge; my handler brought through the biggest, fattest, strongest and dirtiest penguin I had ever seen. Of course, we immediately christened him "Oily Le Roux", and proceeded to ruck and maul with him for the next 45 minutes. Even after all that time this bokkie was still twisting and fighting until, with huge relief I gave him his red card and sent him packing to the showers. That wound up my best day to date, with 54 birds washed (yes I do count 'em - its my twitcher's instinct at work!)

As I write, we're looking at a touch under 8000 birds cleaned, and allegedly 13000 to go, the good news being that no new arrivals are being brought in recently, so the problem is now one of reducing magnitude. The other good news which we heard - also unconfirmed - is that the situation on the islands is good enough for the powers-that-be to consider releasing direct back to Robben and Dassen, instead of the Port Elizabeth option with the long and hazardous swim. Now for a weekend of hedonistic idleness, nursing my laundry rash, before returning to the fray on Monday.

Have a great weekend, and remember:-"Everyone who helps is a hero".

Mike Ford
mikef@mweb.co.za
Friday 21 July 2000

With thanks to Mike.