LOSS OF TAHITI

Evening Star, Issue 20587, 12 September 1930, Page 6

LOSS OF TAHITI

PROPELLER BREAKS AND PUNCTURES SHIP’S STERN [Peii United Tress:Association.] WELLINGTON, September 11. The nautical inquiry concerning the loss of the Tahiti opened to-day. Tho court consisted of Mr E. Page, S.M., with. Captain Worrall (nautical assessor), Mr Parker (engineer assessor), and Mr Huntley (naval architect). Mr J, Prendevillo appeared for the Marine Department. 'Mr E. K. Kirkcaldy (with him Mr E. Parry) for tho master and deck officers,-Mr E. P. Hrfv for the ei gineers, and Mr C. G. White for the Union Company, , , The master’s evidence was reported yesterday. _ Duncan M'Konzie, second officer, said that for the night of August 16 tho vessel kept fairly upright, but after that it listed to port- That was adjusted by shifting heavy stores in the second saloon. After the transference to tho. Ventura sonic of the mails were retrieved from tbo Tahiti All the men did not go back as some of them had been on duty for over forty-eight hours. Norman Siepcn, chief officer of the Tahiti, said ho was making his second trip on the vessel. At tho time the trouble occurred ho was sleeping, and was aroused by the second officer. Wo went at onco to tho engine room, and found the conditions as described by Captain Toten. He gave orders for spars and spare hatches to be sent below for the pumps to bo rigged, and the ship sounded. After seeing this, work carried out witness went to make an inspection of the lower hold. That would be half an hour after the start of the trouble. Ho found from two to four feet of water in the No. 4 hold, and he reported immediately to the captain. No. 3, but not No. 4 hold, contained cargo which was afloat. Tho holds ran right to the side of tho ship. He could not seo where the water was coming in. Witness took over the supervision of the pumping and bailing. From August 16 tho gangs were doubled. - Mr Prenderyillo: Can you give any estimate of tho quantity of water you bailed? “Yes, I estimated that wo were bailing at tho rate of 150 gallons a minute.”

Mr Page: Including tho pumps? “No, just tho balling operations.” Witness said it seemed that the No. 4 hold was being held, but not the No. 3. There was approximately an equal number of men on the two holds. Tho pumping and bailing operations were continued until after tho passengers had left the ship. After that witness reported tho _ position to tho captain every five minutes. As soon as tho bailing and pumping wore stopped the water gained very considerably in tho No. 3 hold.

Mr Prendervillo: Do you think tho vessel struck anything?—No. Have you any idea whether the ship’s side was smashed or whether the water was coming from the stern tube?—No, I can’t say at all. Except that the water was coming in somewhere between tho engine room and the peak deck?—Yes. The vessel sank by the stern. The use. of a collision mat was' impracticable. To Mr Huntley, witness said ho had ordered as much timber as possible to be taken to the engine room in order to bo on tho safe side; not because tho bulkhead was showing' immediate signs of giving way. Robert Wilson, able seaman, said that at the outset there was another sound beside tho rumbling for which ho could not account. At G o’clock he went below to a hand pump, and was there practically the whole time .until tho ship was abandoned. Frank Davidson, wix-oless operator, gave evidence that ho was on duty on tho morning of August 15. He was situated practically above the bulkhead. Witness sent messages after the alarm, but was unable to send any more from--6.1G a.m. until that evening at 5 o’clock, when more were despatched. An emergency wireless sot was in one of the boats, and with the erection of a temporary aerial this was brought into use. Witness did not know its powers, but similar sets in Australia had transmitted for 200 miles. The first of the technical evidence was given by Archibald Thomson, second engineer of.the Tahiti. Ho said he had been on tho vessel ■ for three years and nine months, and had previously served on her. Ho had known of no irregularity with tho propeller shaft. The first alarming noise made witness think the_ whole of the starboard engine' was lifting. To locate the noise was very difficult, as it seemed to be both in tho shaft and the engine. Tho noiso was like a series of sharp, explosions. They, could bo distinguished above the noise of the ordinary running of tho engines. The engine , then started to race very violently. The racing followed a few seconds after tho noise. Witness shut the steam off and stopped the engine immediately. He then ran down to investigate tho damage. Witness entered the tunnel, and went 2ft or 3ft aft of tho centre bulkhead, passing through tho centre door. The tunnel was about 100 ft long and Bft or 10ft high. “ When I got along through the tunnel the well was full, and water was coming from the starboard side aft of the bulkhead,” said witness. “ A great sheet of water was coming over the port side. It was coming right across to tho other side.” Mr Page.; Coming in a solid, mass to the bulkhead?—Tn a solid wall. Mr Page What light had you?—The lights wore on in tho dockhead. I could see quite plainly. Mr Premieville.: You saw this volume of water and ran, out?-—I ran out. Did you have a chance to close the centre door?—No; there was too much water in tho tunnel. The water caught up to you?—Yes. There was no possibility of closing the, door. There was also the possibility of an engineer coming down into tho engine room and seeing the water, and, as be should have done, shutting the door while I was inside. Witness said that after getting out of the tunnel he sent-a-man named Kooko to close tho nearer door. That was the one opening from the tunnel on to the engine room. Witness was positive that not more than a minute elapsed from the time he beard the noise and the shutting of the inner door. The water was pouring into the engine room before tho door was shut. One man was swept away, and so were some dishes on a bench three feet high. Witness thought there was an increase in the flow of water as lie ran out of the tunnel. _ Continuing, witness said he threw some sacks over the dynamo to protect it. The water was swelling lip white ami boiling from under the plates of tho bulkhead and : was coming from the bilges after tho bulkhead was closed. Witness sent advice to the captain.- Going into tho stokehold, witness asked a stoker: “Did you feel anything? ” Tho other replied; “ reel itl The boilers were meeting.” Tho captain then came down and took oyer, witness going to the pumps. Tho door was not the danger, but the water which was gushing up from under the room. Witness did not know

tho capacity of'tho pumps. By 6 o’clock witness was up to his neck in water. The vessel had a list to port. The plates wove all up, making pitfalls, and work was very difficult. Sometimes witness was sitting in the water. The chief efforts of the men were towards getting the water out of the engine room. At one time they wore making headway and at another time they were losing ground. Tho dynamo was flooded and the fans had stopped. At 10 o’clock that night there was a decided bulge in tho bulkhead, cracking the paint. The dynamo was kept in reserve for tho wireless, and only a few lights were used.

“I-think tho propeller broke on the scarf,” said witness, when asked his opinion as to what had happened. ‘‘The propeller tended to remain stationary, and the engine end to continue revolving, and so tho ship’s side was carried away. The propeller and tho shaft must have been pulled out. These wore my first words; ‘The ship’s side is gone; the ship’s side is punctured.’ That is what I reported to the chief engineer. Tho break must have been betwon the last coupling and the peakhond gla#ds.” Witness said the whipping shafts would need, to describe a circle of only four or five inches to knock the side of the ship, owing to tho shape of the stern, like a huge Hail. _ It would punch out tho side of tho ship. At tho first shock tho boilers had danced in tbo stokehold.

' The inquiry was adjourned until this morning.