DCN September Edition 2019

MARITIME HISTORY
Image supplied
The sinking of
the Wollongbar II
Stephen Westfield remembers the fate of the Australian
Merchant Navy ship and the bravery of the crews who
served under the Red Ensign during WWII
“LOOK OUT, SUB TO PORT!”
These were the fateful last words of
Captain Charles Benson on the bridge
of the Australian Merchant Navy ship
Wollongbar II on the afternoon of 29 April
1943. As his ship, laden with food supplies,
steamed six nautical miles off Crescent
Head on the mid-North coast of New
South Wales, an I-180 Japanese submarine
pulled alongside it and fired two torpedoes.
The projectiles hit their mark, sinking the
ship and killing Captain Benson and 32 of
the vessels complement of 37, including a
16-year-old youth.
World War II was well and truly on
Australia’s doorstep. The sinking of
the Wollongbar II was one of many wartime
tragedies that have been largely forgotten.
While our island continent was not
invaded, our coastal waters most certainly
were. Between December 1941 and August
1943, 58 Japanese submarines sank 38
merchant ships in Australian waters and
hundreds of lives were lost. Due to the
strict government censorship laws during
World War II, most Australians were
unaware of the extent of warfare within
our coastal waters.
With the growing threat of Japanese
attacks, Captain Benson had every reason
to be worried about what was to be his last
Wollongbar II
voyage. Earlier in the week, the Wollongbar II
had spent time searching for survivors of
another Merchant Navy ship, the Union
Steamship Company’s SS Limerick that had
been sunk.
FATE OF THE “WHOLLY”
The previous day in Byron Bay, the
“Wholly” had been loaded with 18,000
cases of butter and several tons of bacon,
valuable supplies bound for Sydney. During
peacetime, the 2,239-ton steel steamer,
belonging to the North Coast Steam
Navigation Company and traded weekly
between Byron Bay and Sydney and could
accommodate 150 passengers. The deadly
attacks put a stop to civilian travel but the
shipping line and the federal government
agreed the vessel should continue to carry
vital refrigerated cargoes.
Captain Benson was anxious about his
passage towards Sydney. What he did not
know was he would soon cross a deadly
Japanese submarine 200 nautical miles
south and that he and most of his men
would go down with the ship.
Just five crew survived the sinking,
clinging to a badly holed lifeboat until
rescued by the fishing trawler XLCR,
owned and manned by Claude Radley,
and his crew.
The story of the sinking of the
Wollongbar II is a stark illustration of the
extent of the perils on the Australian
coastline and in the Pacific during World
War II. The bravery of the crews who
served under the Red Ensign has often
been omitted in recording our wartime
history, as has those who gave their lives
in the Merchant Navy effort. Unescorted,
unarmed merchant ships often travelling at
speeds less than 10 knots, carried personnel
and essential cargoes of foodstuff, supplies,
ammunition and other items in short
supply in those difficult times. It was the
Merchant Navy’s duty to keep supplies
coming at any cost, and it did.
MEMORIAL FUND ACTIVITIES
The Merchant Navy War Memorial Fund
has embarked on a national fundraising
appeal, to recognise the bravery of those
crews with a project, covering new and
remedial works, to the Merchant National
War Memorial, in Kings Park, Canberra.
The new works will include four concrete
blades on a new section of pavement. The
new blades (two on each side) will have the
names of Merchant Navy seafarers who lost
their lives in World War I and World War II.
The governor-general, His Excellency
General the Honourable David Hurley
AC DSC (Retd), has been invited as guest
of honour to deliver the 2019 address on
October 20 and unveil the commemorative
plaques. All are welcome to attend.
Find more information at: www.gofundme.
com/f/mnwmf-national-fundraising-appeal
Stephen Westfield, board member Australian
Merchant Navy Memorial Fund and chairman
Young Shipping Australia NSW
thedcn.com.au September 2019 19