RMS Quetta
Details
Year Built: 1881
Built: By by Denny Bros & Co, Dumbarton, Scotland on order from the British India Steam Navigation Company at a cost of £70119.
Description of Ship: A passenger/cargo vessel, the Quetta was a single screw iron steamship, rigged as a 3 masted schooner. The vessel was powered by a 490 nominal horsepower steam engine which was capable of a speed of 13.5 knots.
Gross tonnage: 3302 tons
Length: 380 feet (115.9 meters)
Breadth: 40 feet (12.2 meters)
Depth: 30.5 feet (9.3 meters)
Location of Shipwreck: Adolphus Channel, Torres Strait
History
Originally designed for the London-Calcutta-London run, from 1884 the steamship serviced the Queensland Royal Mail line between Brisbane and London ,via Torres Strait. In addition to the Royal Mail, she regularly carried passengers and general cargo.
Under the command of Captain Alfred Sanders, the Quetta departed Brisbane on Tuesday 18 February 1890 with Torres Strait Pilot, Captain Eldred Keatinge on board and, after calling at several ports along the coast, arrived at Cooktown 24 hours behind schedule.
The evening of 28th February was clear and calm and Captain Keatinge was keen to use the Albany Passage to Thursday Island, which although narrow and subject to strong currents, was the faster route which he had safely navigated 13 times previously. However Captain Sanders had been directed by his superiors to use the broader and deeper Adolphus Channel and insisted on this route instead. At 9 pm the vessel was well into Adolphus Channel, five nautical miles east of Cape York and the flooding tide was assisting her on her way north. At about 9:15 pm, a tremble was felt through the ship and a muffled grating noise was heard from below. The Quetta had hit an uncharted rock pinnacle in Adolphus Channel and despite having been built with seven water tight compartments, the Quetta sank within 3 minutes. The propeller lifted above the surface before the Quetta went under.
Some of the life boats were dragged under with the ship and others were smashed. Only two boats remained usable and were rowed to Adolphus Island with 80 survivors, some four miles north of the wreck. The rest of the survivors clung to wreckage, overturned lifeboats and bales of wool, making for whatever land they could.
133 passengers and crew of the total of 290 people on board were drowned. Only one out of 25 children and only four out of 40 women survived the disaster.
The findings of a Marine Board of Enquiry cleared both Captain Sanders and the Torres Strait Pilot Keatinge of any blame as the Quetta had hit an uncharted rock.
All Souls Memorial Quetta Church was built on Thursday Island as a lasting dedication to those who perished in the tragedy, and it contains the ships bell, compass bowl, a riding lamp, a life buoy, decking salvaged from the Quetta forms some of its pews.
Diving Information
The following information is based on personal experience. Always check with authorities about local conditions before diving.
Diving Accessibility Rating: Difficult
Best Diving Season: Winter months and during northerlies
Max depth: 24 – 26 meters
Getting There: From Cairns or Thursday Island
Permits: No permit required.
Other comments: Dive only at the turn of the tides as currents are exceptionally strong when ebbing and flooding.