Heroes of the Goodwin SandsTreanor, Thomas Stanley
History
Heroes of the Goodwin Sands
Treanor, Thomas Stanley
Goodwin Sands (England); Lifesaving -- Great Britain; Shipwrecks
The lifeboat anchored and veered down as usual to the stranded vessel,
and the coxswain got on board: then morning came, and with it low
water, when there would be not more than two feet of water round the
Mandalay and the lifeboat, which latter was at that depth of water just
aground. The lifeboat remained by the vessel, to insure the safety of
the crew in case of possible change of weather. About midday, as the
tide began to rise over the Goodwins, the lifeboat and her crew were
employed by the captain to do their best to save the vessel.
The lifeboat was now on the port bow of the Mandalay, which lay fast on
the Sands with her head to the S.W., and the coxswains laid out a kedge
or small anchor, with warp attached, to the N.E., five of the
lifeboatmen remaining in the lifeboat with Roberts, the coxswain, to
direct the course of action on the Sands, while Hanger, the second
coxswain, went on board with seven lifeboatmen to direct operations
there, and to heave on the warp, in order to move the vessel. Just
then a tug-boat hove in sight, and as the sea was calm, she backed in
and made fast her hawser to the Mandalay, at the captain's desire.
Though all on board heaved their best on the warp, and the tug-boat
Bantam Cock made every effort, they were unable to move the Mandalay
from her perilous position, and the tug-boat then gave the matter up as
a bad job and later in the evening went away.
It was now about 3 p.m., and the tide was again falling when the lugger
Champion, of Ramsgate, appeared and anchored in the swatchway spoken of
above. Some of her crew also went on board the Mandalay, and under the
directions and advice of Roberts and Hanger, the two Deal coxswains,
who were determined to win, all hands turned to throwing overboard the
cargo to lighten the vessel. They thus jettisoned about two hundred
tons of iron sleepers--working at this job till midnight--and threw it
over the right or starboard side of the ship, where it lay in a great
mass. It was never recovered, though every effort was afterwards made
to save it. It had been engulfed and disappeared in the Goodwins'
capacious maw.
Public-domain text, read in full here on John Shaqi.
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