THE WRECK OF S.S. KAURI

Stratford Evening Post, Volume XXXIX, Issue 54, 25 June 1914, Page 6

THE WRECK OF S.S. KAURI

STRUCK BY THE SQUALL. £PIB FkIU IMOOUTION.I Westport, June 25. When the Kauri was struck hy the ■ squall, she drifted sideways on to the tiphead, then slewed broadside on, and hung on the breakwater about midships. ' , , The impact with the stones must have done considerable damage, as the boat was rapidly taking in water. Her original’ draft was 12ft 6m. aft and 7ft forward, but the inrush of water put her down to nearly seventeen feet. Signals showed 14ft as the workable depth of the bar, and' Captain Buxton decided it would be unwise to make a dart for/the river; therefore be beached the vessel to her foundering. That the position was serious is shown by the fact that the men in the stokehold were’working up to their • waist in water. From a closer examination made yesterday, it would appear that the vessel is holed considerably amidships. In Nos. 1 and 2 holds and in the engine room, the tide is ebbing and flowing. V It is anticipated that the cargo in No. 4 hold will be found to be damaged by water. * If the vessel can be made tight, experts consider there will be no difficulty in getting her off, as she lies in a very protected position. A Magisterial inquiry will be held next week. The Union Company purchased the steamer Kauri to replace the Kotuku, which was wrecked at Greymouth on May 17, I#l2. The vessel was originally named the Harmony, and left Bristol for Dunedin on June 18, 1912. En route the Kauri Called at Newcastle for a load of hardwood and coal, and arrived at the headquarters of the Union Company on September 19, 1912. She is a large cargo-carrier of 2833 tons register, and had a deadweight carrying capacity of 5050 tons. The Kauri-is nearly the same size as the Whangape, and was considered a notable addition to the Union Company’s fleet. In appearance the vessel is bluff-bowed, with an almost perpendicular funnel amidships, and well decks fore and aft, the only unique feature about her being the waterways on either side of the bridge deck, and these are situated outside the iron bulwarks. The Kauri was built in Hartlepool by Messrs Furness, Withy, and Co. for J. and W. Harrison, in 1905, anti her dimensions are: Length, 325 ft; breadth, 47ft; depth, 22.3 ft. She is classed 100A1 at Lloyd’s.