Radio Announcer Lost At Sea

Press, Volume CIX, Issue 32313, 3 June 1970, Page 1

Radio Announcer Lost At Sea

(New Zealand Press Association)

AUCKLAND, June 2.

Exhausted after a fruitless 10-hour search for a radio announcer who fell overboard early this morning, Radio Hauraki staff returned to Auckland in their ship Tiri II for the final time this afternoon. The announcer is presumed to have drowned in the Hauraki Gulf. He was

LLOYD JOHN JONES, also known as Rick Grant, aged 28, an Australian living in St Heliers. Navy ships called off their search for him at 5.30 p.m.

Barefooted and unshaven, the chief announcer for the former pirate radio station, lan Magan, who was on board the ship for its final transmission on Monday, described how Mr Jones disappeared at 12.40 am. today. Mr Magan, interviewed beside the ship at Jellicoe Wharf late this afternoon, said he and some of the staff members were playing cards In a cabin when Mr Jones went out to get a new pack of cards.

The chief technical engineer, Christopher Prouse, followed him forward along the starboard deck. “We heard the yell from Chris,” Mr Magan said. “We all charged out on to the deck.”

When the ship had lurched while making 'ts way back to port, Mr Jones had fa’len

from the midship area into the sea, Mr Magan said. “1 could hear him yelling and could see the light from the torch which he was holding when he fell overboard,” he said.

The erew of Tiri II attempted to turn the ship round. tn the tail wind it was very difficult to get the vessel bac.< on station. It took about seven minutes to get Tiri II back to the position where Mr Jones was thought to be. Mr Magan said that after about two or three minutes the yelling stopped and the torchlight disappeared. Mr Jones was not seen again. At the time of the disappearance the wind was very strong and the sea was rough. Visibility was quite good. There was no rain and the deck was not slippery.

“We stood on deck all night in bare feet without much trouble," he said. He believed those on board the Tiri II had carried out a thorough search.

At the time of the incident the ship’s master (Mr L. Griffiths) had turned in, but along with the rest of the crew he wasted no time in getting on deck. The Auckland Search and Rescue Organisation co-ordin-ator (Mr T. W. Keals-Smith) said there was little hope of finding Mi Jones, who was not wearing a lifejacket The freighter Grete Skou, on its way to Auckland, joined the Tiri 11, formerly the Kapuni, in a search for the missing man. Early today the two ships were joined by a Great Barrier Island boat, the Marauder. 12-Knot Wind Auckland police were told of Mr Jones’s disappearance near Channel Island soon after 1 a.m. Winds at the time were reported to be 12 knots. Two Mount Cook Airlines aircraft searched for Mr Jones as did the frigate H.M.N.ZS. Otago and the fisheries protection vessel Mako. By noon the northerly wind had reached 25 knots. Visibility in the search area was down to two miles at 12.30 pm. Gales were forecast for later in the day.