["The Koombana Inquiry" (Letter to the Editor), The West Australian, Tuesday 04 June 1912, page 5]
THE KOOMBANA INQUIRY.
To the Editor.
Sir,--I read in your issue of Saturday, 11th inst., the finding of the Court of Marine Inquiry held to (if possible) ascertain the cause of the loss of the s.s. Koombana. Tlhe finding of the Court, I am afraid, will afford scant consolation to the surviving sufferers of the disaster.
The conclusion arrived at "that her fate passes beyond human knowledge and remains a mystery of the sea, is, to my mind. open to dispute; it is one that, with all due respect to the Court, I cannot agree with. I trust, Sir, you will permit me to make a few remarks on this painful subject.
In the first place I should like to say that I am not a certificated master mariner, and, therefore, not a competent marine assessor, but, on the other hand, being one of the senior magistrates for this State of Western Australia, and one who, as a plain honorary justice, has been accustomed to weigh evidence in a very large number of cases dealt with by me in the past 40 years, I trust I am not presuming too much if I give my views in this matter. I have stated that I am not a certificated master mariner, yet I have a certain amount of knowledge both practical and theoretical, which enables me to take an intelligent and reasonable view of what led up to the disaster and what most probably actually occurred to the ill-fated Koombana. Before proceeding further I may state that on my voyage front London to Melbourne in the sailing ship Newcastle in the year 1870 the then master, Captain Le Pauvre Trench, taking a great interest in me, supplied me with books on navigation, the law of storms, stability of vessels, treating on centre of gravity, etc. These I studied very closely, not that I desired to become a mariner, but simply for the love of acquisition of knowledge on a very fascinating subject. I constructed a protractor on cardboard, with shifting indicators, which were operated by a cord suspended from the centre of the semi-circle, weighted by a small leaden bullet. This I fixed up in my cabin. As the vessel rolled the indicators were moved either to starboard or port, indicating the degree to which the vessel rolled.
I will show how the knowledge thus acquired served me in good stead very shortly after I settled in Western Australia. In the year 1872 I rented a vineyard from the late Dr. Ferguson at Houghton, on the Swan. In the early part of March, at the time of the vintage, I had several tons of raisins drying on straw in pathways of the vineyard, and was in the midst of the vintage. The state of the weather naturally engaged my attention, and in order to judge rightly I had a vane fixed on a pole in front of the house, and a very good mercurial marine barometer inside the house. These two indicators--the one showing direction of the winds, the other atmospheric pressure--received my constant attention. All went well until Friday, March 8, when I first read the warning of an approaching storm, and although my raisins were not completely dried I put all my men on to gather up the lot and put them into a loft to complete the drying process. I then hurried on to get the rest of the crop of grapes in. On the nights of the 9th and 10th I watched the glass rapidly falling, until by the break of day the indication by the barometer was down very low. I then rang the call bell, which was promptly answered by my workmen. They were astonished at being called so early, and they asked me if I knew it was Sunday morning. I said yes, but that as I expected a hurricane I wished to get in all the grapes I could before it came on. I then told them the terms were double pay for the day, but that I did not anticipate they would be able to work very long. There was no indication of a storm to any ordinary person. The sky was clear, not a cloud to be seen, and quite calm, a beautiful still morning. The first signs of the approaching storm was about 9 a.m., when a few fleecy clouds were seen to rise to the eastward, and the wind came on in sudden and violent gusts from the east. The wind, increasing gradually, veered to the north east and by 10 o'clock it was blowing a hurricane front the north. The men then took shelter, and no more work was done that day. The remaining grapes on the vines were destroyed by the force of the storm. Trees were being uprooted in all directions, and the scene was terrifying. It was at this time that the Anglican Church in Guildford, a beautiful, substantial Gothic structure, was unroofed and walls blown down. The stone lighthouse at Rottnest Island was cracked, and was near being destroyed. Vessels in Fremantle were wrecked, roofs of houses in Perth and Fremantle carried away, and an immense amount of damage done. Ask any of the old settlers if they remember the storm of '72, and they will bear out what I have said.
It was in this same year, during the flood, that I had the good fortune to save the life of a man. John Williamson, who was my cook at that time, by the expedient of cutting a square hole in the bilge of a large butt about 18 inches square. This butt was ballasted by shovelling sand into it, until I considered there was sufficient stability. I then got into the cask assisted by Mr. John O'Mara, of Oakover. and I paddled off and rescued Williamson. who was holding on to a sapling, and brought him safely ashore astride the butt, holding on to me.
I mention the above to show that I know something about the laws of storms, and also as to ballasting of boats and their stability, which I trust will entitle me to make the remarks I intend making.
In the summing up by the Court I did not notice one allusion to the barometric reading. The barometer is the seaman's guide as to the state of the weather, and yet it is not mentioned. All we have is that during the day of March 20 last the wind was blowing a fresh breeze from the north- east, and the weather was a bit overcast and dirty, but Captain Upjohn and Captain Allen in conversation decided there was nothing in it, and neither of them expected to encounter such a blow as is described in the s.s. Bullarra's log book as a howling hurricane, a hurricane which apparently has totally engulfed the s.s. Koombana and which, according to Captain Upjohn's evidence, the s.s. Bullarra only survived through "a miracle."
From past experienece I can say that the barometer must have indicated the approach of this cyclone, and that being so, I consider it was wrong to put to sea under these circumstances. If the captain was prepared to face the storm I think it would have been simple humanity to give the pasengers warning of the danger, and the opportunity of landing at Port Hedland. I noticed in one of the reports from Port Hedland it said: "Captain Allen seemed very anxious." He said that when he crossed the outer bank he would fill the ballast tanks. I do not think he ever got the chance to do that. The next point is, we are told that her "stability was shown to be entirely satisfactory." Under ordinary circumstances I readily agree with that, but from past experiences it must be remembered that abnormal conditions of cyclones may be expected at any time between December and April on the Nor'-West coast. What is perfectly safe under normal conditions becomes absolutely unsafe when a vessel has to encounter the full force of a terrific hurricane, with the top hamper of some of our modern steamers. In a sailing vessel one has a chance; even if light, they can run before the wind under bare poles, and be safe. Not so with the new steamers. Deck cabins cannot be reefed. If they take the full force of the wind on their broadsides it is all over in a few minutes. Their only chance is to run before the gale, but we find that the Koombana when last seen was steaming right into the north-east gale.
Referring again to the report from Port Hedland, of April 3, "The Koombana left the port at halt-past 10 o'clock on March 20, with propeller beating out of the water. When passing the entrance to the harbour she rolled deeply." That item, taken in conjunction with the statement of the Court, "She sailed from Port Hedland on March 20, at about 10.20 o'clock a.m., drawing 19ft. aft and about 12ft. forward in excellent trim, with her propeller well submerged," does not agree, but probably what the report from Port Hedland intended to convey is that the propeller was occasionally out of water. That might be accounted for as the steamer was evidently light, and would pitch, as she was drawing only 12ft. forward and 19ft. aft. If with that draught she had 50ft. of top hamper, in other words, a wall resistance to the wind, roughly about 300ft. long and 50ft. deep, with only an average hold on the water of, say, 15ft. 6in., I do not see how she could possibly stand up against the terrific force of a wind blowing at front 70 to 100 miles an hour, if it caught her on her beam. In such circumstances a vessel like that would simply roll over, as we see toy boats roll over, and sink. I am very much afraid that is what really happened to the Koombana.
A very dear old friend of mine, Mr. Fred. W. B. Clinch, who leaves a wife and six young children, and who was lost in this vessel, told his brother Alfred, in Fremantle, prior to the sailing of the Koombana, that he did not like the vessel; he thought there was too much top hamper, too much resistance in the event of meeting a willy-willy. Poor fellow, it is very sad that he, and so many others, should be taken thus suddenly from their friends and relations. It is evident poor Fred Clinch's fears have been justified.
The past cannot be rectified, but I think we should profit by the sad experience of the loss of the Koombana for the future, and I give the points of my view of the matter with all due deference:--(1) That vessels for the Nor'-West with much top hamper are unfitted for the work; (2) that closer attention is required of master mariners to the warnings by the barometer: (3) that with a low barometer, especially between December and April, a steamer should not attempt to face a gale or hurricane on the North West coast; (4) it is better to remain in port, anchored and steaming up to the anchor than to face the gale; (5) that a light vessel has no chance in a willy-willy except she can run before the wind: a well-ballasted vessel stands the best chance of surviving in a hurricane. --Yours, etc.,
Guildford, May 18. P. A. GUGERI.
