Shipwrecks
US 'Cities Service Boston'
aground on the rocks at Bass Point
The United States tanker 'Cities Service Boston'
ran aground at Bass Point, Shellharbour on the 16th May 1943. Despite the very
rough seas, soldiers from the 6th Aust M.G. BN AIF rescued the entire crew of
62 Americans, with the tragic loss of four Australian soldiers. They were Sgt W
F Allen, Pte G W Pitt, Pte R J Snell and Pte B H Symons. A
memorial dedicated to their bravery on the 8th September 1968 stands on
the northern side of Bass Point.
The wooden steamer 'Kiltobranks' wrecked at Shellharbour 1924
Built
in NSW in 1908, the 'Kiltobranks' was a wooden steamer, 272 tons gross, 148
tons net, length 133.7 ft, beam 28 ft, depth 8.8 ft. Fully loaded with blue
metal, 'Kiltobranks' ran aground on south Shellharbour Beach on 21st February,
1924. She was endeavouring to reach a swinging buoy used for berthing during a
north-easterly wind when she went aground.
The ship 'Troy D' grounded at Bass Point 1995
The
bulk carrier 'Troy D' was scheduled to pick up a load of blue metal from the
Pioneer Quarry at Bass Point. The ship approached the jetty from the port side
facing the quarry, overshot the jetty and grounded on rocks to the west. The
crew were able to winch the carrier off the rocks the next day, after a fishing
trawler towed the anchor out to sea. Fortunately the sea was calm and the ship
only suffered minor damage to the rudder. It had to be towed back to Sydney.
