FURIOUS SOUTH – EASTER IN ALGOA BAY. NINE VESSELS ASHORE. A DAY OF DISASTER AND EXCITEMENT.

Te Aroha News, Volume VI, Issue 309, 20 October 1888, Page 5

FURIOUS SOUTH - EASTER IN ALGOA BAY. NINE VESSELS ASHORE. A DAY OF DISASTER AND EXCITEMENT.

Friday, August 30bh, was in truth a day of almost unparalleled disaster and excitement in Algoa Bay. When darkness fell over Port Elizabooh on the previous evening, there were eleven sailing vessels riding at anchor in tho Bay, and by eight o'clock on the evening of the following day nine ot these vessels were helplessly a&hore, all of them being stranded within a distance of about halt-a-inile. Piobably the total value of the nine vessels ashore, with their cargoes, would at least amount to £100,000. lo became pretty evident betore dusk on Wednesday that some nasty weather might be expected. Late in the evening the wind had dovoloped into a gale, and during the night some very heavy gusts swept aero&s the Bay, and set the windows rattling and a fow slates flying in fort Elizabeth. At 3.30 a.m. rockets weie tired fiom the Port office as a signal that the sersices of the Brigade were required, for it seomed that the (Jeiman brig Dorthea had a teAv minutes previously showndistresshghts,and had commenced to drift. She grounded at 4 a.m. on the North beach, about a mile from the Railway station. Fortunately for the safety of the crow sho vi as lightly laden, and was able to get within peihaps twenty or thirty yatds of the dry band?. There &he heeled over light on to her side, and lomained hrmly in that poMtion, tlio crew being got abhoie without much dilliculty by aid of the rocket apparatus and a boat. The weight ot the vessel, combined with the force of the waves crushed in the bulwarks of the .side on which bhe was. lying, but otherwise, beyond a torn sail, she did not look much the woise tor tho disaster. No other vessel iollowed tho Dorbhea ashore until about nine o'clock. The gale was, however, steadily^ increasing in violence, and the Dorthea was within a few hours to have an extiaoidinary number of companions in distress. At five o'clock in the morning the wind, as registered at the [Till light house, was going at the rate at about 53 mileb an hour ; at nine o'clock this i ate had increased to 66^, miles per hour. The first instance of lo&s of hie occurred at about halt-past eight, when a boats crew attempted to proceed to the tug .John l'ater-on. Just as the boat was approaching the t.ugj the latter lurched heavily and s-truck the boat, and the collision and hea\y roller that caused it, combined, threw the boat head over heel*> — if we might) so express it in shore parlance. Anyway, her .stem went o\er her stern. Tho crew were, of course, thrown out, and the tugs Koodoo and the John Paterton, between tuem, managed to pick them all up with the exception of one man. This untortunate individual wab clinging to an oai, but lett it to swim to the Koodoo. He sank, and was not seen again. The Belgian barque Diet Emma's, about hali-an-hour afterwards, began to drift, but was brought up atrain for a short time. Then she rapidij chitted on to the beach, where she gioundecl at 9.40, about 200 yards nearer the railway station than the Dorthea. The gale was at tins time at its height, and one vessel after another parted from her anchors and drifted on to the beach, where by this time an immense crowd of persons had collected. Between 9 o'clock and 2.30 in the atternoon, seven vessels went ashore. They were the barques Jane Harvey, Wolseley, Elizabeth Stevens, Lada C. Bobchotta, and the scliooner Natal. Then there was a cessation of the disaster until 6 p.m., when the Norwegian barque Andreas Rus, which lecently visited Auckland, was stranded. It was then, of course, getting dark. The water boat and the powder hulk, and one or two fishing boats also diifted on to the beach, fiom which, however, they can probably be towed without having sustained any serious damage. The principal interest and excitement during the day was centred on the British barque Wolseley. She had been drifting a gieat deal in the early part ot the morning, and i-oon after 10 o'clock the came down on the Drei Emmas. She struck the Drei Emmas on the stern, which she smashed. At the same moment the forema&t of the Wolstley came crashing down with all its hamper. Themastandyardsseeined to break nnd fall like match-wood, the noi&e made being easily heard from the shore. The Wolseley proceeded some thirty ur forty yards further, where she settled down, and it was soon made very clear that she was fast breaking up. The main-mast soon | followed the foremast over the side, and then the crew, about a dozen in number, took refuge in the mizzen mast, as the back of the vessel was broken, and tho waves were breaking in enormous volume and with the greatest violence all over her, especially over the fore part, of which there was soon very little left beyond the frame-work. Of course, the position of the crew, crowded in the rigging of the miz/en mast, had now become a veiy dangerous one. Ii the mizzen mast went the way of the other two masts, \he crew would m all probability have been drowned to a man. The eOorts of the Brigade were therefore turned to the saving of these men. Unfortunately, the Brigade had for some time very bad luck in tiling the rockets. Several of them went about thiity yards, and then plunged into the water, where, after a few ricochets, they finally bmied themselves. The position of all airs at this juncture was exttemely distressing. Not more, perhaps, than a hundied yards from the shore theie were a dozen men clinging to the mast of a vessel that was rapidly going 1 to pieces, and sinking deeper and deeper into the sand. The waves were irequently washing with great violence completely over these untortunate people, although they were in the rigging at some height from the deck. And these helpless creatures were being literally bombarded with iron rockets, and heavy projectiles from a mortar, while a great concourse of spectators were gathered on the beach within almost speaking distance of the vessel. The captain was on the beach nearly demented, for his two boys were, we believe, among those in deadly peril on the vessel. At last a line was carried by one of the rockets, and placed very nicely across the cro&s-tree of the mizzen mast just over the heads of the men in the rigging. But rescue was apparently as far away as ever, for the line got fouled in some wreckage, and could not be drawn on board. It waa ultimately goc free, but then the crew appeared to be powerless, from some cause or other, to haul it in. One of the crew either jumped off, or fell off the vessel, and the spectators fervently hoped he would be able to reach the beach. He appeared to have a rope round his waist, and the idea prevalent among the spectators was that he intepded Co reach the shore by means of the rocket line.- This line was hauled in as quickly as possible ; men ran so far as they could into the sea so as to be able to catch hold of the man if he came near them j and one individual very- gallantly went into the wate 'horseback. His, horse got knocked over,

however, by a wave, and both horse and rider had to swim for their lives. The brave fellow Avho left the vVolsoley never came near those who weio anxiously looking out; on tho beach to rescue, him, but ho was fortunately hauled back on board of the vessel. The rocket Hoe broke at tho same time, through the strain put on it. Another line was subseq uently fired across tho Wolseley, bu i again the crew in the riggingappeared to be powerless to haul it on board, with the endless line attached, and fiually this second line became fouled and broke on being hauled in by the Brigade. Happily, in the course of the afternoon communication was established by a rope between the people on the Wolseley and the ftrci Emmas, which was near, and by means of a basket the crew of the Wolseley were tran&forred to the Belgian barque. The crew of the .several vessels were brought of} when the weather moderated, and uo one from any of the vessels were drowned, the only life lost being that of man from tho lito-boat. Whon the mail left the Cape it was feared that there was not the lea&t chance of either of thebc nine vessels bein^ floated again.