SAHRA Maritime and Underwater Cultural Heritage
May 10:
“This day in our shipwreck and aeronautical wreck history”
Karimona wreck in Namibia
1858: Arabia/Arabic, this American sailing barque mistook the lights at Mouille Point for harbour lights and wrecked on the rocks at Green Point in Table Bay in the Western Cape.
1865: Rubens, this wooden British sailing vessel missed its stays and wrecked north of Sunset Beach in Table Bay in the Western Cape at night. It was suspected that it had struck the wreck of the Sappho (1864) which had wrecked a few months earlier.
1881: Davina, this barque was abandoned and is presumed to have foundered, south of Cape St. Francis in the Eastern Cape. Very little is known about this vessel and the event.
1900: Craigellachie, this steel British steam-powered cargo ship wrecked at Riet Point, possibly on Three Sisters Rocks, near Port Alfred in the Eastern Cape.
1953: William Holland, this motor-powered South African fishing trawler wrecked in thick fog near Quoin Point in the Western Cape. It was originally a coaster but was converted for trawling by the time it was lost.
1972: Silver Castle, this motor-powered Liberian oil tanker collided with the S.A. Pioneer on the 20th of April and caught alight offshore, off the Eastern Cape. It is believed that 20 lives were lost during the collision. Once the fire was brought under control by the passing HMS Lowestoft, attempts were made to tow the Silver Castle to Mossel Bay, but due to it leaking oil, it was denied entry. Because of this, on this day, the Silver Castle was towed out to sea and scuttled. As for the S.A. Pioneer, it was towed to Taiwan, where it was also determined that it was beyond repair and was therefore scrapped.
1975: Uni 9, this South African whaler was scuttled by the South African Navy, south of Durban off KwaZulu-Natal.
1997: A South African Police Beechcraft 200C Super King Air (registration no. ZS-LNV), failed to take-off from a runway at Steynsburg in the Eastern Cape, ploughing into a field and being damaged beyond repair. The aircraft had transported five forensic experts to investigate a case of suspected arson at the Grand Hotel. During take off on the return journey, the one propeller sliced into a sandbank and the aircraft lost power with it veering off the runway, destroying three fences, crossing a dirt road, and eventually crashing into a field.
Aerial photo/video service/inquiries: info@traveltonamibia.com
