CASTAWAYS ON ISLAND.

New Zealand Herald, Volume LXVII, Issue 20519, 21 March 1930, Page 15

CASTAWAYS ON ISLAND.

HARDSHIPS IN PACIFIC#

CREW OF WRECKED STEAMER.

VIVID STORY BY CAPTAIN.

[from our own correspondent.] LONDON, Feb. 13. A graphic story of hardships after the steamer Norwich City was wrecked on Gardner Island, in the Phoenix Group, north of Samoa, is told by Captain D. Hamer, master of the vessel. The ship struck a reef when bound from Sydney to Honolulu at the beginning of December and 11 of the crew were drowned.

Captain Hamer said that while the men were preparing to launch the lifeboats by the glare of vivid lightning a great wave struck the ship, sweeping him from the bridge into the sea. "I hit the water 40ft. below and swam 50 yards clear of the ship," he said. "The current earned me through the surf and landed me on the reef. I could see the island 200 yards away when dawn broke and I made for it. I gave no thought to the sharks and I landed safely, but exhausted. The crew thought me drowned. They left the ship at dawn. The lifeboats were thrown into the tremendous surf and capsized. It was then that the men lost their lives. "The survivors reached safety, cut and bruised about the body, having discarded their clothes in their struggle i'or their lives. The steward, Mr. J. Jones, of I'enarth, collapsed just before he reached the shore. The crew were amazed to see me and I heard one say, 'Good heavens, what is that?' pointing to me. Another replied, 'lt canont be the old man, he is lost.'

"We were five days on the island, exposed to the wind and weather. Our rations consisted of one biscuit, covered with corned beef, and half a tin of milk and water a day. Huge land crabs and rats entered our camp and we had no sleep. "There were hundreds of sharks in the lagoon and whenever we went near the shore the sharks congregated around the spot, as if they were hungrily waiting to devour us. We had a desperate fight to ward off land crabs and rats. The mate went to sleep one night and was awakened by a bite from a great crab. Others had tried to sleep, but after this adventure we were content to keep awake until the dawn.

"At last," said Captain Hamer, "we saw two ships approaching the island, one from the north and the other from the south. They were the Trongate, of London, and the Lincoln Ellsworth, of Oslo. We saw them lowering boats and in one of them there were six natives. They were men of wonderful physique and handled a small surf boat in masterly fashion. We were rescued, three men at a time, in the surf boat and taken safely to the Trongate waiting outside the reef."