GALLANT CHILEAN

Timaru Herald, Volume CXXXIX, Issue 20103, 9 May 1935, Page 2

GALLANT CHILEAN

ANTARCTIC RESCUE RECALLED Captain Luis Pardo, commander of the Chilean tug Yelcho. which rescued 22 men of Sir Ernest Sliackleton’s expedition from Elephante Island, in August, 1915, died at Santiago last month. The rescue took place after Shackleton’s ship, the Endurance, was crushed by ice and sank in the Antarctic. As their ship went down members of the expedition put off in’ small boats and landed on ijhe little piece of land known as Elephante Island, in the South Shetland Islands, south of Cape Horn. Not having wireless, Shackleton, realising that his only hope of being rescued was to go himself in search of help, went in one of his boats to South Georgia Island. There he found assistance, but three efforts which he organised to rescue his expedition from the ice-bound Elephante Island, failed. The fourth attempt, made by Captain Pardo in the Yelcho, succeeded. The men had waited four months in the ice" before they were taken off by the Yelcho.

Captain Pardo, who was decorated by the British Government for his services, was in London last year for the unveiling of a statue of Shackleton. Ever since his heroic effort 20 years ago he has kept in touch with Lady Shackleton. Sir Ernest Shackleton, in his “life,” had expressed his gratitude to the Chilean commander.