30
BAMOS
Jun 2020
The Hereward, her sails in tatters, ashore on Maroubra Beach,
Sydney. This photograph was taken two days after the storm and
shows a section of the large crowd that had gathered along the
shore to view the spectacle.
Source: State Library of South Australia
Further impacts of the storm
The rough weather was by no means confined to the NSW
Central Coast but far more widespread, with Sydney itself
experiencing a major storm impact.
In an article written in the Darling Downs Gazette on 9th May 5 ,
under the headline “Great Gale, Terrible Wrecks” several shipping
disasters were itemised. Sub‐headings noted “The SS Maitland
Wrecked”, “The Duckenfield Sinks”, “Ship Hereward Wrecked”,
“Two Harbour Steamers Sunk”, “Schooner Isabel Ashore”. These
maritime calamities well illustrate the widespread and severe
nature of the event between Sydney and Newcastle—all
showing the characteristics of an intense East Coast Low.
One of the vessels mentioned was the Hereward , an iron clipper
of 1500 tonnes—far bigger than the Maitland. The Hereward
was driven ashore on Sydney’s Maroubra Beach at around the
same time that Maitland was being wrecked.
Following the Maitland disaster the Boat Harbour area where
the ship had foundered was renamed Maitland Bay.
Progress in predicting East Coast Lows
East Coast Lows continue to pose a significant threat to shipping
along the NSW coast. Even in modern times major ships have
been driven ashore by the associated storms.
A more recent example was the Sygna, a 53,000 tonne
Norwegian bulk carrier that was wrecked near Stockton Beach
north of Newcastle on 26th May 1974. An even bigger vessel,
the Pasha Bulker, a 76,700 tonne bulk carrier, was beached on
8th June 2007, but successfully salvaged a few weeks later.
Forecasting the development of ECL’s, particularly those
involving cyclogenesis close to the coast, has always been a
challenge for meteorologists but over the last three decades or
so has improved markedly. Computer weather predictions can
now be expected to routinely identify ECL development out to
four days ahead, sometimes more. This has greatly added to
maritime safety along the Australian east coast.
References
1. Callaghan, J., and Helman, P.; Severe Storms on the East
Coast of Australia, 1770–2008, Griffith University, Gold Coast,
Queensland, 2008
2. The Todd Weather Folios, Jan 1879 to June 1909, Bureau of
Meteorology
3. Potter, G, “Wreck of the Maitland—a Scene to Make Angels
Weep”, Gosford City Council, 2014
4. The Sydney Morning Herald, 9th May 1898, p 5
https://trove.nla.gov.au/newspaper/page/1356667
5. The Darling Downs Gazette, 9th May 1898, p 3
https://trove.nla.gov.au/newspaper/article/171187273