RIDING OUT HURRICANE

Evening Star, Issue 19801, 27 February 1928, Page 13

RIDING OUT HURRICANE

UNPLEASANT FIVE DAYS [Special to Press Association.] AUCKLAND, February 25. A taste of hurricane weather.in the Pacific was experienced by the crew of the Union Company’s steamer Kanna, which arrived at Auckland this morning with a cargo of guano from Surprise and Walpole Islands. The Kanna left Auckland on January 24, and alter calling at Noumea to land case oil and live stock continued her voyage to Surprise Island to commence loading for New Zealand. She reached the island on February 2, Surprise Island deserves its ny ; me. The officers of the Kanna say that tit is merely a coral reef on which bird droppings have accumulated until the centre of the island is about 15ft above sea level. But for the few palm trees growing on it the island would be invisible, even at close range. To load her cargo the Kanna was made fast to permanent moorings some distance off the shore, and the guano was brought out in lighters, whence Kanaka laborers carried it in small baskets to pour into the hold. All the work is done by recruited labor, the only white people on the island being the overseer and his wife. By February 8 a considerable amount of cargo had been loaded by this primitive means, but operations were interrupted by a fierce hurricane at 4 o’clock in the afternon. The wind began to increase in force, and all the indications pointed to a severe blow. The anchorage is too near the sroe to be safe in stormy weather, so the Kanna quickly unshackled her moorings and stood out to sea. The ship was well out before the full fury of the storm caught her, and with plenty of sea room she was able to heave-to and wait for the weather to moderate. For five days she lay head on to the sea, quite safe, but most uncomfortable. With the return of fine weather she went' back tr the island, and the officers wore astonished to find that the coastline had been quite altered by the fury of the waves. Of the fifty acres which comprise the whole area of the island a large piece had been washed away, the i foreshore having retreated some 14ft. No other damage was done, although the island is so low that it is conceivable that during the height of the storm the spray and spume would fly right j over it.

Back at the moorings < the Kanna continued to fill up rapidly, and on February 15 she left the lonely little speck for the larger island of Walpole. The sea was still running high as a result of the storm, but the remainder of the voyage was uneventful. After completing her loading at Walpole Island the Kanna. sailed on February 19 for Auckland, calling at Noumea for a few hours on the following day.