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The Brisbane Courier, 12th July 1893 :
“The schooner Samoa was wrecked on Kiola Beach early on Thursday morning, and the crew were saved with the utmost difficulty.”
The Brisbane Courier, 15th July 1893 :
“THE LOSS OF THE SCHOONER
SAMOA.
“A THRILLING EXPERIENCE.
(From the S. D. Telegraph of Wednesday.)
“The crew of the Sydney schooner Samoa, which was wrecked at Kiola, on the south coast last week, reached Sydney yesterday morning by the steamer Peterborough, and give a thrilling story of the loss of the vessel and their escape from the wreck.
“The chief officer, in relating the experience of the crew, said that the vessel left Sydney on 30th June, and reached Kiola on 2nd July. Kiola is an open roadstead sixteen miles south of Ulladulla, and it is only in fine weather that vessels can load there. We arrived, the weather was fine, and went well until Wednesday, at noon. We had then 35,000ft. of hardwood on board. At the hour mentioned the barometer had fallen to 29deg. 70min., and the sea was gradually making, though there was little or no wind. So rough was the sea in the afternoon that we were unable to load, and all hands set to work to secure things in anticipation of a bad time. At 9 p.m. the men turned in, the captain deciding to keep the first watch. The vessel was now riding heavily, and at midnight the stern moorings parted under the heavy strain. All hands were called, and having sent down the cargo gear, coir springs were put on the head moorings, the head sails being set at the same time to ease the strain on the moorings. The wind was now light from south-west, and the sea making fast, whilst the vessel was labouring and straining very heavily. At 2.45 a.m. on Thursday one of the springs parted, and shortly after the second one went, all the strain now being on the coir stop, which was fast to the foremast. At 3.15 a.m. we were alarmed by the report that the head moorings had gone five fathoms outside the hawser pipe.
“Orders were given for the men to put on lifebelts, the captain calling out ‘Every man for himself.’ The foresail was set, but to no purpose, for the ship gradually drifted towards the reef, and at 3.45 a.m. struck with a frightful crash, the seas washing over her and threatening to sweep everything before them. We clung to the wreck for our bare lives. It was a terrible experience, hanging on and not knowing what moment would be our last. I shall never forget it. Soon after the vessel first struck the waves lifted her, and she bumped over the reef and went over on her bilge, full of water, so that we had to hold on to stand upright. The vessel now having slued broadside on to the beach every sea broke over her. It was apparent that the vessel could not hold together long, and we stood there, cold and miserable, in anticipation of the worst happening. At 5 a.m. the foremast came down with a terrific crash, taking with it the mainmast, and then the vessel seemed to break up almost completely. Fortunately for us, the monkey-poop remained above water, and we all scrambled on to it. We hung to the mainsheet to prevent ourselves being swept into the mountainous sea. The waves broke high over us, and we were almost completely exhausted. The people from the mill ashore could be seen, but having nothing but a heaving line we knew they could not give us any assistance with such a terrible sea running. At 6 o’clock one of the men named Johnson, despite the advice of the captain, jumped overboard. Almost immediately he was caught by a huge wave and swept on to the beach, the people on shore rushing in and just saving him from the drawback. He was completely exhausted, but soon revived under the kind treatment of the residents. It was now daylight, and, as there was no prospect of assistance from the shore, the mate jumped on some wreckage and made a desperate attempt to heave a line. The line fell short, and the officer was washed on the beach by the next wave.
“There were still five men clinging to what was left of the wreck, and as they could not possibly hold on much longer the people ashore, at great risk, determined to make another attempt to get a line to the wreck. Their plucky effort was successful. The remainder of the shipwrecked people were then hauled ashore, the captain being the last to leave. All were in a terrible state, and several, including the captain, are still suffering.
“The crew speak highly of the kind treatment received at the hands of the people at Kiola.”
Otago Witness (New Zealand), 3rd August 1893 :
“The following are the names of the shipwrecked people : - T. Brooks (captain), Henry Hinde (chief officer), R. Jennings (cook), Victor Nonstrom, L. Grubert, J. Nelson, and J. Johnson (seamen). Captain Brooks is still at Kiola. The crew lost all their effects in the wreck; in fact it is stated that only the lower masts were saved, and they were washed up on the beach. The Samoa was a schooner of 163 tons, owned by Messrs Godlet and Smith. She was uninsured. Only one of the crew - Mr. Hinde - was a member of the National Shipwreck Relief Society.”
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