Authority finds missing coal vessel that killed 32 workers

A lost mineral transporter has been discovered more than a century after it took the lives of dozens of employees.

Authorities recently examined what was left of the SS Nemesis coal vessel. The 73-metre iron hulled steamship had tried to carry coal from Newcastle to Melbourne when it vanished in stormy conditions during 1904.

Exactly 120 years later the Commonwealth Scientific and Industrial Research Organisation (CSIRO) investigated reports that Subsea Professional Marine Services had found the wreck 28km offshore from Wollongong.

CSIRO’s RV Investigator ship performed detailed seafloor mapping and camera examination on the sunken vessel, 160 metres beneath the surface. Advanced multibeam echosounders, bathymetry and camera survey data helped identify the SS Nemesis. The coal transporter was manned by 32 crew members, none of whom survived.

“This discovery and confirmation of the wreck’s identity … may offer some solace to the families and friends of those who perished onboard as it provides a location at which they can mourn their loved ones,” Heritage New South Wales senior maritime archaeologist Brad Duncan said in a public statement.

“We hope this helps bring some closure,” CSIRO voyage manager Jason Fazey added.

Loved ones and friends are invited to contact Heritage NSW by emailing heritagemailbox@environment.nsw.gov.au