The Ultimate New Zealand Soccer Website | home
Gael | Gamma | Guardian Carrier | Ha'amotaha | Hauiti | Hauturu | Hawea | Hokianga | Holmbank | Holmbrae | Holmburn | Holmburn | Holmdale | Holmglen | Holmglen | Holmlea | Holmlea | Holmpark | Holmwood | Hotunui | Hunte | Ile De Lumiere | Inaha | Induna | Inger Riis | Inparma Progress | Jackson Bay | Jaguar | James M Cook | Jaya No. 6 | Jean Philippe | Jill Coast | Josephine | Kaapgracht | Kaitoa | Kali | Karepo | Karetu
Holmglen
 Sourced from the collection of D. Wright
|
||||||||||||||||||||
The story of "Holmglen" is without question one of the saddest and most mysterious in New Zealand's maritime history.
Built at Martenshoeck in Hoogezand, Holland, she is powered by one MAK 480hp oil engine, producing a service speed of 10.5 knots.
She was an ice-strengthened ship with all the latest navigation aids, had accommodation for twelve passengers, and was designed for servicing Campbell and Raoul Islands as well as the coastal trade, which she entered in mid-1956.
She made a handful of visits to Onehunga, and her penultimate departure from the Port in 1958 saw her set sail for Norfolk Island on 17 May, to deliver the annual supply of 50 tons of stores and 1000 tons of aviation fuel to the local meteorological station. It was a three-day voyage, with up to a further three days required to discharge the cargo into surf boats, as there was no wharf at Norfolk Island.
 Sourced from Ships of NZ Facebook page
On 24 November 1959, she foundered in approximately thirty fathoms of water some 22 miles east-south-east of Timaru, and was lost with all hands - a crew of fifteen led by Captain E.J. Regnaud.
She had left Dunedin the previous day with a cargo of 300 tons, to which more was added the next day at Oamaru before she set sail at 1545, bound for Wellington and Wanganui.
At approximately 9.10pm, a Mayday call was heard from the vessel, advising her position and that she was heeling heavily to port, the accommodation was awash, and that the lifeboats were being prepared for launching. This was the last communication from the ship.
Search and rescue operations were mounted, led by the RNZN survey vessels "Takapu" and "Tarapunga", which left Timaru at 10.30pm. Nineteen fishing vessels joined the search, plus three freighters, including "Holmburn", which discovered a large oil slick at 5.30am the next day, and, using her echo sounder, discovered the sunken ship's position two hours later.
The subsequent Court of Inquiry was unable to unearth a reason for the "Holmglen"'s sinking. There was no explosion nor collision, the hold cargo was properly stowed, and the ship wasn't overloaded. Weather conditions at the time were average ... in short, a mystery. May her crew rest in peace.
 "Holmglen" claimed a further life on 10 November 2008, a member of a three-man diving party who failed to appear at the decompression stop following an attempt to retrieve the ship's bell.
|