THE LIFE-BOAT FLEET 155 Motor Life-boats 1 Harbour Pulling Life-boat LIVES RESCUED from the foundation of the Life-boat Service in 1824 to August 31st, 1953 ....

78,333 The Thirty-first of January: A Day of Disaster AT a quarter to eight on the morning of the 31st of January, 1953, the British motor ship Princess Victoria, owned by the British Transport Com- mission, left Stranraer on her normal voyage to Larne. She carried 127 passengers, a crew of 49 and a mis- cellaneous cargo. A number of motor vehicles were carried in the stern.

Severe north-westerly gales were met with soon after the Princess Victoria left harbour, and there was a heavy sea. There were frequent squalls of sleet and snow which caused visibility to vary from nothing to some five to six miles. After the Princess Victoria had left Loch Ryan a heavy sea burst open the stern doors. The starboard parts of the doors were slightly stove in, and the supporting stanchions buckled. But this was enough to prevent the doors from being closed in the conditions of sea and weather then prevailing. A succession of seas burst both sides of the doors almost completely open, and sea water poured into the space on the car deck. The ship listed to starboard some ten degrees, and afterwards the list in- creased steadily.

The first distress message from the Princess Victoria was sent at 9.46 to the Portpatrick radio station. It ran: "Hove to off mouth Loch Ryan.

Vessel not under command. Urgent assistance of tug required." An hour later, at 10.45, an S O S message calling for immediate help was received by the Portpatrick life-boat station.

At eleven o'clock the Portpatrick life-boat Jeanie Speirs was launched.

The position of the Princess Victoria had been given in the SOS message as four miles north-west of Corsewall Point, and it was on this information that the Portpatrick life-boat based her course. A full gale was then blow- ing from the north, increasing to hurricane force, and the sea was very rough and confused.

After reaching the position indicated and finding nothing, the Portpatrick life-boat altered her course southward at 12.51 and began what was to be a long and hard search.

" Preparing to Abandon Ship " At 12.52 the Princess Victoria sent a message both to the Portpatrick radio station and to the destroyer H.M.S.

Contest, which was by then also search- ing, stating that her position wascritical and the starboard engine-room flooded. At 1.8 the Princess Victoria reported that she had stopped and was on her beam ends, and at 1.15 came the message: "We are preparing to abandon ship." The Princess Victoria sank shortly after two o'clock, but it was not until half-past three that the Portpatrick life-boat, misled as she had been by wrong positions, first saw wreckage from the vessel. She found only two survivors who were taken on board the life-boat from rafts.

At 1.22 the Bangor coastguard had informed the life-boat station at Donaghadee that the Portpatrick life- boat had launched on service, andthat the Princess Victoria was believed to be between Belfast and Portpatrick.

At 1.40 the Donaghadee life-boat Sir Samuel Kelly was launched in a very rough sea with a full gale blowing. At 2.2 she heard from the coastguard that the Princess Victoria was six miles north-east-by-north of Mew Island, but a later message gave the position farther south as five miles east of Copelands.

The Donaghadee life-boat reached the last position given but she could find nothing, and the coxswain. Hugh Nelson, decided to follow H.M.S.

Contest, which was then steaming atspeed in a south-south-easterly direc- tion.

Thirty-one Survivors Picked Up The Donaghadee life-boatthenheard from the S.S. Orchy that she was near survivors in a position four miles north-north-east of Mew Island. The coxswain altered course to the north- ward again, and at 3.15 the life-boat reached the scene of the disaster.

She rescued 29 people from a ship's life-boat, one from a raft and one from another ship's life-boat. She con- tinued to search until five o'clock, but found no other survivors and left for Donaghadee.

The Cloughey life-boat, ConstanceCalrerley, was also launched at 2.32 after receiving a message from the Tara coastguard. She too made for the position given in the teeth of a gale. She searched until six o'clock, but found nothing. She then guided the Portpatrick life-boat to Donagha- dee, which was reached at 7.20. The Donaghadee life-boat reached her station at 5.45, and the Cloughey life-boat arrived back at Cloughey at 9.30.

The Newcastle, Co. Down, life-boat William and Laura was also launched at 4.20 at the request of the Kilkeen coastguard, but she found nothingand reached her station again at 10.30.

The rescue of 31 people from the Princess Victoria did not end the ser- vices of the Donaghadee life-boat that day. At 9.35 it was learnt from the Bangor coastguard that the trawler Eastcotes had anchored near North Briggs Buoy in Belfast Lough and had one survivor and six dead bodies on board. At 9.45 the Doiiaghadee life-boat was launched again. There was a north-by-west gale. The cox- swain asked the skipper of the East- cotes to weigh anchor and to go to the shelter of the Antrim coast between Whitehead and Carrickfergus. There the life-boat took off the survivor and the six bodies, as well as seven bags of mail which had been picked out of the sea. She then returned to Donagha- dee, which she reached at 1.30 early on the morning of the 1st of February.

At seven o'clock that morning she put out again to search for survivors with the help of aircraft in better weather and good visibility. She searched until nightfall and picked up twelve bodies and three mail bags, which were landed at Donaghadee at 7.30.

The Portpatrick life-boat returned to her station on the 1st of February from Donaghadee, arriving at 2.20 in the afternoon.

Worst Disaster for Quarter of a Century The disaster to the Princess Victoria was the greatest suffered by any British merchant vessel in peace-time for a quarter of a century. To investi- gate the disaster the Minister of Trans- port ordered an enquiry to be held under the Merchant Shipping Act. This investigation was held at the County Court House, Crumlin Road, Belfast, from 23rd March to 9th May, 1953.

before Mr. J. H. Campbell, Q.C., Resident Magistrate, assisted by Cap- tain Charles V. Groves, Professor A. M.

Robb and Mr. J. Shand.

The Court reached the conclusion that the loss of the Princess Victoria was " due to her unseaworthy condition, arising from two circumstances: "(1) The inadequacy of the stern doors, which yielded to the stress of the seas, thus permitting the influx of water into the car space.

" (2) The inadequacy of clearing arrangements for the water which accumulated on the freeboard deck causing an increasing list to the star- board, culminating in the ship cap- sizing and foundering." A report was published on llth of June, 1953. Among its findings was one expressing "appreciation of the valuable and sustained efforts of Hugh Nelson, coxswain of the Donaghadee life-boat, and his crew." The Court also found that "an associated con- sideration is the difficulty of directing life-boats to the scene of a disaster.

The Court fully realises the difficulties and notes with satisfaction that the Royal National Life-boat Institution has had the matter under urgent con- sideration for some time." Two Bronze Medals The Institution awarded its bronze medal for gallantry to Coxswain Hugh Nelson, of Donaghadee, and Coxswain William McConnell, of Portpatrick, for the courage, skill and initiative they showed.

The thanks of the Institution in- scribed on vellum were awarded to the motor mechanics of the two life-boats, James Armstrong, of Donaghadee, and James Mitchell, of Portpatrick.

An additional monetary award of £5 per man was made to each member of the Portpatrick, Donaghadee, and Cloughey crews. Scale rewards paid to the crews and helpers were: Port- patrick, £37 11*. 6d.; Donaghadee, first service, £12 19s., second service, £11 3s., third service, £32 12s.; Cloughey, £26 18s.; Newcastle, £31 13s.

Appreciation of the gallantry and devotion of the life-boat crews was expressed in many quarters. The Prime Minister of Northern Ireland, Lord Brookeborough, C.B.E., M.C., P.C., broadcasting on the disaster, said: " One cannot speak too highly of the assistance given by the Royal National Life-boat Institution. In the teeth of the gale the life-boat crews from Donaghadee, Cloughey and Port- patrick searched the sea for survivors and brought to land as many as could be found. The prompt and resource- ful help of the Royal Navy, Royal Air Force, and Merchant Navy in the rescue operations was worthy of the finest traditions of the sea. The highest praise is due to everyone who helped." A number of gifts were made to theInstitution following the disaster, especially in Northern Ireland and in Scotland. Among them was a cheque for £l ,000 from a man and his wife in Edinburgh who preferred to remain anonymous. They made "in appreciation of the work done by life-boats gallant crews." Life-boatmen Killed by Fumes The crews of the life-boats which went to the rescue of survivors from the Princess Victoria did not them- selves suffer any losses. But on the same day two life-boatmen lost their lives. They were the second coxswain and the assistant mechanic of the Islay (Inner Hebrides) life-boat, Alexander McNeill and John McTaggart.

The Islay life-boat Charlotte Eliza- beth first left her moorings on the 31st of January at 5.45 in the afternoon.

This was because of a message from the Kilchoman coastguard that a vessel was drifting and flashing distress signals three miles south of Jura.

The life-boat searched in a rough sea and a full north-north-east gale, but she found nothing and reached her station again at 10.30 that night.

Soon after returning she was called out again. This was to go to the help of the trawler Michael Griffiths.

The Barra Island (Outer Hebrides) life-boat Lloyds had already gone out that morning in a full gale because of a report that the Michael Griffiths, then between seven and eight miles south of Barra Head, was full of water and had no steam. The Barra Island life-boat and an aircraft searched widely but found nothing, and the life-boat returned to her station at 6.30.

After refuelling the Islay life-boat put out again at 11.50 that night.

During the passage McNeill and McTaggart went down into the engine- room to dry their clothes. While there they were overcome by fumes and col- lapsed. The life-boat made for Colon- say, where a doctor tried to revive the two men, but one was already dead, and the other died soon after. The life-boat then returned to her station with the two dead men, arriving at 2.15 on the afternoon of the 1st of February. The Michael Griffiths sank with her crew of fifteen.

An inquiry into the deaths of the two members of the Islay crew was conducted at Oban Sheriff's Court by Mr. R. Johnston Macdonald on 6th of March, ] 953. A formal verdict of "death by poisoning by carbon mon- oxide fumes " was returned. McTag- gart left a widowed mother, and McNeill left a widow, a son and a step- son. Pensions for all these depen- dants are being paid by the Institution.