LATE SHIPPING

Poverty Bay Herald, Volume LII, Issue 17133, 8 September 1926, Page 11

LATE SHIPPING

HOVE-TO IX CYCLON'r

STEAMER'S EXPERIENCf

KEELUNG BADLY BUFFETED

En route from .New York to Auckland the. A. and A. Line's chartered steamer Keeking (Captain A. McC'lelland), now in 2v'ew Zealand waters, oncountered a hurricane, but although badly buffeted came through the storms with but minor damage.

Leaving New York on July 18, the steamer made a. call at Norfolk for bunkers. Four days after clearing the coaling port the freighter encountered strong winds and rough seas. Rapidly .the. conditions became worse, the wind blowing all round the compass. About midnight on July 24 the conditions necessitated the ship being hovc-to, and little or no progress was made during the next eighteen hours. During this time torrential rain was falling and the seas were running very high, big quantities of water being shipped. The decks were repeatedly Hooded, but the steamer weathered the storm well, the damage being confined to a number of broken windows on the bridge. At 6 p.m. on July 2c», the Keelung again got under way, the conditions having improved somewhat, but twelve hours later she, again hove-to. After a further delay of several hours the conditions moderated sufficiently to allow the steamer to resume her course. Thence to the Panama Canal fine weather was experienced. The cyclone which beset the Keelung travelled in a north-westerly direction over Nassau to Florida. The same storms played havoc with the native boats trading about the Bahamas, a number of lives being lost. Florida also suffered very extensively. SURVEYING GREAT BARRIER REEF. The biggest detailed hydrographieal survey ever attempted in the history of the world is being carried out by a party of surveyors on H.M.A.S. Moresby, which has arrived at Brisbane, after eight months' work m the Great Harrier Reef area. The ship is at present engaged on preliminary work. which consists of the main triangnlation from Sandy Cape to Cape York, a distance of IiOO miles. Already 600 miles has been covered as far north as Bowen, and the remainder will be finished by the end of next year. When this is completed, the chief work of mapping the whole area will be commenced. The surveying of the main routes will however, be the first duty of the party. During the last eight months H.M.A.S. Moresby steamed 7000 miles. The party 'lias been working •'BO-bour weeks." and has returned with thousands of figures, which will be sorted out in Sydney, where a map 60ft. in length will be drawn to show the work already done. Captain J. Edjell, C.8.E., R.N., is in command.