A ROUGH VOYAGE

Dominion, Volume 11, Issue 164, 1 April 1918, Page 4

A ROUGH VOYAGE

THE HIMITANGI'S SEVERE BUFFETING.

I The arrival at Dunedin at 1 11.16 a.m. on Thursday of the small steamer Himitangi from the Campbell _ Islands at onco relieved a certain (feeling of anxiety as to her safety which had been caused by the fact that she was several days overdue. The Himitangi. left Dunedia on March 18 for the Campbell Islands with stores, and to returrt with live stock and tho wool clip. Her' troubles commenced almost as soon as she left the Heads (says the "Otago Daily Times"). A heavy easterly gale was encountered, raising tremendous seas, and a few hours" later tho wind shifted to the south, and then to tho south-west, being accompanied by violent squalls of rain and hail.' The Himitangi suffered a severe buffeting, and the seas swept her decks from end to end. At times she was practically at the mercy of the storm, and tho only course open to the captain was to heavo his vessel to and drift slowly forward, with the result that during the time the gale was at its height she logged only about two knots. Tho gale, continued to rage with the greatest violence until the Himitangi arrived off the Campbell Islands early on Saturday morning, March 23, hut the vessel suffered no damage. She cast anchor in Preservation Inlet at 7.30 a.m., but on account of the wind and the heavy sea that was running it was found impossible to launch the surf boats. On the following day the weather moderated, and tho sea had gone down sufficiently to pliable a start to be made with the discharging and loading. The Himitangi sailed for Dunedin at 9 a.m. on Monday, the, weather remaining fine until noon. Then it commenced to blow from the north-west, and by 8 p.m. the wind had increased in severity to a gale, and a heavy sea was running, causing tho little vessel again to ship large quantities of water. These conditons lasted for a full twenty-four hours, during which time tho Hiniitangi had an extremely rough handling, and it became necessary at ono period, for tho sake of the stock on board, to slow down tho engines. Considering tho size of the vessel and tho severity of tlio storm, the Himitangi behaved remarkably well, and the number of sheep lost out of about GSO was extremely small.