Namibia: West Coast shipwrecks: "Montrose" & "Mossamedes" | Кораблекрушения у западного побережья Намибии
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62. "Montrose"
Date: June 1973
The Montrose stranded in 1973 and can be seen just south of the southern border of Torra Bay. This wreck has become a popular perch for cormorants. The Montrose II CDF 205 were build in 1963 by Louw & Halvorsen in Cape Town.
She was 67.5 feet long and were powered by a Caterpillar. She was originally owned by Mr. R. Middlekop from Hout Bay and was used as a purse seiner. She fished for Van Riebeeck Canning in Hout Bay as well as the Ovenstone's factory, Columbine Canning in St. Helena Bay. In 1970 she was sold to Mr. W. H Hearn from Hermanus are were converted into a inshore trawler for catching Hake, Sole and Kingklip. Her area code also changed from the Hout Bay area code (CDF 205) to the Hermanus area code (C 145). During the late 60's and early 70's many south African fishing boats were fishing off the South West African coast line just behind the territorial 12 nautical mile boundary at that time. Thus the reason she stranded so far from her home port.
63. "Mossamedes"
Date: 23.04.1923
South of Cape Fria
Mossamedes left the port of Lorenco Marques, the present Maputo, on Friday, 13 April 1923, under protest of the entire crew. The ship carried 143 passengers, her cargo consisting of 25 crates of dynamite, detonators and a vast quantity of sulphuric acid, enough to create serious problems for the ship and its anxious crew.
Justifiably, because on April 23, 1923 the Mossamedes ran aground north of Swakopmund. As the captain feared detonation of the explosives, the ship was evacuated without delay. The lifeboats, packed with crew and passengers were lowered: one boat capsized, a crew member and seven passengers drowned and another lifeboat carrying 23 passengers disappeared, without a trace. The remaining survivors were picked up by other ships that had hurried to the scene of disaster.
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