LOSS OF THE KAPONGA

Hawke's Bay Tribune, Volume XXII, Issue 147, 7 June 1932, Page 11

LOSS OF THE KAPONGA

MISHAP ON GREYMOUTH BAR. THE MAGISTERIAL INQUIRY. Wellington, June 6. Thp magisterial inquiry into the loss of the Kaponga, which stranded on tho Greymouth bur on Alay 27, was continued to-day. Mr. E. Page, 8.M., is presiding and the assessors are Captains Worrall and Dowell. NOT FULLY LOADED. Captain Grey said that the Kaponga was not fully loaded, being about 70 or SO tons light of the full loud. He knew of no pieeautions which could have been taken to find out the safety of bar conditions that were not taken on this occasion. He had asked the master ot the Kalingo to signal if he touched the bar. The usual practice at Greymouth was to hoist a ball at the end of the signal yardarm when an outward vessel signalled by whistling that she had touched the bar. Witness was too busy swinging his own ship to watch the Kalingo as she crossed the bar, but there was no ball at the yardarm. To counsel for the Greymouth Harbour Board witness said that he had heard that the captain of the Kalingo, in reply to an inquiry, had stated that he did touch on the bar when going out and had blown his whistle, but that no sound had eventuated. Air Page; If you had known that the Kalingo had touched would you have gone across? Witness: No; decidedly not. Well now, Captain, what is your explanation of the tragedy ?—Well, the explanation is that there was insufficient water on the bar.

Mr Page: Well, that is obvious: but what do you say was in error? Witness said that it appeared to him that there was something wrong with the soundings taken in the morning. He could not say where the error occurred. SOUNDINGS ON THE BAR. After a series of questions by the President of the Court Captain Grey said that his theory of the stranding was that when taking soundings on the bar they must have missed taking soundings on the ridge of the bar. He maintained that he had wrong information regarding the depth of water on the bar. Thomas Ewart Bevan, chief officer, said the captain said that if the Kalingo touched the bar he would not take the Kaponga out. Jones B Gibson, second officer, said that when the vessel was swinging the harbour-master told him he thought that the Kalingo had struck the bar. Replying to counsel for the Greymouth Harbour Board, Gibson said that when the harbour-master had told him this he thought it a joke. Witness did not report the conversation to the captain because he thought that if the harbour-master was serious he would have told the captain himself. Counsel: What would you say if the harbour-master denied altogethei that he had taken part in any such conversation? Witness: Well, there’s only one thing I could say. What would that be?—That he was lying. HARBOUR-MASTER’S REMARKS. Leslie Lawrence Clark, third officer, Oscar Harold Diltner, chief engineer, and Henry William Insay, 'second engineer, also gave evidence. Insay corroborated Gibson’s evidence regarding the remarks passed when the harbour-master was on the wharf. He thought that the harbour-master’s tone had been jocular. The captain, recalled, said he a Jit that the harbour-master would have had an opportunity of getting into touch with him before ho left the wharf and letting him know the Kalingo had touched. There would have been no difficulty at all if the signalman had put up the ball at the yardarm. The hearing" was adjourned.