Cranes at Cork Harbor are named after two giants of folklore
A pair of 50m cranes at Cork’s new container terminal are officially named after two giants of local folklore, Mahain and Binne.
The names were chosen by Year 6 pupils from Crosshaven Boys’ National School, following a call and online competition organized by the Port of Cork Company, which received over 1,000 votes.
The names stand for the two 50m cranes at the Cork Container Terminal (CCT), Ringaskiddy, an 86 million euro development which recently became operational. The Port of Cork says the terminal will “play an important role in the economic growth of the region for many years to come” as it enables more efficient container handling facilities, now with help from Mahain and Binne.
More than 800 pupils from 12 schools in the local port community took part in the ‘Name the Cranes’ competition, with the suggestion of Mahain and Binne from Crosshaven Boy National School coming out on top in a final vote on Facebook.
The names chosen are based on a local history from 1892, told by Robert Day. A giant called “Mahain” launched two stones from Monkstown – one landing at Ringaskiddy and the other at Crosshaven. Another giant called ‘Binne’, lived across the water at Currabinny and threw a stone into the village of Crosshaven where it came to rest on the foreshore near Crosshaven House.
The winning class of Crosshaven Boys’ NS will receive a guided boat trip around Cork Harbour, €1,000 worth of sports or art supplies and will be invited to cut the ribbon at the official opening of CCT later this year. The names Mahain and Binne will be printed on each crane in the coming weeks.
Finalist schools, Star of the Sea Passage West, who came up with the names ‘Ardú and Ísliu’ and Ringaskiddy National School who suggested ‘Rocky and Spike’, also received €1,000 worth of art supplies for their school.
Port of Cork Business Development Support Manager David Browne said they were “delighted” to be able to involve the local community and the next generation in a new era for the Port of Cork.
“Linking local folklore to the cranes makes for a great story, and the two 50m giants, Mahain and Binne, couldn’t be more fitting names,” he said.