TIGHE'S LUCK.

Auckland Star, Volume LV, Issue 175, 25 July 1924, Page 7

TIGHE'S LUCK.

DIVED FROM BURNING LAUNCH. FACED WITH LONG SWIM. (From Our Own Correspondent.) SYD2JEY, July IS. Herbert Tigho, of Carrington Road. Randwick, takes first prize as the luckiest man in New South Wales. Ho dived overboard from a burning launch, tiro miles from the coast on Tuesday afternoon, and is alive to tell the tale. Tighe had been at Botany Bay for the week-end, and decided to make for Sydney Heads on Tuesday, despite the fact that engine trouble had developed, and he had to make the passage out with the aid of two sails. He set the helm for Sydney, and began work on the engine at 1.30 p.m. An hour later he was still at work, and the launch was two miles from | land, opposite Sublime Point, Maroubra, j and about two miles from Sydney Heads. At that time he had adjusted ! some small defect, and gave the engine : a turn. All that resulted was a back- ' fire, and almost immediately a sheet '' of flame came from the engine. Tighe | was temporarily blinded by the flash, i and before he had recovered the flame ! caught the wooden fixtures and soon ; enveloped the forward end of the small craft. Tighe made strenuous efforts to combat the flames, but the inflammable nature of the contents of the launch proved excellent fuel, and soon his life was threatened. It became so bad that he v.:m forced to dive overboard or be burnt to death. He had no time to remove his coat and vest on board, and he had a struggle to do so in the water. Swimming along for ten minutes, he had made little headway towards the shore, and was wellnight exhausted when Messrs. Chapman and Wagner, fishermen, were attracted by the burning lnmngli. They made in the direction of the launch, and, fortunately, sighted Tighe on the way. He was at his last gasp when they reached him and pulled him aboard. They picked up his coat and vest, and after making sure that they could do nothing to extinguish the fire" on the launch, they rowed him into Coogee, where he was landed little the. worse for his experience. Another fisherman rescued the dinghy tied behind the launch, taking the risk of an explosion of benzine while he cut it adrift. Later in the afternoon, thp collier PahnerstoD, on the run up from Wollongong, passed the blazing launch, and lowered a boat, the crew of which salvaged a sail and mast. They concluded that the occupant had been drowned, and reported the matter to the South Head signal station, and the pilot steamer Captain Cook was dispatched to investigate. By that time, however, the launch was burnt to the water's edge, and a Morse message was sent to the captain informing him that Tighe ha« been saved.