In January 1854, the ship which was
bound for Australia left Liverpool
with about 600 people on board. Many of the passengers were Irish people who
were hoping to make a new life for themselves in Australia. The ship was not
long out of Liverpool when a
gale arose. The crew members were not able to manage the sails properly, and
this was the first sign that the crew would not be able to cope with an
emergency. Then there was a fog, and the compasses did not work properly with
the result that the ship was just being driven across the Irish
Sea. At midnight,
one of the lookouts shouted, “breakers on the starboard bow”. The ship was
heading towards the cliffs at Lambay, and the crew rushed to let go of the
sails. Two anchors were dropped, but the ship ran on to a reef of rocks to the
east of Lambay. The impact was incredible, and the vessel was shaken from stem
to stern.
In January 1854, the ship which was
bound for Australia left Liverpool
with about 600 people on board. Many of the passengers were Irish people who
were hoping to make a new life for themselves in Australia. The ship was not
long out of Liverpool when a
gale arose. The crew members were not able to manage the sails properly, and
this was the first sign that the crew would not be able to cope with an
emergency. Then there was a fog, and the compasses did not work properly with
the result that the ship was just being driven across the Irish
Sea. At midnight,
one of the lookouts shouted, “breakers on the starboard bow”. The ship was
heading towards the cliffs at Lambay, and the crew rushed to let go of the
sails. Two anchors were dropped, but the ship ran on to a reef of rocks to the
east of Lambay. The impact was incredible, and the vessel was shaken from stem
to stern.