1st June 1878 the Loch ARD has sunk. The Loch ARD was on it's final voyage from England to Melbourne. It was an extremely foggy morning and the captain (Mr. Gibbs) was unable to see the light house and therefore was unable to tell how close he was to the coast. The fog lifted slightly at 4am and was just enough for Mr. Gibbs to see how close he was to the coast. He then ordered his crew to turn away from from the coast but it was too late and the Loch ARD ran aground on a reef. The masts and rigging came crashing down, killing some people on deck and preventing the lifeboats from being launched effectively. The ship sank within 10 or 15 minutes of hitting the reef.
The only two survivors of the wreck were Eva Carmichael, who survived by clinging to a spar for five hours, and Thomas (Tom) R. Pearce, an apprentice who clung to the overturned hull of a lifeboat.
Witness Report: Light house keeper Richard Wilmur.
"I was sleeping in my chair that morning when I heard a bang. I had no idea what it could be, so I got up and walked to the window. I looked out but could not see very much for it was extremely foggy. I got my torch and shined it around, but the fog was that thick that it didn't help," he explained. "It took a few minutes for the fog to finally clear up when I saw it. The ship was destroyed. I didn't know what to do. I ran down the bottom to see if anyone was their but I couldn't see or hear anyone. I though everyone was dead but I hear that two people have surprisingly survived.
1st June 1878 the Loch ARD has sunk. The Loch ARD was on it's final voyage from England to Melbourne. It was an extremely foggy morning and the captain (Mr. Gibbs) was unable to see the light house and therefore was unable to tell how close he was to the coast. The fog lifted slightly at 4am and was just enough for Mr. Gibbs to see how close he was to the coast. He then ordered his crew to turn away from from the coast but it was too late and the Loch ARD ran aground on a reef. The masts and rigging came crashing down, killing some people on deck and preventing the lifeboats from being launched effectively. The ship sank within 10 or 15 minutes of hitting the reef.
The only two survivors of the wreck were Eva Carmichael, who survived by clinging to a spar for five hours, and Thomas (Tom) R. Pearce, an apprentice who clung to the overturned hull of a lifeboat.
Witness Report: Light house keeper Richard Wilmur.
"I was sleeping in my chair that morning when I heard a bang. I had no idea what it could be, so I got up and walked to the window. I looked out but could not see very much for it was extremely foggy. I got my torch and shined it around, but the fog was that thick that it didn't help," he explained. "It took a few minutes for the fog to finally clear up when I saw it. The ship was destroyed. I didn't know what to do. I ran down the bottom to see if anyone was their but I couldn't see or hear anyone. I though everyone was dead but I hear that two people have surprisingly survived.
Source: Wikipedia.