The Hurricane (1853-1869)
The fast sleek clipper, Hurricane was built in 1853 to transport cargo and take passengers between Liverpool and Melbourne. It was considered a safe, modern ship for its time. A newspaper item published just after the ship was built described the Hurricane as, "well calculated for sailing, stability and stowage and altogether a finer specimen of iron ship was never launched". The Hurricane made many successful voyages to Melbourne, but on 21 April 1869, it was wrecked while being guided through Port Phillip heads. Today, the Hurricane is popular recreational dive. Although only a few of the ships original features can be seen, the remains of the vessel have formed and artificial reef which supports and abundance of marine life. Ships Construction
In fact the ship could make the journey between Liverpool and Melbourne in just 60 days. At the time, this was considered quite a feat. The Hurricane had three iron masts and was designed with watertight compartments cemented throughout the ship. The ship was built with high bulwarks - the high wooden planking along the sides of the ship to prevent seas washing the deck and crew and passengers from falling or being washed overboard. The ship was also built with spar decking - raised decks, like narrow corridors above the upper decking. This enabled the crew to move across the ship during heavy seas to handle the rigging without risk of being washed overboard. The ship had a gross tonnage of 1198 tons. It measured 214.9ft (65.4m) in length, 30.7ft (9.35m) in breadth and had a depth of 20ft (6m). Cargo and PassengersThe ship carried cargo to supply the growing settlements of Port Phillip bay area and country Victoria.On its final voyage its cargo included canary seed, whiskey, malt, bottled beer, glassware, caustic soda, saddlery, wire, nails, leather and blankets. On its return voyages, it usually took a cargo of wool, wheat, gold, mutton and beef and passengers returning to England. Accommodation on board the ship for paying passengers was supposedly quite luxurious and was said to be "unsurpassed by any ship in harbour". Intending passengers were invited to inspect the facilities. The Final Voyage of the HurricaneThe ship left Liverpool on the 12th January, 1869 under the command of Captain Johnston. It carried a hefty load of over 2,000 tons of cargo as well as three first class passengers, 16 steerage passengers and 28 crew.The ship arrived off Port Phillip Heads on the 21st April, 1869 where a pilot came on board to steer the vessel through the rip. As the ship sailed past Lonsdale, it appeared to graze some rocks, as the ship was in a designated shipping lane, there was no cause for concern. Just as a precaution, the pumps were operated in the hold anyway. The anchors were released and the ship changed course for Chapel Bay but it was to late. Before pumping could begin, the ship began to sink. Passengers and crew were ordered to lifeboats as the ship sank in seven metres of water. Fortunately, no lives were lost and the majority of the ships cargo, anchors, and other fittings were recovered by divers and later sold at auction. In the 1870's, a green wreck buoy warned sailors of the wrecks presence. In the 1960s, the wreck was considered a hazard to shipping and blasted with explosives. Check this wreck on the Shipwreck Map
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