Pacific Shipping And Cruising Yachts

Cruising Yachts

Growing Use Of Suva Harbour Creates Pressing Problems

More berthing space and cargo shed accommodation, more slip id ship repair facilities, more transit sheds, and open storage space r overseas cargo are pressing needs in the development of Suva arbour, according to a recent survey.

WE survey was made by a sub committee of the Suva Chamber Commerce.

The sub-committee reported that 3 vessels with a net tonnage of 110,208 entered and cleared Suva 1957, landing 177,124 tons of •go and loading 127,222 tons.

By 1963 the number of ships had ;n to 680 with a net tonnage of 88,435, and they landed 193,394 is of cargo and cleared 71,279 is. fhe number of ships requiring re r facilities had also risen.

Fhe sub-committee said that as iporary storage measures, till funds re available, storage space could provided in additional sheds, ese should be built at Prince’s iding, and on a reclaimed site )Osite Prince’s Landing.

Fo provide additional berthing ce, a series of fingers, at least 200 long, should be laid for local

shipping on the seaward side of the new Walu Bay reclamation.

The present repair facilities were fully booked, and if Japanese fishing ships to be based at Levuka were slipped at Suva, provision would have to be made for another small marine slipway of at least 200 tons.

To allow for future expansion of the port area, the Government should move the Department of Agriculture and the Health Office from the present sites in Rodwell Road.

Transit sheds could then be con structed on those sites.

Beached Boat

Blows Up

A crocodile shooter’s boat, the 40 ft. Viking, blew up and burnt to the waterline while beached for repairs in New Britain on August 12, The Viking was owned by Mr. G.

Hauritz, who used it on crocodile shooting expeditions in the New Guinea islands.

The Rabaul Harbourmaster, Cap tain H. Riding, said the boat had been on a reef near Cape Raoul and had got off under her own power.

She was then beached for repairs.

Something had gone wrong during repair work to cause it to blow up and burn out.

"Fijian Princess"

Refloated

Mr. Walter Whippy, well-known Suva shipwright, refloated the auxiliary cutter, Fijian Princess, which sank on August 14 in Nasoata Passage, near Suva, and towed her to Suva.

Her owners, the Princess Shipping Co., had abandoned her to the under writers.

The superstructure of the cutter was badly damaged.

Bsip Reef Victims

Salvaged

BSIP residents have had some luck lately in salvaging handy little coastal vessels which had run on reefs around The Slot, and were abandoned to the underwriters.

First was the 40 ft. motor-vessel Cape Torrens, owned by Lever in terests. She went on the reef at Malaita in March, 1963, and, after official investigation, was treated as a complete write-off.

A bright lad of these parts, Mr.

Cyril Aston, who has done well over the years in salvage, inspected the “wreck”, bought it for an amount that barely reached four figures, did a little patching and sent her to the slip at Yandina, for repair for over haul.

The Fauabu Twomey, the Mela nesian Mission’s medical ship donated by the NZ Lepers’ Trust Board, loaded with mission people, went on the reef off San Cristoval, one dark

ght. Local planters rallied around, id all the people and their luggage ;re got safely ashore. The native latswain who was in charge had his rtificate suspended, and was fined 0.

After official proceedings, the mers salvaged the motors, and andoned the vessel to the insurance ople.

Mr. C. G. Francis, of Rere Point antation, who had helped in the icue, afterwards went back for an ler look, and ended by buying the reck” for a small nominal amount.

Experts now have taken over, and is expected that the valuable, kauri ilt hull will be afloat again soon.

W P-Ng Trader

Fhe 250-ton tanker, For so, has m acquired from the Norfolk laling Co. for the bulk petroleum de in Papua-New Guinea.

She was bought by Forso Transport '• Ltd., of Port Moresby, in May, 1 reclassed in Sydney.

Fhe Forso arrived in Port Moresby September 7. ihe will carry a native crew under command of Captain C. Grove, Lae.

N Traders For

Ndominium

dr. S. J. Breusch’s newly-acquired ), Taswegian, left Sydney on Sep iber 14 for Aoba Island, New prides, where she will become an r-island trader. he Taswegian is Mr. Breusch’s Te nement for the Three Cheers, ch he sold to the New Hebrides i of Sung Kwan Chee last member. le bought the ship from Mr. Keith liamson, at Strahan, Tasmania, had her converted in Sydney n a fishing vessel to a trading Ir. Williamson worked on the version job and sailed to Aoba as neer. The skipper was Captain t Mounsey. he Taswegian is a 56 ft. steel boat i an 18 ft. beam and a draught of . She is powered with a Gardner -1 engine of 114 hp. [r. and Mrs. Breusch, who have it part of each of the past five s in Sydney, planned to fly to the 1 Hebrides to meet the Taswegian k.oba. be big New Hebrides firm, IH, has also bought a Tasmanian ng ship for trade within the dominium. be ship, which was converted in Dane, and renamed Koghi, is now ervice. She can carry 50 to 60 of copra.

Adventure For Boy

Scouts In "Maroro"

The Tongan Government ship Niuvakai went to the rescue of the well-known Fiji ketch Maroro at 2 a.m. on Sunday, September 5, as she wallowed helplessly in heavy seas off Nasilai Point, about 30 miles from Suva.

The Maroro’s engines had broken down and her mizzen gaff had been carried away on a storm-tossed voyage to Matuku in the Lau Group with 34 Boy Scouts who had been attending the Fiji Jubilee Jamborette.

The Maroro was without her

owner-skipper. Captain Stan Brown, who was in Honolulu, and was under the command of Captain Stan Smith.

She had left Suva on September 4 for Matuku and was actually in sight of Matuku next day when she had clutch failure.

Captain Smith hoisted his sails, but the Maroro was dead to windward and Captain Smith decided to return to Suva. The Maroro took a batter ing from a wind-whipped sea and, when almost in sight of Suva, lost her mizzen gaff.

The Niuvakai came to the rescue in response to Captain Smith’s SOS

ashed on the Aldis lamp and took le Maroro in tow.

There was a slight collision be veen the two ships which broke off le Maroro's bowsprit as the Niuvakai r as manoeuvred in heavy seas by her laster, Captain lan Fraser.

The Maroro reached Suva about a.m. without further mishap.

Captain Brown was due back in uva at the end of September—after tiling a yacht belonging to author eonard Wibberley from Honolulu to ermosa Beach, California.

Dorothie" Salvage

Ttempt

An attempt was to be made early October to salvage the cargo of the 000-ton freighter, Dorothie, which ent on a reef in Jomard Passage, >0 miles south-east of Port Moresby i July 12.

Her cargo—foodstuffs and building aterials—was estimated to be worth

[Oo,Ooo.

If the cargo is salvaged, an attempt ay be made to refloat the Dorothie.

Nding On "Kavieng

*Ader" Disaster

Two heavy seas shipped in ab >rmal weather, and an extremely infused sea southeast of Cape St. eorge at the southern tip of New aland, was the apparent cause of e capsize of the Kavieng Trader i February 16, 1964.

This was stated recently by a >ard of inquiry into the loss of e ship. The ship, whose crew of ► escaped in two lifeboats, was trying a cargo of petroleum pro icts in bulk and in drums ( PIM , arch, p. 10).

The board’s report said that the as filled the deck to the top of e bulwark and the ship did not cover from a resulting heavy list.

No blame was attachable to any rson—the conduct of the master d crew at the time was deserving commendation.

Cond Ship For P-Ng

Federation

The Papua Federation of Native )-operative Associations is building new ship, which is estimated to cost 5,000.

To be named Papua, it will be 70 long, and will have a cargo pacity of 1,000 bags of copra.

The Papua will be the association’s :ond ship, the other is the Hiri. le new ship is needed to lift the :reased tonnages being hauled by pua coast co-operatives.

Hydrographic Survey Of

Milne Bay Completed

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The Ataluma, owned by Australian Hy dr°^ a phic Services Pty Ltd., recently finished a hydrographic survey of Milne Bay, P-NG, the first in a programme of such surveys, which will last about 14 months.

The next job for the Ataluma is at the southern shore of Collingwood Bay for a hydrographic survey of the shipping route between Cape Vogel and Wanegella.

Fiji "Telephone"

I Imk Fhp Chips

The Fiji Posts and Telegraphs Department has provided an additional frequency of 2638 kilocycles for the use of local vessels in shipto-ship communication at sea.

The Fiji Postmaster-General, Mr.

W. G. J. Cruickshank, announcing the new service recently, said the service could not be used for passing information other than marine matters, and must not be used when ships were in harbour.

Safety Regulations

IftNinPFn A recent spot check of Western Samoa shipping by the marine authorities revealed a startling state of affairs.

Almost every boat checked was lacking in some safety equipment, such as life preservers, tow-ropes, and radio -

Some ships had to lay up for several days till they could comply with safety requirements.

Formosan Junk

rare uamc botb HOME The 70 ft. Formosan motor junk, Yik Cheong, after a substantial refit at Rabaul, left about the middle of August to go home. The bridge deck was smashed and a helmsman was killed when two ammonia cylinders, strapped to the deckhouse, exploded in New Guinea waters on June 30 Aug., p. 103).

The captain, Hui Ching Yit, who suffered severe injuries and for weeks hovered between life and death in the Nonga Base Hospital, is still in hospital.

He lost an arm and a leg in the explosion.

Ship For Medical

Work In Fiji

. Tb? Fiji Public Works Department building a new ship, the Vuniwai, f°r fbe Medical Department, and ex pects it will be commissioned late in November or early in December.

The new Vuniwai will be 75 ft. long, and will have a 19 ft. beam and a draught of 8 ft. Her displace ment weight will be 90 tons. She has been designed to carry 12 passen gers and a crew of 10.

A dispensary will be built in, and there will be provision for X-ray work, dental inspections and, if necessary, emergency operations.