The Loss of the Waratah - 1909

This passenger and cargo steam-powered ship was en route from Durban to Cape Town when it vanished without a trace presumably along the Eastern Cape coastline.

It had 119 crew and 92 passengers on board, none of whom were ever seen again.

It left Durban on the 26th of July and steamed alongside the Clan MacIntyre until it finally disappeared over the horizon at 9:30 the morning of the 27th.

The captain of the Clan MacIntyre said that the hurricane that sprang up the following day was the worst weather that he had experienced in his 13 years at sea.

The news at the time was rife with possible sightings and theories about the fate of the Waratah with crews from other ships recalling seeing a steamer in difficulty, and there were reports of bodies being seen in the area near to where it was last seen.

The Royal Navy deployed ships to search for it and the Blue Anchor Line chartered a ship called the Sabine to search for the Waratah, but despite covering 14,000 miles the search was unsuccessful.

Master

From

To

H G Fishenden

1903

1905

A Weir

1905

1910

J Clark

1910

1911

H R East

1911

1916

A D Turton

1916

1918

A MacIntyre

1918

1919

N Leslie

1919


Career Summary

1928 Sold to Italy renamed Norma

Vessel

Built

Tonnage

Official No

Ship Builder

Engine Builder

Engine Type

HP

Screws

Clan MacIntyre (2)

1903

4807

115755

Furness Withy

Hartlepool

Dunsmuir & Jackson

Glasgow

Triple Expansion Steam

440 NHP

2200 IHP

1

Clan MacIntyre (2)

VCRP

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