Kyarra

History
Australia
Name	Kyarra
Owner	Australian United Steam Navigation Co. Ltd.
Port of registry	Fremantle, Western Australia
Builder	William Denny and Brothers,Dumbarton
Launched	2 February 1903
Fate	Sunk on 26 May 1918
General characteristics
Tonnage	6,953GRT 4,383NRT
Length	415 ft 5 in (126.62 m)
Beam	52 ft 2 in (15.90 m)
Draught	31 ft 5 in (9.58 m)
Propulsion	2 × 375 hp (280 kW)triple expansion engines
Speed	15.4knots(28.5 km/h; 17.7 mph)
Capacity	2,600 tons general cargo 286 passengers (126 first class & 160 second class)
Armament	4.7 in (120 mm) gun

TheKyarrawas a 6,953-ton (7,065 t) steel cargo andpassenger luxury liner,built in Scotland in 1903 for theAustralian United Steam Navigation Company.

Construction and launch

TheKyarrawas built atDumbartonbyWilliam Denny and Brothers,andlaunchedon 2 February 1903 on theRiver Clyde,Scotland.Her name was taken from the aboriginal word for a small fillet ofpossumfur.

Career

For ten yearsKyarrasailed betweenFremantle, Western Australia,where she wasregistered,andSydney, New South Walescarrying cargo and passengers. She sailed under the flag of theUnited Steam Navigation CompanyLimited of London.

On 6 November 1914 she was requisitioned inBrisbaneand converted into ahospital ship(HMAT A.55Kyarra) for the purpose of transporting the Australian medical units to Egypt. The hull was painted white with a large red cross on the side. She carried the full staff and equipment of the Nos. 1 and 2 General Hospitals, the Nos. 1 and 2 Stationary Hospitals, and the No. 1 Clearing Hospital.

In March 1915,Kyarrawas converted into atroop transport.Commonwealth control ended 4 January 1918.

Wireless telegraphy

In October 1911, the then wireless operator,Sidney Jeffryesachieved brief fame for the ship which was reported in theSydney Sun:"Record by the Kyarra. Mr. S. H. Jeffryes, wireless operator on the A.U.S.N. Co.'s Kyarra, which was fitted up by the Australasian Wireless Co., Ltd., has put up a record for overland wireless messages between ships. His report says:—" Coming into Adelaide on the 18th Instant, distant from Adelaide 140 miles (230 km), I picked up the Cooma. This exceeds the records of that of the Cooma and Riverlna four months ago from Townsville to the Bight by a small margin of about 40 miles (64 km). The conditions were absolutely normal on the night, a fact which could hardly be said of the occasion four months ago, which was a night on which every operator got good distances, myself and the Levuka getting 2,100 miles (3,400 km). It is claimed by the Cooma and Riverina that the distance was 2,300 miles (3,700 km). This is not so, as direct it is not more than 1,500 miles (2,400 km), but even this is equivalent to almost twice as much by sea. I thus claim to have established an Australasian record for transmission and reception over land, beating the previous one by 40 miles (64 km). "Jeffryes was later appointed wireless operator for theAustralian Antarctic Expedition.

Sinking

On 5 May 1918,Kyarrawas sailing fromTilburytoDevonportto embark civilian passengers and take on full general cargo. However she was sunk by the German submarineUB-57nearSwanagewith the loss of six lives on 26 May 1918.

The captain ofUB-57,OberleutnantJohannes Lohs,died at sea, aged 29. Lohs sailed fromZeebruggeon 3 August 1918. The last contact he made with base was on the evening of 14 August 1918. At the timeUB-57was homeward bound. She was believed to be in the area of the Sandiette Bank, east of theStraits of Dover.It is thoughtUB-57hit amine.Lohs' body subsequently washed ashore was buried in theYsselsteyn German war cemetery,Netherlands.

SSKyarrawas discovered in the late 1960s by a member of the Kingston and ElmbridgeBritish Sub-Aqua Club,which later bought the wreck. The wreck, which lies one mile (1.6 km) offAnvil Point,remains popular with divers.

In honour of this vessel, a house was named in Ipswich, Queensland, built in 1920.

External links

• UK Diving: WRECKS: Kyarra