DFFENIER A TATAL LOSS

Hokitika Guardian, 7 August 1918, Page 4

DFFENIER A TATAL LOSS

BURNT TO THE WATER’S EDGE (•‘Dominion” of Saturday). Blazing from stem to stern the .small wooden steamer Defender (185 tons) became u total loss on the bench at Somo Island yesterday. Tier end was sensa tional and sudden.

I'o load a full cargo of benzine the Defender was moored alongside an overseas ship at the King’s Wharf yesterday morning. The work of transhipping the cases of oil proceeded without incident until 11 o'clock, when a slight explosion occurred in the ship’s hold, which had by this time been stacked with 1,200 cases. As smoke continued to rise in increasing quantities the City Fire Bri grtdf» wns summon- <i, and on reaching (he wharf the cases in the hold were seen to be ablaze. I'hree leads of hose poured into the DefeinFr hut owing to the cases being saturated with benzine and the awkward position of the ship it was nut possible to subdue the outbreak. The , increasing tlames not only made, the position oi the burning steamer dangerous, but I bey imperilled the safety of the larger ship. All efforts of the firemen in the hold wore of little avail, the fumes being too strong for them to endure. The steady flow of water soon made its presence noticeable, in another way. Finding its lowest level it went to the stern of the Defender, and when it war seen that all hope of suppressing the fiames must he abandoned she was near the water-level at the stern. Captain J. Dawson (harbourmaster), win superintended the rescue work decided to beach the vessel, and with that end in view a cable was put across the ship

to tow her clear of shipping. At noon the tug Admiral, assisted by the Kara ka, got the burning ship under way The assistance of the Union Compote's tug Terewhiti, which stood, by was not required. Immediately the water was cut off the flames, which up in thin time had been held in check, increased so rapidly that it was though! advisable to tow the vessel up the harbour as there appeared to he no hope of paving her. A dense volume of smoke followed by a mass of llama covered tho. ship, which burned furiously while she was being towed towards Petone. At 1 p.m., she was run on a small island, at the norther nmo.-t corner of Monies Island, and twenty-five minutes later, a cloud of steam shot up, in the air, and a few seconds afterwards a heavy rolling report was heard. About a quarter of an hour later a second and less violent explosion occurred. The flames then died down a little but thick banks of smoke continued to lloat over Somes Island. As night came on the hull was a seething mass of (lame, and the yea around it was covered wit]) burning oil. Tn the afternoon (lames lmd burnt everything to the water’s edge, so that now little remains. It is considered that the engine is ruined and that nothing can he done with what is left.

The only injuries received during the fire were to two waterside workers on the ship, who were only slightly singed. About 50 eases of oil were removed from the vessel after the fire started. Inquiries are now Iveing made as to how the explosion occurred, for flic boiler lire and that in the cook’s gallery were out, the former since Thursday night. uA magisterial inquiry will probably be held. The officers and crew lost till their belongings, and the shop’s papers were also lost As a spectacular sight tho burning of the steamer was very fine, and a large excitement-seeking crowd gathered on the wharves. Motorists and cyclists sped along the Hutt Road to get a dear view, and work for the time being was neglected. The crew of the overseas steamer that is discharging her oil cargo is manned bv a Cliinese crew who were frantic with terror, and it took strong measures on the part of the officers to bring them to reason and get them to replace hatch-covers.

The. Defender was a wooden vessel, built by G. Frost, at Kincumher, N-S.W.i in 1901, for the Westland Shipping Company, Ltd. She first came to New Zealand about fifteen years ago, and previous to that she had been trading on the Australian coast.. Since the vessel lias been in New Zealand slit has been to various parts of the coast,

mostly between, the West Coast and Wellington, and is known in most New Zealand ports. Following are her di- i mensions :—Length, 118.5 feet; breadth 25.-1 feet; depth 7.4 feet. Captain Green, who was in charge of the vessel, only joined her a few days ago, he having relieved Captain Vast a, who retired About ten years ago, the Defender stranded outside Foxton, and had to be towed to Wellington for rather extensive repairs. Another mishap that befel her was on the Karamea Bar, live or six years ago. The vessel stranded inside the bar, and nearly six months elapsed before she resumed her running.