THE KOMATA ASHORE.

Sun (Christchurch), Volume II, Issue 617, 1 February 1916, Page 10

THE KOMATA ASHORE.

3UMPS IN HEAVY FOG. VIGOROUS ATTEMPTS TO SALVAGE. l'ress Association. WELLINGTON, January 31. Laden with some 2400 tons of coal,! the L'nion Company's steamer Komata, I!W4 tons, Captain John Carey,;' left Weslport at ."> o'clock yesterday! morning. About midnight, when in! Cook Strait, she ran into a heavy j wall of fog, and precautions were taken to ensure her safety. Very slowly she felt her way towards the; Heads, soundings being frequently taken, and the foghorn kept at work j continuously. In the early hours off the morning the fog thickened con-J siderably, and obscured almost j everything from view. At ."> o'clock,! when the fog was thicker than ever, J and Captain Carey on watch, she! bumped heavily and came to a sud-j den slop. The engines were immediate! v reversed, but the Komsita re-j maine'd hard and fast. When the fog lifted the wreck of the Devon! could be seen in front of the Ko-| mala. A little to the left, and just j within a biscuit's throw of the stranded vessel, was an ugly looking rock, and there were other rocks scattered about in the vicinity. The] second mate of the vessel immediate-: lv went ashore in one of the ship's j boats, and communicated with the lighthouse-keeper, who in turn telephoned the news through to the city. The tug Terawhili was dispatched shortly after 7 o'clock to the scene. It was found thai the Komata was in deep water, and the tug could come, right alongside, greatly simplifying' the work of salvage. No time was 1 wasted in making preparations for pulling the vessel off from her resting place. A heavy steel hawser! was fixed to Ihe stanchions on the! after dec 1 ; of the Komata, and then to the donkey engine on her main! deck. To the other end of the haw-j ser was attached a kedge anchor,; which the tug carried out to sea and. dropped some distance behind the Komata. Another line was then made fast to the stern of the vessel, and later to the deck of the tug. Then the engines of both vessels were set going at full speed. I'p to j I p.m. there was no appreciable change in the position of the vessel,) although the tug was striving valiantly. | The coal in the Komala's forward hold was being dumped as fast as the firemen could throw it overboard, j and tons upon tons were jettisoned, j The Arahura arrived during the afternoon to assist the lug in the work) of rescue. The combined efforts of! the tug and steamer proved unavailing, and late in the afternoon both: returned to port. There is now some conjecture as to whether or not she has grounded on a rocky bottom, in, which case her position is serious, especially if rough southerly weather should set in, as the locality is very much exposed. An examination disclosed 2ft of water in the bilges. The water was bubbling through the joints of the stokehold

floor plates, but the engine-room was quite dry, indicating that the damage was forward. The vessel is apparently held hard and fast by a pinnacle of rock just under No. 2 hold. She moved somewhat under the strain of the low-ropes at high water —perhaps 2ft. A hulk was placed alongside this afternoon lo receive the coal, and a small steamer is standing by all night in case the weather changes. FURTHER PARTICULARS. WELLINGTON, February 1. The Terawhili with additional gear returned to the Komata, which is stranded near Penearrow Mead. No attempt was made this morning at high tide to low her oil', but more coal was removed and transhipped into a hulk alongside. She lies al present solid without any damaging movement. She is fast by Ihe head on the rocks. The Komata has made considerable water, but the engine room is free. Another attempt to low her oil' will be made al high tide this afternoon. The diver's attempt lo ascertain the damage has been thwarted by the kelp on the rocks and the strong current. THE LATEST DETAILS. ATTEMPT TO TOW OFF FAILS. WELLINGTON, February 1. A big attempl to gel the Komata off commenced al 12.35 p.m. The vessel moved about, but did not! come oil. The diver has discovered that she is resting at the bows across a V-shaped rock, which lias pierced her. Later. Apparently Ihe effort to low off (he stranded Komata has been abandoned temporarily. The vessel appears lo be considerably down by the head. f