REFLOATED

Dominion, Volume 9, Issue 2684, 2 February 1916, Page 6

REFLOATED

KOMATA SAFE IN PORT

■MSIBIG PULL FAILS SECOND 7 ATTEMPT SUCCESSFUL'.

After-taking on board a large quantity of,'auxibary pumping and salvage gear,; the Torawliiti left tjie" Evans Bayi .Wharf'at'- 9.30 oh Monday " Evening, and an hour -later eho was alongside the .-Komata. Tho weather was beautifully, tiriej and the se'avwas as calm as a "mill-pbiid:. From the"dec<k'of the" Komataappeared r ;to be' about 60ft. • of, the ; shore,' .and 'examination Mioiyed she was- held fast' by a pinnacle .of, rock; .As a-matterof fact, tho lead'showed 2-2 ft.. of . water just for-, ward; of - the .bridge on the '-starboard., side, ivhilo at the vessel's stern .bottom' ■was toiiched at'3oft. Tho Komata was making water ■ rapidly; and soundings in the fore peaks, No.' 1 and No. 21iolds registered several feet. Had the vessel gone ashore about 100 yds; further to tile ■ southward sho would hnvo Leen resting on. a sandy bottom. It. was quite evident 'that sho' had struck the only patch of rocks in the' vicinity of tho little bay in which she was lying. ' ' Salvage Work Commences. Long before , the Terawhiti had arrivr ed on her second visit to tlie scene of the accident tho harbour tug Natone had brought tho,hulk lima out, .and a . large gang of men had been working hard to got the coal out of the forward holds. Captain Stott, local marine superintendent for the Union Company, said that Respite the fact that spcc'ai salvage terms had been agreed io, the men worked, with a will. In ,the forward part of No. 1 hold some ■ c shorn ■were up to their waists in: water d'gging the coal out. Fortunately an examination showed that the engine-rooni and stokehold were quite free of waier, the damage being confined to the forepart of the vessel. : Shortly after 7 a.m. the hulk, with 267 toils of coal on board, left for Wellington in tow of tho Natone. All night long the wo"rk of connecting lip centrifugal pumps proceeded on board the Komata. and by 7.15 a.m. the big 10-incli pump was set going, and a trial run proved that it would work satisfactorily if needed. As the day progressed other pumps and gear "were shipped,- and soon_ there was a good flow of water pouring over the side of the Komata.

Diver Coes Down. : 'About this lime the -wind freshened from the north-west, but Cook Strait re- ( •; retained "undisturbed. ' A diver was sent ' down about T.StTa.m., and lie spent fully half an hour in examining the Komat-a's hull on the starboard side. His mission was unsuccessful,, on account of the ■ 6trong current running underneath the vessel and tho floating kelp. "Later on he wont down several timesj both for- ■ ■.. ward and on the port side, and his invesi tigations proved, it is understood, that ' the Komata is holed on the port side forward. Terawhltl Lays the Anchor.' s Meantime Captain Hales, of the Tera- ' whiti, 'was engaged-in laying a-mush-room anchor, weighing about 2 tons 10 . pwt. " First of all two oHncli ■• wire nawsers were shackled together, one,end being made fast on board the Komata, whilo the other , end was .attached to the anchor on board the Terawhiti. Very slowly the latter vessel moved,out dead astern of the Komata, and after con- - siderable difiioulty tho big' anchor : was - dropped overboard! in 9to 12 fathoms of water, 1200 feefc from, the Komata. Subsequently the Terawhiti took on board a stout tew rope, and everything ■ was in readiness for the big pull at . high'water. The Big Pull. At about 11.35 a.m. the 'tide' was making very, fast,: and as the.water rose . it was . observed that ..the,. Komata. took : a- slight'list to -starboard. At 12.25 p.m. the order was given for -the tug to go ahead. . Very slowly the 'tow-rope became taut, and the Komat-a's after winches began to heave on the anchor. "Full speed astern" was rung to her engines, and the work of getting the stranded vessel : off was commenced. A little later the •Natone attached a line to the'Tera-' whiti,-and the strain on the main-tow-rope waa'-inbreassd from 12 to 18 knots.' , As soon as she felt the"enormous strain upon her the Komata began to sway : inbout from side to side. , But she still (remained hard and fa'srt. For nearly 'two hours the towing and hauling were i kept up. High-water mark had been(reached and passed, and the tide had ibeen allowed to recede, for about half an when the order came from the ■Somata to cease towing, and haul-in„the fline.- It was a 'great disappointment' to all concerned when it was found that the effort had to be temjiorarily sus-v pe'nded.''- •''' '-' •" " Experts who were approached at the : ' scene of the .accident to-day said that ' although the weather was all that could .ho desired for salvage work, , a slight '•swell" : would have' .materially ' assisted operations.. As a matter of fact, tho ■weather has been too fine. • On! the other hand, iif it came,on to blow from the southward, and any sea : .was making, the Komata would get a ■very rough handling. • From further .examinations made it appears as if she ,is resting on a V-shaped bed of rock, l.with a pinnacle penetrating the hull on •the port side at about the foremast. 1 This" took is holding tho vessel fast.