THE PORT KEMBLA

Dominion, Volume 10, Issue 3195, 20 September 1917, Page 6

THE PORT KEMBLA

■ • ■" '■-*-. -' OFFICERS AND CREW ARRIVE TO-NIGHT - CAPTAIN INTERVIEWED . ■-,: There is very little that is new to re- ■■■!' ,pdrt about the sinking of the Ciuiant cargo carrier, Port Kembla, off Farewell • Spit early on Tuesday morning. It appears that the 6ea was moderate, and the ■ epot where the explosion took place was within 15-miles of the Spita Those in : .the lifeboat could.see the Farewell light : : twinkling like a star of good hope through J'the blackness of the night, and it was J;'in'the direction of the light that the HK&oafcpulled: until ;daylight.roveakd the '-"Eegjilu^bound''from-.Nelson to W(4!j r ai> r ' : - '"';iThe's6hipvfrecli(^ r meE''signalled at once, -'.w^'not-very'long before the 'iflittle bore down and took thorn ':Sallion.;board: The sinking of' the Port , "Kembla' is- one of the few instances dur■Fang the'war of a large Vessel being blown ;'"iip. and- sinking ■ within -twenty minutes J: an- the dead, of night without tho loss of "~V single life. ■ , ■ :-■> ;'.;':■ , Foremast' Lifted Out, y--- Mt. J. R. Rooper, manager hore for the Company, believes that the mai'.ficMn'e"' which, destroyed;;the.'Port Kembla s'iwas planted;near ;the-after bulkhead of Vf-'the fore..(No'.l)"hold,"arid bases his be-'?'-3ief b'n'the'fact that of the ex'•iplosion'lifted the foreniast right out of ~' : ,the ship, putting the wireless-aerials out "■"•'of action at once. - : Crew Arrives Here To-night. Captain Jack and the officers and crew of the Port Kembla'will arrive here from ' ' .Nelson by tho Pateena to-night. Captain J. B. Rainoy, Marino Superintendent for tho Cunard Line, left for '; Nelson by the Pateena yesterday, and .'•will probably return to-night. ',-■ The following were the officers and ' .engineers of the Port Kembla when she .left London, and are likely to be those who were serving on tho steamer when 'phe went down:—Captain J. Jack; chiel - officer, Mr. 1\ FletcW; second officer, '..Mr. T. Churton; third officer, Mr. A. Saws; midshipmen, F. Lovegrove, E. Loswell, S. Patterson, and J. Sender; wireless officers, P. Haslam and K. Blad; chief engineer, G. Watt; second engi- -.'. oieer,W. Miller; third engineer, L. Newton; fourth engineer, J. Bailey; fifth engineer, E. Patrick;, first refrigerating V; engineer. J. Stewart; second, J. Taylor. INTERVIEW WITH CAPTAIN JACK ~ EXCELLENT BEHAVIOUR OP THE • CREW. .. '(By Telegraph—Special Correspondent.) Nelson, September ,19. Interviewed to-day. Captain Jack said '. 1.6 had just left the bridge and gone into his cabin when the explosion occurred. He 'immediately went into a passage where he met strong fumes. He remarked to the second officer: "It seems .'■ like a bomb." ,The officer replied: "Yes. : '- It looks like it." The captain gave the order that the engines should stop and the boats be got out. He also instruct- ;-' - ed the wireless operators to send out a message, but as the wireless near had ' been wrecked by the explosion it was im- . possible to send out word. The 6t«amer bad a list, but the. list was not sufficient to interfere with launching the boats. A round of the ship was made .' by the captain 'and the chief officer to . €ee that all the men were awav. The /behaviour of tho crew was excellent. .There was no panic or disorder. Tho captain arid two officers remained on tho --vessel till the verv last, and then dived into the water. The officers were nicked ■ up first and Captain Jack was nearlv an hour in the water before being pulled into a boat. He swam round for a time and then rested on some floatine wreckage. Before leaving 'the steamer he '■ cathered together the papers and placed them in bis overcoat pocket. While in -the water he had to discard the overcoat and lost all the papers. One or ' two of the officers- succeeded in savins their papers, but all the rest lost every-' '. thing. . When the captain was picked up the ■ boats' left the scene of the wreck singing "Tipperary" and "Pack up Your 'Troubles in Your Old Kit Bag." The ■"men'were in excellent spirits and con- .' tinued so' till arrival.in port. They were '".well looked after on tho Regulus and ' were given clothiri andfood.- Captain Jack, the officers, and men cannot.speak 'too highly of the treatment received on , the Regulus, and • from the citizens of Nelson. The"secretary''.of the Shipwrecked Sailors' Society telegraphed authorising the expenditure of M per man 'in clothes. The Mayor telegraphed that ■ this was not enounh and. then received authority to expend M. '' However, the . expenditure is likely to be near ot'ti. The balance, if necessary, will be made no by Nolsonians. .The.men had but the clothes they stood in, and in some cases this .was. very scanty. Each, man was given a complete new outfit, suit, boots, ..., hat, underclothes, braces, and tie. To- ", day one firm presented the men with a .-'. large package of tobacco, and another .''■ firm with a pipe each. Citizens provided cars and took the officers and men for a motor trip through the Waimeas. In addition, each man was given pocket money which will be supplemented by another . amount to-morrow, so that they will not land in Wellington penniless. The crew leave for Wellington on Thursday and will he given a public sendoff. - A member of the" crew"point* out that ; the Port Kembla was on her thirteenth run between England and .Australia. •---The statement thai'.the vessel was delayed for twenty-four hours in Australia is incorrect. The crew appreciate the fact that the call it New Zealand saved _ their lives, as otherwise they would have been in mid-ocean and probably not a survivor would havs been left. .The incident has aroused intense excitement here, comparable only, to that in the early- days, when' the survivors -from the Queen Bee were being awaited. Complete arrangements were made to v' deal'-with every emergency, the probability of ; the loss Of the vessel being due • to a boinb'not being overlooked, and the 'possibility of tnere being men injured. An ambulance and nurses were in leadi'.■:.Bess', and a great shout went up when .'.the announcement was made that every nian was safe and no one injured. Captain Jack is not disposed to say much pending.the inquiry, which is expected to open in Wellington on Friday. There are "certain suspicious circum--stances which it is not wise to publish. These are being inquired into, and it is not improbable that there may be sensational developments. The Sailors' Friend Society in Wei- i lington has arranged to entertain the shipwrecked, men at a concert—to lie followed by a -supper—on Friday evening, and will be glad to receive contributions of edibles for tho occasion. The society also, intends to provide for tho men's minor wants. The crew are to bo the guests of the society at tea and supper . on Sunday.