I think that you will find it is a staged photo & that the re-enactors are not in any danger of anything more than a strained back. The Fort has too much civilization nearby to be able to lob shells like that these days.
Wanting to find out how much civilization was too much, we took a little internet tour of Fort Nelson and found out, much to our dismay, that the fort is located quite far from the more populated coastline. It is, in fact, surrounded by acres and acres of fodder crops and many more acres of land that appears to be fallow or planted in grass. To the west, north and east there are some large wide open spaces. I know that Double D will be impressed with the lands surrounding Fort Nelson, after all, they look very much like Northern Montana! With towns like Boarhunt and North Boarhunt nearby I'm quite sure he would love to visit your beautiful country and help you and the Fort Nelson leaders talk to the nearby landowners and farmers to arrange exclusion zones and other special safe areas which are essential elements in the planning of any successful shoot. We would provide at no charge extra long shell hoisting bars so the Portsdown Artillery Volunteers could perform their duties with a level of safety that even California's, GGaskill could approve of. Below are a few photos which we are using to illustrate our claims.
We have included a few photos taken in the U.S. to illustrate the guns and methods we use here. We include these, not to boast, but merely to educate.
Respectfully,
Tracy and Mike
Looking eastward, notice the hay bales, plowed land and agricultural buildings around Fort Nelson.
Looking eastward toward Fort Nelson; notice the wide open landscape and the fort just right of center in the distance. The 13" mortars need only 2,000 yards, just a little over a mile maximum range. I am not a pilot, but it looks to me like we have 2 to 3 miles in several different possible directions here. The shallow, white, "V" is the fort location.
This Union Columbiad gun crew loves to scare sailboaters with blanks fired from their original M1844 seacoast gun when they get very close to Fort Delaware on Peapatch Island in the Delaware River in the State of Delaware, USA. They look forward to having a worthy target, however, and some plans have been proposed to have the 2/3 scale replica CSS Albemarle steam up there one day from it's berth in Plymouth on the Roanoke River in the State of North Carolina. That would be grand fight!!
The CSS Albemarle, scourge of the Union fleet, a very well done replica Ironclad more than worthy of shot and shell from Fort Delaware, and armed with firing Brooke Rifles!
This is how those artillerists in gray get a little practice these days. Northern coal barges from Ohio make desperate runs past Fort Donelson, Tennessee several times per week. When they are spotted to the north where the Cumberland River makes a large bend, the Confederate reenactors prepare for practice! Budge barrels are dragged down to the water battery shown along with rammers, sponges, etc., and the 32 Pdrs are loaded. The rules of engagement are that no shells may be fired, after all you might burn up a lot of useful coal before you could land those barges in a spot served by the local fire department. Only solid shot and grape shot are allowed. Don't worry, the tug Captain and two crew members have WWII helmets on board at all times, so they're good to go.
