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HMASKarangi

Coordinates:33°50′11″S151°04′50″E/ 33.8363379°S 151.0804902°E/-33.8363379; 151.0804902(Wreck of HMAS Karangi)
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HMASKarangi
History
Australia
NameKarangi
NamesakeKarangi, New South Wales
Laid down5 February 1941
Launched16 August 1941
Commissioned22 December 1941
Fatepartially scrapped, abandoned at Homebush Bay
General characteristics
Class and typeBar-class
Tonnage768 tons
Length173.9 ft (53 m)
Beam32.3 ft (10 m)
Depth11.3 ft (3 m)
Armament

HMASKarangiwas a Kangaroo-classboom defence vesseloperated by theRoyal Australian Navy(RAN) duringWorld War II.The third of three ships constructed by theCockatoo Docks and Engineering CompanyatCockatoo Island Dockyardbased on the BritishBar-class,Karangiwas launched on 16 August 1941. After the war, the ship remained in active service with the RAN and played a small but key role in theBritish nuclear testingprogram. She was placed in reserve in 1953. In 1955,Karangiwas reactivated and served for another two years until May 1957 and was eventually sold for scrap in 1966.

Operational history

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World War II

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After commissioning,Karangisailed from Sydney on 26 December 1941 forDarwinviaTownsville.On arrival in Darwin, the ship was employed in working anti-submarineboom gates,allowing allied shipping to pass in and out of the harbour during daylight hours.[1]On 19 February 1942, the ship was present during theBombing of Darwin,returning fire on Japanese aircraft while escaping damage.[1][2]For her role in the defence of Darwin,Karangiwas awarded thebattle honour"Darwin 1942–43".[3][4]The ship remained assigned to boom maintenance duties in Darwin until 1944, before sailing forFremantlewhere she remained until the end of the war.[5]

Post-war

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After the decommissionedRoyal Netherlands NavysubmarineHNLMS K XIsank inFremantle Harbour,Karangiwas used to raise the hulk as part of the salvage operation in early 1946.[6]In 1947, the ship was tasked to search for a decommissionednaval minethat had not sunk when dumped at sea and was adrift nearRottnest Island.Initially the mine was located byKarangiand her crew unsuccessfully attempted to sink it with rifle fire. Contact was lost in darkness, with the ship continuing to search for the next three days, but unable to locate the mine a second time.[7]

During 1950,Karangicalled on a number of Western Australian ports, embarking local Navy reserve volunteers for training cruises. For many veterans of World War II, this was the first time they had been back on an active navy ship since their war service.[8]From 9 - 27 November of that year,Karangiembarked party of four British scientists and military officers atOnslowto conduct a detailed survey of theMontebello Islands.Identified as a potential site for futurenuclear weapons testing,the operation was conducted under conditions of secrecy.[9][10]

In February 1951, she was dispatched to assist theamphibious landing shipHMASLabuan,which had broken down at sea while returning from theAntarcticcarrying a scientific expedition.KarangitowedLabaun,which was running low on fresh water back to Fremantle for repairs.[11]On 7 January 1952, while alongside at Fremantle's North Wharf, afeedwater heatertank exploded inKarangi's engine room, injuring six sailors. One of those injured had been standing above decks and was struck by shrapnel receiving lacerations to his face when a skylight over the engine room shattered and was taken to theRepatriation General Hospital.[6][12]

Operation Hurricane

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In December 1951, theUnited Kingdomselected the Montebello Islands as the site of its first nuclear test, designated "Operation Hurricane",to take place before the end of 1952. In preparation for the arrival of the Britishtask force,Karangiand sister shipHMASKoalalaid moorings and marker buoys in the islands. In April,Karangiagain sailed to Onslow, accompanied by thecorvetteHMASMildura,where the two ships supportedNo. 5 Airfield Construction Squadron RAAFand a detachment ofRoyal Engineersto construct infrastructure needed for the tests.[13][14]The Officer in Charge of naval operations in Western Australia recommended to the naval board thatKarangi's efforts laying moorings in record time during July, without the support of a dockyard were worthy of commendation. The ship remained in the area until August, when she sailed for Sydney forrefit.[15]Karangiwas not present when an atomic bomb was detonated on 3 October.

Return to service and Operation Mosaic

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Now under the command of Lieutenant Commander Richard Taudevin,Karangisailed toWilliamstown Dockyardin March of 1953 following her refit. She remained there until mid-May due to issues with her engines, before arriving in Fremantle in June.[15]In November, the ship again visited the Montebello Islands to recover equipment in proximity to Trimouille Island and the remains ofHMSPlym.During this voyageKarangi's crew were fed fish from the caught in waters around the test site and were permitted to venture ashore for recreation.[16][15]On her return to Fremantle, a contaminatedLand Roverwhich had been taken ashore on Tremouille Island was offloaded and driven on public roads toHMAS Leeuwin.[15][17]

Karangicontinued to operate in Western Australian waters and around the Montebellos until September 1954, supportingWAPET's oil exploration activities onBarrow Island,still within the exclusion zone.[18]The ship was thenpaid offinto reserve, but was reactivated in April 1955. Following the announcement of further nuclear tests in Montebellos,Karangisailed withHMASWarregoin October 1955. Once again, during October and November the ship laid moorings and conducted surveys in preparation for the tests, designated Operation Mosaic.[9]As part of Task Group 308.2,Karangiremained in the Montebellos and was present near the naval base camp at Onslow, approx 140 km (87 mi) away, at the time of the second Mosaic detonation.[19]

Decommissioning and fate

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The overgrown hulk ofKarangiin Homebush Bay in 2010

On 31 May 1957,Karangiwas again paid off to reserve. She remained moored at Athol Bight in Sydney Harbour in an unmaintained state until being identified for disposal in 1964. She was sold on 8 September 1966 to L. Bookluck of Enmore and the superstructure was removed before the hulk was abandoned atHomebush Bayin 1970.[20]

The hulk remains at33°50′11″S151°04′50″E/ 33.8363379°S 151.0804902°E/-33.8363379; 151.0804902(Wreck of HMAS Karangi).Formerly surrounded by industrial uses, redevelopment of the area, including the adjacentSydney Olympic Parkhas seen renewed interest in the remains ofKarangiand other vessels in the bay as a minor tourist attraction and popular location for photography.[21][22]

Citations

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  1. ^ab"A day Harry Dale will never forget".Anzac Portal.Department of Veterans' Affairs. 8 January 2002.Retrieved19 February2024.
  2. ^"HMAS Karangi".Royal Australian Navy.Retrieved19 February2024.
  3. ^"Navy Marks 109th Birthday With Historic Changes To Battle Honours".Royal Australian Navy. 1 March 2010. Archived fromthe originalon 13 June 2011.Retrieved23 December2012.
  4. ^"Royal Australian Navy Ship/Unit Battle Honours"(PDF).Royal Australian Navy. 1 March 2010. Archived fromthe original(PDF)on 14 June 2011.Retrieved23 December2012.
  5. ^Pat Forster."Fixed Naval Defences in Darwin Harbour 1939-1945".Royal Australian Navy.Retrieved19 February2024.
  6. ^abTrevor Weavor; Vic Jeffrey (September 1990)."Boom Defence Vessels".Naval Historical Society of Australia.Naval Historical Review.Retrieved19 February2024.
  7. ^"MISSING MINE MAY BE NORTH OF SCARBOROUGH: FUTILE SEARCH".The Sunday Times.Perth, WA. 21 September 1947. p. 14.Retrieved20 February2024– via National Library of Australia.
  8. ^"R.A.N.R. MEN OUT ON WEEK-END CRUISE".The Sunday Times.Perth, WA. 19 March 1950. p. 5.Retrieved20 February2024– via National Library of Australia.
  9. ^abPetar Djokovic."Semaphore: Operations HURRICANE and MOSAIC".Royal Australian Navy.Retrieved20 February2024.
  10. ^"TWO YEARS PLANNING FOR MONTE BELLO ATOMIC WEAPONS TEST".The Canberra Times.Canberra, ACT. 20 August 1952. p. 5.Retrieved20 February2024– via National Library of Australia.
  11. ^"Salt Water In Fuel Caused Labaun's Engines To Stop".The Daily News.Perth, WA. 1 March 1951. p. 3.Retrieved20 February2024– via National Library of Australia.
  12. ^"NAVY PUZZLED BY EXPLOSION".The Daily News.Perth, WA. 8 January 1952. p. 1,2.Retrieved20 February2024– via National Library of Australia.
  13. ^"Islands Off W.A." Atom Site "".The Advertiser.Adelaide, SA. 22 April 1952. p. 1.Retrieved20 February2024– via National Library of Australia.
  14. ^"The Argus (Melbourne, Vic), Tuesday, 14 April 1953, p.16".Retrieved9 August2010.
  15. ^abcd"AWM78 183/3 - January 1951 - November 1953".Reports of Proceedings, HMA Ships and Establishments.Australian War Memorial.Retrieved10 February2024.
  16. ^Aidan Windle (9 October 2002)."Every cloud had a plutonium lining".The Age.Retrieved20 February2024.
  17. ^Kayleen Bell; Steve Grant (1 June 2018)."ATOMIC RIDDLE UNDER NAVY BASE".The Perth Voice Interactive.Retrieved19 February2024.
  18. ^"WAPET TO SEEK OIL AT ATOM BOMB SITE".The Daily News.Perth, WA. 22 October 1954. p. 1.Retrieved21 February2024– via National Library of Australia.
  19. ^"Report of the Royal Commission into British Nuclear Tests in Australia"(PDF).November 1985.Retrieved22 March2024.
  20. ^Blaxell, Gregory (May 2008)."The Wrecks of Homebush Bay".Afloat.Archived fromthe originalon 5 May 2013.Retrieved25 November2010.
  21. ^Brook, Benedict (11 June 2017)."The bizarre hidden shipwrecks of Sydney Harbour where nature has taken over".News.au.Retrieved22 March2024.
  22. ^Susie Baber (12 March 2022)."Homebush Bay Shipwrecks".Escape and Explore.

References

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