RADIO HERO

Poverty Bay Herald, Volume LV, Issue 16927, 16 April 1929, Page 7

RADIO HERO

ON SINKING SELJE SWIM FOR LIFE MELBOURNE, March 31. Shipping heavy seas into her forward tanks, and with her lower fore peak completely crushed in, the Onion Steamship Company's freighter Kaituna reached Melbourne last night. On board were 35 members of the crew of the Norwegian ship Selje, which went down IXS miles west of Port Phillip Heads at 10 o'clock on Friday night. They related graphic stories of their experiences, following the collision, in shark-infested waters. S. M. Keyes, of Melbourne, who was the only British member of the Selje's crew, said: — "1 had just gone downstairs when I heard a thunderous crash," he said. "The vessel reeled and trembled. It was about 10 o'clock. I pulled my trousers over my pyjamas, and rushed up on deck, and found that the Kaituna was pushing her nose halfway through the vessel, in tho No. 6 hatch. "Tho captain was standing over this hole, issuing orders to the men around him. Water was rushing in fast, and we immediately abandoned the hole and'made for the boats. Into one which was lowered tho captain placed his wife and the chief officer.

"The latter found that the captain's wife was only in her nightdress, so putting back "to the vessel he secured a rug. We got into the captain's boat again, and when we had got away we found that the captain was not with us. We went back, and waited for him, and while we wero waiting, just before the vessel went, down, we saw him un the after-deck. Ho jumpd for our boat, but missed, and fell into the water. He came up, and then went down again, but we got him by the head and hauled him in.

"Some away we saw the wireless operator in the water, and he was rescued after being about 15 minutes in the shark-infested waters. ."The Solje sank 25 minutes aftc; she was struck. Thero was no explosion." EVERY BOAT HAD CONE. The wireless operator of the Selje, R. Csbjorsen, nearly lost bis life in sticking to duty. He stayed on the vessel, sending out S.'O.S. calls, until his dynamo was flooded, and his transmitter was out of action. Then he rushed to the main dock, and found it afloat, and that every boat had gone from its davits. Hurrying to the bridge, he blew a whistle to attract attention, and then jumped into the water and 1 swam for the Kaituna. He had gone 150 yards when the Selje sank. A motor boat ma do off from the Kaituna., and spent 15 minutes searching for him. The crew could hear bis voice, and they saw many sharks. Twenty-seven Norwegians, in one. of their own boats, heard the voice of the operator, and noted that the sea was infested with sharks. They heat the water with their oars to frighten the monsters away. Finally, they picked up the operator, in a state of exhaustion. The lifeboat, containing 27 Norwegians, was stove in while it was bein<r lowered, and developed a very bad leak. When it reached the Kaituna, it was filled to the gunwale, and the men iust had time to scramble on to tho ladders as she sank. Of the three boats lowered from the .Selje, two sank, and one went adrift. Extreme fortitude was displayed by Mrs. Andersen, the wife of Norwegian captain. Dressed only in her night dress and wet to the skin, she made no complaints and was mainly concerned with the safety of her husband and tho wireless operator, whom she knew to be still on the doomed vessel. As she was being assisted to the ladders of the Kaituna she lost her grip and fell back into the boat. She was suffering very severely from shock. Captain Andersen, master of the Selje, would not indicate, when ho arvived to-night, the cause of the collision. He said that he saw the Kaituna, but was not prepared to sav from what direction it. came or why it should have collided with him. The visibility was good. ."I am a very sick man," he said. "Frr some days I have been suffering r "om influenza, and my experience in the sea has given me a fever. I am very happy to know that all my crew have been saved. PROMPT ACTTON SAVED KAITUNA. "The rush from the ship was most orderly. There was no confusion anywhere. The wireless operator was a very brave toy. He stayed aboard the ship to tho very last, sending out his wireless messages. He had a distressing 15 minutes in the sea, which was terribly infested with sharks." As far as ran be ascertained, it was a clear night when the collision occurred. The Kaituna apparently hit the Selje between amidships and the after-deck. The terrific force of the tmoact is indicated by the fact that the Selie was pierced halfway through No. 6 hold, which is half-way across the vessel. From the nature of the damage to tho Kaituna she must have come down on the Selje from tho top of a wave.

~ After hitting the Relic, the Kaituna backed off, and rapidly"began to fill in tlie forward quarters. To save the situation, the forward tanks were emptied to lift the forepeak out of the water. Had tip's not been done, the Kaituna would have been sunk. The crew immediately "ot to work with collision mats and filled Kaittina's ganing bows. In response to her calls for assistance, many ships rushed to the Kaituna's fescue, but fcjy the time they arrived the crew had manaeed to stem the inrush of wrier into her fore peak. The trnr Eagle was despatched shortly after midnight, and met the Kaituna nbo'it five miles east of Cape Otway at 10.40 o'clock this morning,