The Ships
Amazon Hope 1 and 2 are both ex Royal Navy Fleet Diving Tenders that have undergone conversions to medical ships. Amazon Hope 1, previously named "Milford", was sailed over from the UK in 2001. She is 125 tonnes and 25m in length. The ship was formerly based on the River Clyde, being operated on behalf of the Ministry of Defence by Serco Denholm plc. The ship is ideal for its new role on the Amazon and will bring health and hope too many communities along the banks of the Amazon and its tributaries.
An individual gift enable the Trust to purchase the second ship. It then underwent a major refit and conversion to a floating medical centre curtsey of BAE Systems in Barrow in Furness. The ship has been fitted out with a small operating theatre, medical and dental surgeries, a pharmacy and additional cabin accommodation. We are enormously grateful to BAE for covering the costs of the refit and for many thousands of volunteers who have contributed to the project.
A volunteer crew then sailed Amazon Hope 2 from Barrow to Peru via the USA. The ship completed a four week US tour to recruit volunteers for medical teams and work parties and to raise awareness of the Trusts work in Peru. The tour began when the Vine Trust was formally launched in the United States at a function in Scotland House, Madison Avenue, New York hosted by the American-Scottish Foundation. In the following weeks the ship also visited Philadelphia, Baltimore and Fort Lauderdale. We are immensely grateful to Captain James Clark and all the crew who have invested their time and talents in the project.
The Ships play a key role in our aim to develop a primary health care service for up to 100,000 people. With their relatively shallow draughts they are able to travel up many of the Amazon's tributaries (especially during the rainy season); tie-up alongside a jetty or, such as in the case pictured left, any riverbank and wait for the crowds to gather. Amazon Hope's arrival is always welcomed by many people. As one Amazon Hope volunteer stated, "Compared with the other craft on these rivers the arrival of the Amazon Hope is like the arrival of the Star Ship Enterprise!"
Marine Teams
There is so much demand for these medical ships that it is vital they are kept in good order. If you would like to join a volunteer marine team to help with the maintenance of these ships in Peru please click here for more information.