FRENCH MAIL WRECK.

Stratford Evening Post, Volume XXVIII, Issue 50, 28 October 1915, Page 2

FRENCH MAIL WRECK.

LUI’HIIATE ON THE ROCKS. PASSENGERS’ THRILLING EXPERIENCE. The French mail steamer Euphrate, one of the finest ol the .Messageries Maritime:, Line, has been totally 'wrecked. News of the disaster (sta(tes the Sydney Daily Telegraph) came I as a surprise as the liner was expected to take up miming in the Australian service next month. I lie Euphrates was hound from Marseilles, via Colombo (o Haiphong and Saigon, and in addition to a lull general cargo, carried uSo passengers. They were composed almost entirely ol French 'and Aunamities. | The particulars to hand show that [the disaster occurred on September | 17, when the vessel ran on a siibi merged reef situated about three miles • south-east of Cape Has IFdresseh I (which is the most easterly point of ' the island of Socotra). The vessel I grazed the reef with a result that she I was ripped open below the water line almost from stem to stern. The sea* j began to pour in at a tremendously* j rapid rate, and soon Hie holds were Milled ami the boilers submerged. ( When morning arrived, said one of' the passengers, “Wo were able more definitely to ascertain cur position. | All around us were the rocks, and close at band could be seen the tops ol the boilers of the I*, and (). Aden, | which went ashore at tliis same spot some two years or more ago. At j about II o’clock that (Saturday) morn- | mg—the sea still showed no signs of moderating—the captain decided to ' send for help. We were about 50 miles from the usual track from Aden | to Colombo, and, what with the heavy | sea. the high wind, and the strong; currents, the task of seeking succour ! wa s a perilous one. For eleven hours | the ship’s boat battled with the sea, > and at about 10 o’clock in the even- I ing they were sighted, and picked up 1 by the City of Nagpur. The City of Nagpur at once sent a wireless message to us—we were able to receive though not to send messages—in these "Olds ‘Venous o votre sceour-s.’ (We are coming to your assistance). The City of Nagpur had got into wireless communication with the Tarnbora and the Collegian, and both these ( vessels hurried to our assistance. All ; day Sunday the heavy sea continued, but, despite this, we were successful in transferring 91 passengers in three of our own boats. Not a single life was lost, but some of our boats were dashed to pieces in the efforts which wore made ti? lo\|pr them. i

“On Monday wc succeeded in safely transferring nine boat loads containing; in all 270 -passengers. Of these > 1-19 were transferred to the City of ■Nagpur, GO to the Collegian, and 51 to (lie, Tanihora, The last-named vessel left the same evening. Still Other boats were damaged during these operations, and on Tuesday morning the Collegian made an effort to send out her boats to us, and ns a result of the skilful handling, the I remaining G2 persons on board were saved. In the hist boat to leave were the Captain, the officers, the engineers, and most of the European sailors.” I The Kuphrato was a steamer of 6887 tons, built at the M.M. Yard at La Ciotat in 1905. Advices received in Sydney state that her place on the Australian line will bo taken by the Cange, a lister ship.