SINKIKG OF THE SELJE

Evening Star, Issue 20138, 1 April 1929, Page 6

SINKIKG OF THE SELJE

KAHUNA BADLY DAMAGED CAPTAINS RETICENT Praia Association—By Telegraph—Copyrieh* MELBOURNE:. March hi. The Kaituna reached port mi Saturday night with her how* hadl.v stove in and shipping seas in her fonvarci tanks. The crew of the Selje, which sank at ID o'clock on .Friday night, were aboard. A Melbourne man named Keys, a member of the Selje's crew, staled that when lie reached the deck after the crash he found the Kait,ana's no-e pushed half-wav through the bigger ship at No. t) Initch. The water was rushing in at a great rate, *o the crew took to the boats. Captain Kudresou and the wireless operator (Mr Osbjornsen) were the last to leave the ship, and had to jump for it. The wireless operator spent a cpiarter of an hour in sbarkintested water before ho was picked up. The Selje sank twenty-lire minutes after being strnek. There was no explosion. The ship earned 111,DUO bags of wheat.

When questioned last night Captain I‘hulreson declined to indicate the (■ante of the collision, lie said that the visibility was good. lie saw the Kaituna, lint was not prepared to say from what direction she came or why she struck his ship. The master of the Kaituna. which was en route from Adelaide to Auckland and New Plymouth, declined to say anything. So I’ar as could be ascertained, the night was clear. The Kaituna must have come down on to the Selje from the lop of a, wave. Her own bows were so badly damaged that she probably would have Mink if her forward tanks had not been promptly pumped out, thus lifting the forepuak and enabling collision mats to be placed over the gaping holes. Several ships answered her calls, but when they arrived the crew had the ship's safety assured.