Gai Brodtmann (Canberra, Australian Labor Party) Share this | Hansard source

I too rise to speak on the motion put forward by the member for Dawson and I congratulate him for the motion. I would also congratulate my colleagues the member for Herbert and the member for Chifley for speaking on this private member's motion. It is great that you have drawn our attention to the tragedy and wish to extend the sympathies of the chamber to the families and friends of those who suffered in that tragedy.

Just on the pronunciation—'Yongala' or 'Yon-gala'. Can I go for Yongala? We have the same thing in Canberra. Some people call it 'Can-berra' and it is actually 'Canberra'. I must admit that I am not necessarily the most knowledgeable person on Australia's shipwrecks .However, the story of the SS Yongala is a fascinating and important part of Australia's maritime heritage. Those opposite and also my colleague here, the member for Chifley, will probably wonder why the member for Canberra is speaking on such an issue, given that Canberra is landlocked. I remind those in the chamber that the division of Canberra also includes Norfolk Island and that the electorate of my colleague the member for Fraser also includes Jervis Bay, because, when Canberra was set up as a city in 1927, every Australian city had to have a port. That is why we have Jervis Bay. That is why the member for Fraser has his own little part of the electorate down in beautiful Jervis Bay.

On 14 March 1911, the SS Yongala embarked on its 99th voyage in Australian waters, under the command of Captain William Knight. It would be his last voyage. On 23 March that year, the Yongala departed Mackay at 1.40 pm with 617 tons of cargo, 49 passengers and 73 crew bound for Townsville, but it never made its destination. One hundred and twenty-two passengers and crew lost their lives when the ship sank in a cyclone 12 nautical miles off the coast of Cape Bowling Green in the Great Barrier Reef on 23 March 1911.

The exact details of the sinking are to this day unknown, and they may never be known. A board of inquiry following the sinking could not render a judgment due to the lack of eyewitness evidence. It was believed at the time that the Yongala hit the reef or a rock and sank. Present research suggests that, given the absence of life rafts, it happened quickly. What is known is that the Yongala, absent modern-day technology such as radar, sailed blindly into a cyclone. If she had had a wireless—which was waiting on the wharves in Cairns—it could have warned her of the impending bad weather.

By the time of World War Two, the Yongala and its fate had all but faded from memory. In fact, it had become the subject of ghost stories, becoming a mysterious ship that travelled the waters around Townsville. How exciting! It was not until 1947 and the end of the war that the Navy gave serious consideration to an obstruction that had been noted some years earlier. The HMAS Lachlan determined that this obstruction was most likely a large steamer, but no further investigation was made. The location of the Yongala was only discovered in 1958, when divers recovered a safe whose only identification was a serial number, the contents of the safe having long ago been destroyed. However, further investigation of the serial number revealed this safe to be the one installed in the purser's cabin on the Yongala during its construction in 1903.

The story of the Yongala does not end with its sinking and rediscovery. Out of this tragedy a century ago, a new life and purpose has emerged for the wreck of the Yongala. Today it acts as an artificial reef and major dive location, bringing tourism to the area. It is a microcosm of the greater barrier reef, and it is said that it has a greater spectrum of corals and fish than can be seen on the barrier reef. These features have made the Yongala one of Australia's most popular destinations for divers, with over 10,000 divers visiting the wreck every year. At 110 metres long, the Yongala is one of the largest intact historic shipwrecks in the world and the largest in Australia. The wreck is a significant part of Australia's maritime history, and I urge all Australians to learn more about it and our maritime heritage.

In closing, I would like to extend my sympathies and those of the people of Canberra to the families and friends of those who perished in the sinking of the SS Yongala 100 years ago. This significant part of Australia's heritage is protected by the Historic Shipwrecks Act and it is a heritage site, so it has a very special place in our hearts.

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