Limache - Wreck Report 1900

(No. 6260.) 

"LIMACHE." 

The Merchant Shipping Act, 1894. 
IN the matter of a formal investigation, held at the Magistrates' Room, Liverpool, on the 17th and 18th days of October, 1901, before W. J. STEWART, Esquire, assisted by COMMANDER CABORNE, C.B., R N.B., and REAR-ADMIRAL BOYES, into the circumstances attending the supposed loss of the British ship "LIMACHE," of Liverpool, which left Callao, for Tocapilla, on 18th July, 1900, and has not since been heard of. 

Report of Court. 
The Court, having carefully inquired into the circumstances attending the above-mentioned shipping casualty, finds, for the reasons stated in the Annex hereto, in the absence of any evidence as to the actual cause of the supposed loss of the said vessel, that it is quite possible that, in consequence of bad weather the ballast, which had not been properly secured, shifted and the vessel capsized. 

Dated this 18th day of October, 1901. 

W. J. STEWART, Judge. We concur in the above Report. W. F. CABORNE, G. T. H. BOYES, Assessors.

Annex to the Report. 
This inquiry was held in the Magistrates' Room, Dale Street, Liverpool, on the 17th and 18th days of October, 1901, when Mr. Paxton appeared on behalf of the Board of Trade, and Mr. Collins represented the Owners. 

The "Limache," official No. 91,201, was a sailing ship, built of iron, by Messrs. William Gray & Co., of West Hartlepool, in 1885, and was registered at the port of Liverpool. Her length was 190.8 feet, her breadth 32 feet, and her depth of hold 18.5 feet, her net registered tonnage being 799.41 tons. She was barque rigged, had a collision bulkhead, and was owned by the Barque "Limache," Limited, of 10, South Castle Street, Liverpool, Mr. Francis Henry Vaughan, of the same address, being the manager. 

Mr. William P. Scott, draughtsman to Messrs. William Gray & Co., produced no calculations for stability, but stated that she would stand up without ballast, and was designed to carry 1340 tons of deadweight on a mean draught of 17 ft. 1 3/4 ins. 

Mr. Vaughan stated that she was last overhauled and docked, and her rigging renewed, at Liverpool, in January, 1900, and left that port in February, 1900, for Coronel and Callao, with a cargo consisting of coal, coke, and general merchandise, the voyage being made in safety. 

The "Limache" left Callao on or about the 17th July, 1900, bound for Tocapilla, in Chili, under the command of Mr. Stephen Amer, who held a certificate of competency as master, No. 010,768, and with a crew of 18 hands all told. Mr. Amer had been master of the ship since May 5th, 1898. 

The "Limache" sailed in ballast, and had on board 32 Spanish tons of sand, shipped at Coronel, in Chili, and 400 Spanish tons of shingle, taken in at Callao, the whole equalling about 390 English tons. In addition, she had 29 tons of fresh water. She was in good order and condition, was well found, and carried boats and life-saving appliances in accordance with the statute. The amount of ballast that she carried upon this occasion appears from a record placed before the Court to have been about equal in quantity to that which she had carried upon previous voyages. For instance, in July, 1899, she made the same passage from Callao to Tocapilla, with about the same amount of ballast that she had on board when she sailed on the voyage which forms the subject of this inquiry. Mr. Vaughan stated that she had always been considered a stiff ship, and the quantity of ballast to be taken was left entirely to the discretion of the master. With regard to the way in which the ballast was secured against shifting, there is evidence that only centre shifting boards were used, and according to the deposition, made before Mr. Alfred St. John, H.B.M. Consul general at Callao, of Mr. William Owen, who was in the employment of the ballast contractors at Callao, and in a position to ascertain the true facts of the case, no other precaution was taken, not even the usual custom of tomming down the ballast from the between deck beams. 

After the "Limache" left Callao on or about July 17th, 1900, she was never heard of again. 

From a deposition made by Mr. William B. Minhinnick, master of the British cable steamship "Retriever," which vessel left Callao for Valparaiso on the 30th July, 1900, it appears that he encountered very bad weather on the 6th, 7th, and 8th days of August, 1900, between latitude 27º 41' S., and longitude 72º 13' W., the position at noon on the 6th, and latitude 27º 38' S., and longitude 71º 30' W., the position at noon on the 8th. A strong southerly gale prevailed with squalls of hurricane force accompanied by a heavy sea. The "Retriever" shipped so much water on the 8th August that she had to be kept before the gale. Mr. Minhinnick further states that a sailing vessel leaving Callao for Tocapilla about the 18th July would probably have encountered the same heavy gale. 

From a deposition made by Mr. Alexander Taylor, master of the American Cable steamship "Relay," which vessel left Callao for a point between Valparaiso and Coquimbo on the 1st August, 1900, it appears that during the passage strong southerly gales, at times increasing to almost hurricane force, accompanied by a heavy sea, were encountered. The decks were constantly flooded with water, and the heaviest weather met with occurred on the 8th August in latitude 27º 54' S., and longitude 72º 4' W. 

Mr. John Rae, a retired master mariner, stated in evidence that he had been acquainted for many years with the west coast of South America, and had never known of or experienced anything approaching to such weather as the "Retriever" and "Relay" met with. 

From the foregoing evidence as to the weather at that period, it is possible that the "Limache" during this voyage from Callao to Tocapilla, encountered weather beyond that ordinarily experienced in those latitudes, and for which she was not prepared. In such case, her loss may be accounted for by the shifting of her ballast. 

At the conclusion of the evidence Mr. Paxton, on behalf of the Board of Trade, submitted the following questions for the opinion of the Court:” 

(1) Was the vessel in good and seaworthy condition as regards hull and equipments when she left Callao in July, 1900, and did she carry the boats and life-saving appliances required by the statute? 
(2) Was the ballast sufficient in quantity and was it properly stowed and secured from shifting? 
(3) Was the vessel properly and sufficiently manned? 
(4) What is the cause of the vessel not having been heard of since she left Callao on or about the 17th July, 1900, bound for Tocapilla? 
(5) What was the value of the vessel and for what amount was she insured? 
(6) What is the nature of the ballast shipped at Callao, and what steps should be taken in order to prevent it from shifting? 

The Court returned the following answers to the questions of the Board of Trade: 

(1) The vessel was in good and seaworthy condition as regards hull and equipments when she left Callao in July, 1900, and she carried the boats and life-saving appliances required by the statute. 

(2) The ballast on board consisted of about 360 tons of shingle and about 30 tons of sand, making a total of about 390 tons. This amount appears to have been less than should have been carried, but in the absence of all evidence as to the stability of the ship, and taking into consideration that she had made previous voyages with a somewhat similar quantity of ballast, the Court is not prepared to say that upon this occasion it was insufficient. It should be mentioned that the "Limache" carried a large supply of fresh water, there being 29 tons on board when she left Callao. The ballast was properly stowed, but the measures necessary for securing this description of ballast were not taken, only centre shifting boards having been used, and no other means adopted. 

(3) The vessel was properly and sufficiently manned. 

(4) From the depositions that have been produced it is evident that unusually bad weather prevailed early in August in the area which the missing vessel would have to traverse, and the Court is of opinion that it is quite possible that in consequence of such bad weather the ballast, which had not been properly secured, shifted, and the "Limache" capsized. 

(5) The value of the vessel as stated in the policy was £6,000, for which amount she was insured. 

(6) The ballast shipped at Callao is shingle, and with such a dangerous description of ballast as this, centre shifting boards should invariably be used, and also wing shifting boards when practicable. Further, bulkheads should be built at the forward and after ends of the ballast and brought up to the same height, to prevent the ballast running forward or aft. Finally, the ballast should be securely tommed down. 

The following is a list of the officers and crew of the missing barque "Limache," as taken from the books of H.B.M. Consulate at Callao:

Name. 

Rank.

Stephen Amer Master.
J. Hadwin First Mate.
J. G. Tilston Boatswain.
D. Nordling Carpenter.
Thomas McManu Sailmaker.
E. Miller Cook and Steward.
G. Sartori Seaman.
J. Svenson Do.
Hans Gimmer Do.
Paul Hardy Do.
Otto Menke Do.
Peter Spehid Do.
B. Kerr Do.
A. Hamilton Do.
K. Otto Do.
Sylvanus Ockleston Apprentice.
W. Wilson Do.
George W. Clarke Do. 

W. J. STEWART, Judge. We concur in the above Report. W. F. CABORNE, G. T. H. BOYES, Assessors.
Liverpool, 19th October, 1901. 

(Issued in London by the Board of Trade on the 8th day of November, 1901.) 

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