THE LOST SHIPS

Evening Post, Volume CXXXI, Issue 1, 2 January 1941, Page 8

THE LOST SHIPS

BRIEF PARTICULARS

The Rangitane, one of the three wellknown "Rangi" sister-ships, was built in 1929 by the firm of John Brown and Co., Ltd., Clydebank, for the New Zealand Shipping Company and was, like the Rangitiki and Rangitata, regularly employed in the United King-dom-New Zealand trade. She was a twin-screw motor-ship of 16,712 tons gross, and had 460,000 cubic feet of refrigei'ated space. ,

The third New Zealand Shipping Company vessel to bear the name, the Turakina was a steamer of 9691 tons gross and was also fitted with refrigerating equipment. She was built in 1923 by W. Hamilton and Co., Ltd., Port Glasgow. For 17 years, she had been engaged in the refrigerated cargo trade between New Zealand ana United Kingdom ports. The first Turakina was formerly the sailing ship City of Perth, which was driven ashore at Timaru by a heavy sea in 1882. Shewas refloated and was renamed. The second ship of the name was built in 1902 for the carriage of passengers and cargo. She was torpedoed on August 13, 1917, shortly after she nad disembarked a section of the 25th Reinforcements of the First New Zealand Expeditionary Force at Plymouth.

The Komata was one of a series of ships the Union Steam Ship Company had built in Scotland in 1938 for the New Zealand coastal trade, and was launched on the Clyde in October of that year. She had a gross tonnage of 3900 and was the second Komata owned by the Union Company. The first was sold to Japan about the end of 1934.

The Holmwood (546 tons gross) was formerly the Tees and was bought by the Holm Shipping Company from her previous owners, the Westland Shipping Company, in August, 1940. She had been on the Chatham Islands run for a number of years. The Holmwood was built in 1911 at the Yorkshire river-port of Goole.

INTERESTING SHIPS

The loss of the Triona, Triaster, and

Triadic leaves the British Phosphate Commissioners with only one of the four ships specially built for them for the phosphate trade to New Zealand and Australia. The remaining ship is the Trienza. All these ships were specially built for loading phosphates at an exposed anchorage, and for this reason they are not easy to replace. They had clipper bows to carry heavy mooring gear. The Triaster and Triadic were motor-ships and the Triona a steamer. The Triona (4413 tons) was the oldest and smallest, and was built in 1931 by Harland and Wolff. Ltd., Glasgow. The Triaster (6032 tons) and the Triadic (6378 tons) were built in 1935 and 1938 by Lithgows, Ltd., Port Glasgow. The Trienza is a sister ship of the Triadic. .

The Vinni (5181 tons gross) was a Norwegian motor-ship and was built in .1937 at Gothenburg.

The Notou (2489 tons) was formerly the Margham Abbey, and at the time of her loss, was owned by the Societe "Le Nickel." Her port of registry was Noumea. She was built in 1930 by W. Gray and Co., Ltd., West Hartlepool. r •

The Ringwood (7203 tons), a Norwegian twin-screw motor-ship,, was built in 1926 by Armstrong, Whitworth, and Co., Ltd., Newcastle.