STEAMER ON ROCKS.

Taranaki Daily News, 12 June 1926, Page 15

STEAMER ON ROCKS.

WRECK OF THE MANAIA. passengers all safe. TOTAL LOSS FEARED. STORY OF THE DISASTER. By Telegraph.—Press As3G<Hatioa. Wellington, June 11. The following distress signal was received from the steamer Manaia by the Wellington radio station at 11.35 last night:— “S.O.S. Manaia, on Slipper Boeks.” Further messages stated that the captain thought the vessel would be O.K. till morning, but he desired assistance to be sent at once for passengers. The Manaia was formerly the Union Company’s Rotoiti and now belongs to the Northern Steamship Company. Her tonnage is 1150. Captain Norbury is relieving as captain. Radio messages to the Secretary of the General Post Office states that the steamer Ngapuhi was communicated with at 3 a.m. The weather was then coming up and the ship making water fairly fast. About 60 passengers were on board. At 10.44 this morning a further radio stated: “10.22 a.m.: From Alanaia. Ngapuhi now taking passengers off; two boats away safely.” ALL PASSENGERS SAFE. BOAT'S POSITION DANGEROUS. Auckland, June 11. A wireless at noon said thift all the Manaia’s passengers had been transferred to the Ngapuhi. Advice was received at one o'clock this morning that the Northern Company’s steamer Alanaia was ashore on Slipper Island, on her way from Tauranga to Auckland. She was hard and fast, but not in a dangerous position. Captain Norbury advised that he was all right until this morning, but asked for assistance. The Manaia left Tauranga at 8 p.m. and struck at 11.20 p.m. At 2.30 a .m. it was reported by wireless that the vessel was holding on to the reef with her propellers. The passengers were still on board. The weather was squally and the seas were moderate, but the vesel was bumping heavily. An earlier message stated that it was intended to land tne passengers, but, according to the latest advices, this had not been done. The Ngapuhi, en route from Whangarei to Auckland, is proceeding to the Manaia’s assistance. The Rimu is leaving for Auckland. The Manaia is ashore on Watchman, a small island, a mile from Slipper Island, which is about five miles from Tairua, on the east coast of Coromandel peninsula. Watchman is about 30 feet high. The ship appears broadside on from Tairua, with a dip in her stern. She is in a very exposed position. Mr. Cory Wright and a party from Tairua proceeded early this morning by launch, but had not returned at 10 a.m. The Ngapuhi has arrived and is rendering assistance. A fair sea is running.

THE STEAMER’S POSITION. Auckland, June 11. The Star's Tairua correspondent wires ;liat the Manaia is about one mile off Slipper Island, well up on a reef behind a small rocky island. We ean see a two-masted scow standing by. The Northern Company’s steamer has just arrived (10.15 a.m.). The Manaia is keeping eteam up. The sea is moderate and the weather getting calmer. It is dull and cloudy, but clearing. Mr. Cory Wright's launch is on its way out. THE PASSENGERS CONCERNED. Tauranga, June 11. The pasengers on the Manaia are:— ilessrs. Johnston, Fyfe, Topplin, Peters, Wilkinson, Harris (2), Capper, Kennedy, Ludwig, Cicchetto, Mackrell, Hewlett, Sayer, Hille, Aitken, Jackson, Patrick, Clark, Frost, Fergusson, Canning, Graham, Stein, Beale, Lee, Jethro, Lock, Perryn, McKay, Benham, Meredith, Harrison; Masters Dale (2); Mesdames Begg, Avery, Perryn, Abraham; Misses Abraham (3), Rich, McLeod, Brook, Bueknall, Stewart (2), Lully, Best, Scott, Pittaway, Stone, Laurance (2). The Manaia’s Cargo includes 34 bales of hemp, 21 bales of tow, 34 bales of sheepskins, 63 cases of fruit, 21 sacks of maize, 4 cases of bacon and a quantity of general cargo and a fair mail for an island owned by Messrs. G. and W. McLaughlin, with an area of 600 acres, used a s a sheep run, about 40 miles from Tauranga and 3 miles off Tairua Harbour.

A DOOMED SHIP. The Ngapuhi is expected to arrive at Auckland shortly after ten o’clock tonight with the passengers from the Manaia. The work of transferring the passengers at the scene of the wreck was safely accomplished, the Ngapuhi being at the scene for four hours and sailing at 2.15 p.m. for Auckland. The Manaia appears to be doomed, the following message being sent out by Captain Norbury from the Manaia at 6.3 p.m.; “Making water badly. Engineroom getting flooded. Dynamos won’t last much longer. Ship has very heavy list.” It has been the policy of the Northern Steamship Company to carry most of its own risks; thus in the balance-sheet for the year ended March 31 last, the sum of £56,730 was credited to the insurance account, and £19.111 to the insurance account No. 2. All the company’s vessels are covered by a T.L.O. (total loss only) policy, taken out with the ordinary insurance companies. The amount of the T.L.O. policy covering the Manaia was not available to-night. Her value may be roughly stated at over £2O 000 PASSENGERS AT AUCKLAND EXPERIENCE NARRATED. Th X7r"nhi reached Auckland with the V . • p-. -<—rs shortly before eleven ’ ... ’%<•'] sp’rl th® wreck « ' not ended by any s’gn of panic.

The only indication that anything was amiss was the sudden grinding as the ship piled up on the reef hard and fast. Though all the passengers looked tired scarcely any showed serious signs of their experience. They said that the Manaia, when they left her at two o’clock this afternoon, had a decided list. The work of salvaging the luggage and cargo was in progress.

A later report is that the crew have.left the wrecked vessel in the schooner Motu.

"What we need more than anything is sleep,” said one of the passengers. “None of us has had any sleep since last night, though some were able to doze for a couple of hours on the Ngapuhi.” The steamer Marama, for Sydney, was delayed to take those passengers who were coming by the Manaia to join her and were transferred to the Ngapuhi. The main concern of those transferred to the Marama was the safety of their luggage. This was naturally somewhat disorganised but the officials worked hard and few passengers boarded their new ship dissatisfied. All pay a tribute to the conduct of the women and children, particularly the children, when the ship struck. One passenger remarked that the “kiddies just stood by without a murmur.” “The luckiest feature of the mishap,” said a member of the theatrical company, “was the fine weather. Had there been a south-easterly there would not have been so many of us to tell the tale.” He added that the general impression was that the Manaia was held up by only one roek. The passage on the Ngapuhi was described as comfortable, and high tributes were paid to the officers and crew of the vessel. At 9.20 p.m. to-night the Captain of the Manaia reported that the Manaia’s stokehold and engineroom were flooded and some of the crew were being transferred to the Rimu. which was standing by.