FOUR MEN MISSING

Dominion, Volume 33, Issue 94, 15 January 1940, Page 9

FOUR MEN MISSING

Yacht Tragedy Feared \ WRECK IN RAGING GALE By Telegraph—Press AssociationAUCKLAND, January 14. Four of a party of five men are missing and are believed to have been drowned after the Tauranga 13 class keel yacht, Ngahuia, was wrecked on Matakana Island during a raging storm on Saturday night. The owner of the yacht, Frank G. Gresham, garage proprietor. Tauranga, struggled ashore. Though suffering from shock, bruises and a fractured rib, he made his way across country to Mr. Ross Faulkner’s homestead for help. Those missing are: Leslie M. Meliars, married, aged 38 recently of Auckland, now local inspector at Tauranga for the National Insurance Company; Phillip 11. Nielson, married, aged 33, borough council employee, Tauranga; Roy Tonkin, single, aged 23, second son of C. Tonkin,' btlilder and contractor, Tauranga; .John Herbert Willcock, single, aged 19, only son of Mr. >S. G. Willcock, secietar.v of the Bay of Plenty Racing Club. The Ngahuia left ’Tauranga on Friday evening for a cruise to White Island. She set out again on Saturday in good sailing weather for the return to Tauranga, but ran into very heavy weatiter on the way across. Though Mr. Gresham is still suffering too severely from shock to be able to recount much that happened, it was apparently decided to run for shelter at Motitl Island. By this time a furious gale had developed and she was unable to reach Motiti. Mr. Gresham attempted to go on to Mount Maunganui in the fierce rain storm which accompanied the raging wind but the men could not pick up the beacon on the seaward side of the Mount and the yacht was compelled to go to sea again. She went ashore on Matakana Island shortly before 3 a.m. at a point about two miles north of the Mount. Whether she struck in the surf or farther out. is not known because only fragments of the bull have so far been found and the exact position of the wreck has not been discovered. From what has been obtained from Mr. Gresham, however, it is thought that at least 50 yards of boiling surf separated five men from safety. It was impossible to use the yacht’s dinghy and the men plunged into the sea clinging to mattresses given to them by Mr. Gresham. ’The mattresses were found on Matakana Island beach today by search parties but, though 111 miles of shore was combed from daylight to dark and other men scoured the coast of the mainland, no other trace has been found.