SS Koombana
Encyclopedia
The SS Koombana was a coastal passenger and cargo steamship
Steamboat
A steamboat or steamship, sometimes called a steamer, is a ship in which the primary method of propulsion is steam power, typically driving propellers or paddlewheels...
which sank at an unknown location north of Port Hedland
Port Hedland, Western Australia
Port Hedland is the highest tonnage port in Australia and largest town in the Pilbara region of Western Australia, with a population of approximately 14,000 ....
, Western Australia
Western Australia
Western Australia is a state of Australia, occupying the entire western third of the Australian continent. It is bounded by the Indian Ocean to the north and west, the Great Australian Bight and Indian Ocean to the south, the Northern Territory to the north-east and South Australia to the south-east...
during a cyclone
Tropical cyclone
A tropical cyclone is a storm system characterized by a large low-pressure center and numerous thunderstorms that produce strong winds and heavy rain. Tropical cyclones strengthen when water evaporated from the ocean is released as the saturated air rises, resulting in condensation of water vapor...
on 20 March 1912 with the loss of approximately 138 lives, including 20 crew. Other than some floating wreckage, no trace was ever found of the ship, which was presumed sunk along with several other vessels during the same storm. A further 11 people died in other ships and near the cyclone.
As accurate passenger lists were not kept at the time, the exact number of deaths is not known; however, all on board are presumed to have perished. The loss was Australia
Australia
Australia , officially the Commonwealth of Australia, is a country in the Southern Hemisphere comprising the mainland of the Australian continent, the island of Tasmania, and numerous smaller islands in the Indian and Pacific Oceans. It is the world's sixth-largest country by total area...
's worst weather-related maritime disaster in the twentieth century.
The ship was of steel construction, built in Glasgow
Glasgow
Glasgow is the largest city in Scotland and third most populous in the United Kingdom. The city is situated on the River Clyde in the country's west central lowlands...
, Scotland
Scotland
Scotland is a country that is part of the United Kingdom. Occupying the northern third of the island of Great Britain, it shares a border with England to the south and is bounded by the North Sea to the east, the Atlantic Ocean to the north and west, and the North Channel and Irish Sea to the...
by shipbuilders Alex. Stephens & Sons three years earlier in 1909. Her dimensions were 103.6 m (340.1 ft) x 14.7 m (48.2 ft) x 6.3 m (20.8 ft) and weighed 3668 tonnes (4043 tons). She was owned and operated by the Adelaide Steamship Company
Adelaide Steamship Company
The Adelaide Steamship Company was formed by a group of South Australian businessmen in 1875. Their aim was to control the transport of goods between Adelaide and Melbourne and profit from the need for an efficient and comfortable passenger service...
and her master was Captain Thomas M. Allen.
Cyclone
Broome, Western Australia
Broome is a pearling and tourist town in the Kimberley region of Western Australia, north of Perth. The year round population is approximately 14,436, growing to more than 45,000 per month during the tourist season...
on the morning of Wednesday, 20 March 1912 with a fresh north easterly blowing, following the SS Bullarra which also engaged in the north-west passenger and cargo trade. Before departing, the captain had reported a falling barometer
Barometer
A barometer is a scientific instrument used in meteorology to measure atmospheric pressure. Pressure tendency can forecast short term changes in the weather...
and suggested that the voyage may take longer than normal. The two ships altered course several hours after departing as a heavy north easterly gale set in and they became separated. The storm increased and the Bullarra suffered damage but was able to limp into Cossack
Cossack, Western Australia
Cossack is an historic ghost town located 1,480 km north of Perth and 15 km from Roebourne in the Pilbara region of Western Australia. The nearest town to Cossack is Wickham. At the 2006 census, Cossack had a population of 236....
. She later returned to Port Hedland minus her smokestack reporting that the eye of the cyclone had passed directly over. The Koombana was not seen again.
A steel sailing ship, the Crown of England, was wrecked on Depuch Island
Depuch Island
Depuch Island is a volcanic island located off the north-west coast of Western Australia's Pilbara region, near Port Hedland.-Aboriginal significance:...
with another vessel, the Concordia beached nearby. Several lighter vessels and pearling luggers were also sunk or wrecked.
The cyclone crossed the coast two days later on 22 March just west of Balla Balla, a minor port for the Whim Creek copper mines. Damage was reported for more than 200 kilometres along the coast.
After the ship became overdue in Broome several days later, public concern was raised and a search organised. On 3 April one of the search ships steamed through a quantity of wreckage about 25 nautical miles (46.3 km) north of Bedout Island
Bedout Island
Bedout Island is a small Australian island in the eastern Indian Ocean. It lies 42 km offshore from Larrey Point and the mouth of the De Grey River, and 96 km north-east of Port Hedland, on the Pilbara coast of north-west Western Australia....
and 100 km offshore. Among the items seen were a lifeboat and a stateroom door.
Possible discoveries
In 1973 the remains of what appeared to be a large vessel were located in deep water about 20 nautical miles (37 km) off Eighty Mile Beach, about half way between Port Hedland and Broome. In 1985, crew members testing magnetic detection equipment on a Lockheed P-3 Orion of the Royal Australian Air ForceRoyal Australian Air Force
The Royal Australian Air Force is the air force branch of the Australian Defence Force. The RAAF was formed in March 1921. It continues the traditions of the Australian Flying Corps , which was formed on 22 October 1912. The RAAF has taken part in many of the 20th century's major conflicts...
reported a significant magnetic anomaly on the seabed 75 km off Bedout Island.
In August 1987 a specially-equipped United States Navy research aircraft was sent to Port Hedland to search for the ship in conjunction with the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration
National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration
The National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration , pronounced , like "noah", is a scientific agency within the United States Department of Commerce focused on the conditions of the oceans and the atmosphere...
(NOAA) and an Australian research group. The aircraft, another Lockheed Orion (RP-3D BuNo. 158227, operated in support of NOAA's Project Magnet), equipped with a vector magnetometer, was flown by a US Navy crew with project scientists from NOAA. The Naval Officer crew consisted of aviators Deborah Anderson, Brad Huotari and Glenn Gosnell with navigators John Sheppard and Ruth Perron. The unique aircraft was painted international orange and white and had the "Road Runner" cartoon as nose art. Several flights were conducted over the suspected area of the ship, searching for magnetic anomalies. Several promising "hits" were to be investigated by the Australian group.
To date no specific search attempts have been undertaken.
The death pearl
On board the Koombana was a Broome resident and pearl dealer, Abraham de Vahl Davies, who had just purchased a famous black pearlPearl
A pearl is a hard object produced within the soft tissue of a living shelled mollusk. Just like the shell of a mollusk, a pearl is made up of calcium carbonate in minute crystalline form, which has been deposited in concentric layers. The ideal pearl is perfectly round and smooth, but many other...
called the Roseate Pearle for £20,000. Legend had seven of the previous owners die after acquiring the jewel.