DEC. 8TH. - WALMER, AND RAMSGATE, KENT. At 8.32 A.M. a message was received at Walmer from the Deal coastguard that a Belgian steamer had stranded on the Goodwin Sands, north of the wreck of the Mahratta.

A whole S.S.W. gale was blowing, with a very heavy sea. At 8.50 A.M. the motor life-boat Charles Dibdin (Civil Service No. 2) was launched and found the S.S. Kabinda half a mile east of the West Goodwin Buoy. As she came near the sands, heavy seas struck her, and threw four of her crew to the deck. One of them was made unconscious. As the captain of the steamer said that it was only the help of tugs which he needed, the lifeboat returned to her station, arriving at 12.15 P.M. At 3 P.M. another message was received from the Deal coastguard that the senior naval officer at Ramsgate had asked that the life-boat should stand by the steamer all night. At 4 P.M. she was again launched, and anchored near the steamer. Tugs were present, but, owing to the heavy sea, it was found impossible to connect the towing hawsers. The life-boat then went alongside.

One of her crew boarded the steamer, then at the captain’s request the life-boat ran out a kedge anchor. This done, the life-boat stood by until after high water. She then returned to her station at 11.45 the next morning, 9th December. Later the same day a request was made by Lloyd’s Agent at Dover that the life-boat should again stand by the steamer all night. At 5.15 P.M. on the 9th the Charles Dibdin was launched for the third time, and anchored near the steamer while the tugs again tried to tow her off. At midnight they gave it up. Two and a half hours later the steamer broke in two and the life-boat went alongside and rescued forty-four of those on board. Their weight was as much as she could carry in the shallow water with safety, for she was bumping on the sea-bed in the heavy seas.

Those still on the steamer were told that the life-boat would return for them as soon as possible. When she reached her station she found that the Ramsgate life-boat had alsobeen launched to the help of the steamer.

Just before 2 A.M. on the 10th, the Walmer life-boat landed the 44 men rescued, and at 5.20 A.M. put out again, in case the Ramsgate life-boat could not take everyone left on board. However, she reached the steamer to find that Ramsgate had already rescued the remaining thirty-one men. The Walmer life-boat returned to her station at 8.15 A.M. on the 10th and the Ramsgate at 9.15 A.M. The Walmer life-boat crew received a gift of £39 from the owners. - Rewards : Walmer, £14 12s. 6d., £48 9s., and £41 0S. 9d. ; Ramsgate, £23 5s. 6d..