Art Hall sent these photos over from Bath, Maine, yesterday, with this commentary:
"I wish I had better details. These were forwarded to me by a buddy who is the docking master on a floating offshore oil platform (FPSO) off the coast of Angola. He works on a rig called Kizomba (you can google that up if you're curious). I understand it's located about 100 miles offshore. This appears to be a lightering operation for getting supplies out to the platform or just general cargo to some small African town with no deep draft port. I see land in the background so it's not that far offshore.
"Mostly I think it's a good representation of the third world and their ability to improvise and make do with limited resources. I showed this to one of the naval architects here in the office and he just shook his head in disbelief.... I shudder at the thought of an inclining experiment.
"I can't quite figure these boats out. Perhaps built just as lighters or retired fishing 
boats. They don't appear to have power. The lack of deck beams is a testament to their robust construction. Not pretty, but they do the job."
As you know, you can click the photos to make them larger. Anyone care to add detail or insight?
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