Loch Ard

Er was een weg te volgen met de verhaal borden. Dit stond op signs 2 en 3. Ik weet niet of er meer waren, maar misschien staat het op wikipedia. Ik zal het wel even opzoeken wat er met de 2 is gebeurd.

Captain Gibb set full sail to turn Loch Ard from danger, but wind and current carried the ship towards the cliffs. Sails were then lowered and anchors dropped, but they dragged across the ocean floor.

In a final desperate attempt, the anchors were cut and sails again raised. The ship began to make headway; nearly clearing the cliffs, but the bow struck a shallow reef and stuck fast.

Water flooded into the cabins. With each swell, the yardarms smashed against the cliff face bringing pieces of mast and rock smashing down. Waves swept across the deck, hampering attempts to launch the lifeboats.

Paralysed with fear, the passengers clung to one another and, amidst their screams and cries. The ship slipped into the silent depths below.

Only two of the 54 people on board the Loch Ard survived: 18 year old Eva Carmicheal, one of a family of eight Irish immigrants, and ship’s apprentice Tom Pearce.

After the ship went down Tom drifted for hours under an upturned lifeboat. When the tide turned at dawn, he was swept, bruised and battered, into the gorge. Shortly after reaching the beach he heard cries from the water, and saw Eva clinging to a spar.

Tom quickly sawn out and struggled fro an hour to bring her to the beach. He sheltered her in the cave and revived her with some brandy, which had washed ashore. Then, exhausted, they both slept.

Upon waking, Tom climbed out of the gorge to search for help. He came upon two stockmen from nearby Glenample Station. The owner, Hugh Gibson, made immediate arrangements to get Eva out of the gorge and back to safety of the homestead.