Visit of Empire Dirk Recalls Normandy Landing

Otago Daily Times, Issue 26853, 18 August 1948, Page 3

Visit of Empire Dirk Recalls Normandy Landing

NORTH OTAGO NEWS

For at least two reasons, more than usual interest attaches to the visit of the Empire Dirk to the Port of Oamaru. Not only is she the first overseas ship to come to the port for many years, but she also recalls the historic landing of the Allied forces on the Normandy coast during World War 11. The Empire Dirk was built for the Normandy landing and fulfilled that purpose by taking part in it. She was built for the British Ministry of Transport by the Ailsa. Shipbuilding Company at Troon, 20 miles down the Clyde from Glasgow, in 1943, and was provided with 85-tOn derricks for the purpose of going alongside the big ships and picking up the 80-ton Sherman tanks.

There is also an added interest in the visit, through the former association of its master, Captain G. O. Gatehouse, with this part of the South Island., When interviewed by the Daily Times in his cabin, Captain Gatehouse said that Dunedin was his home town and he came to North Otago as a youngster. He was therefore delighted to meet some of his old shipmates with whom he sailed many years ago, and also to meet old friends whom he knew in North Otago as a boy. He was looking forward very much to going on to Dunedin when the ship had completed her discharge at Oamaru. Recalling some of his earlier experiences in New Zealand, Captain Gatehouse said that before the war he took the 160-ton tug Southland from Dunedin to Shanghai, and for part of the way along the Australian coast the little tug towed two ships bigger than herself, a 500-ton coaster and a 200-ton tug. For 14 years he was on the China coast, and had some experiences with Chinese pirates. He was a prisoner of war for four years, and described this experience as comparatively fortunate. He came back to New Zealand after the war and went with the Victory contingent in the Maunganul to London in 1946. Among the flags of many nationalities carried by the Empire Dirk is an old national flag of Korea. Before the ship went to Australia, she visited Jinsen Ko, the port of Seoul, capital of Korea, and as an act of courtesy the ship flew the flag at its foremast on entering the port.

Under the command of Captain Gatehouse, the Empire Dirk left the United Kingdom for the Middle East, thence to Colombo, and carried special pipes for the Sarawak Oil Company for Northern Borneo. She visited many Eastern ports, including those in Siam. Northern China, Japan, and the Philippines, and recently finished six months’ voyaging between New Guinea ports and Northern Australian ports. On the present trip the Empire Dirk is bringing wheat from Sydney to New Zealand. At Oamaru she is discharging 18,400 bags, or 1300 tons of wheat. She is of 2942 gross registered tonnage, is 327 ft in length overall, and has a draft of 22.9 ft, with' a beam of 30.7 ft. No difficulty was experienced by the Oamaru Harbour Board’s harbour master, Captain C. A. Barker, in berthing the ship at the Holmes wharf, and when questioned about the port. Captain Gatehouse replied that in his opinion, provided the weather conditions were reasonable and it was getting on for high water, he could not see why ships with reasonable draft should not work the port. The Empire Dirk was berthed with the new method of wire and coir moorings, and here again Captain Gatehouse expressed the opinion that the moorings were of a good standard for the type of port. He added that the ship was under charter to the New Zealand Government, and with five gangs working the discharge of wheat, would probably leave for Dunedin to-day, after which she would then go back to Australia.