If this wheelhouse goes, we’re dead! – John Howard

Darwin Harbour 24th December 1974

“If this wheelhouse goes, we’re Dead

Forward:

This is the story of two young people’s experience of the fury of Cyclone Tracy on Darwin Harbour.  John Howard and Lynda Burke met in August 1974 when Lynda joined the crew of the NR Robinson. They soon became inseparable and married in February 1975. They have four children and nine grand children. John and Lynda currently live in Victoria.

Background:

Lynda and I were working as deckhands on the NR Buckingham, one of the many prawn trawlers owned by Northern Research operating out of Darwin Harbour in the early 70’s. The Buckingham had a new crew of six, Greg the Skipper and his girlfriend, (we can’t remember her name) Geronimo, the engineer, (we can only remember his nickname) Tony, (another deckhand) Lynda and myself. Some time on 24th December 1974 the Harbourmaster ordered all boats to leave the wharf to seek shelter; a standard practice at that time to protect both wharf and boats from damage should the harbour become rough.

Heading for shelter, Not!:

The Buckingham was in for crew refit and not prepared for sea. Lynda and I were working on the boat but not living onboard at this time; we were staying at a residence near the corner of Cavenagh and Daly Street. Like most people in Darwin, we weren’t overly concerned about the threat of a cyclone actually hitting, more like missing as Cyclone Selma did a few weeks before; we thought we would be out for the night. Lynda and I went into town to purchase some supplies; we can remember buying fish and chips, beer and wine. I’m sure we bought some other food but can’t remember what. We do remember going into Tom the Cheap Grocer in Cavenagh Street, perhaps to grab some ice and other supplies. Tony went with the Skipper of the NR Demon as he was short on crew which left us with five onboard the Buckingham. Sometime that afternoon, Lynda and I called our parents from the Public Pay Phone on the wharf to let them know what we were doing and to wish them a Merry Christmas. We remember the weather being overcast and just beginning to rain while on the phone. It was late  afternoon early evening when we left the wharf and headed out to find a safe anchorage; I believe we dropped the anchor somewhere off Lameroo Beach in a line between Elliott Point Larrakeyah and the western end of Fort Hill Wharf (best guess). Once we were secure at anchor it was time for something to eat and a few drinks.

Let the Fury Begin:

As the wind began to strengthen so too did the size of the waves and it wasn’t long before the anchor began to drag. When this happens you need to drive the boat forward against the wind and waves to hold position. I drew the first watch and made my way to the wheelhouse which was accessed by outside stairs from the rear deck. During my watch the wind and waves continued to intensify requiring more and more effort to hold the boat in position. I had the Radio on for company, one of the fire and brimstone American evangelist preachers was in full swing; repent now sinners for the day of judgement is at hand: Then nothing but static from the radio: Shhhhhhhhhhhhhh. That’s strange I thought and looked over to the radio, it was still on but something else caught my attention. The lights of Darwin visible a short time ago through the starboard wheelhouse window had gone. My first thought was the boat had changed direction, but after looking around soon realised there were no lights to be seen. From that moment on the wind and waves began to multiply in intensity so quickly that Greg and Geronimo made their way to the wheelhouse only to be trapped there with me. The wind and waves became so powerful we were unable to hold the boat in position, eventually losing all control when the steering and main engine went out. By now we had lost all reference to our location within the harbour and were doing the only thing we could, hanging on. The waves were now crashing into and over us, smashing onto the rear deck. The pressure in our ears was intense as the wind came in shrieking gusts; The life raft, one of those square orange foam filled fibreglass types secured on the top deck in front of the wheelhouse was ripped from its mount, flipped over the wheelhouse smashing one of the three rear windows ending up wedged between the sorting trays on the rear deck. An electrical fire started under the wheelhouse dashboard when the batteries broke free, just another reminder of how dire our situation was. This was a 70 foot, 200 ton ish sea going prawn trawler being tossed and dragged around like a rag doll with its anchor down. Below us, in the accommodation area, sloshing with water and paint, Lynda and Greg’s girlfriend were together in a cabin trying to hang on in total darkness. The girls became trapped in the accommodation area when the fridge was ripped from the wall and wedged against the outside access door. The girls had no idea if we were still onboard or alive. This pounding continued through the night as Tracy took us on the ride of our lives.

A New Day Dawns:

Eventually the wind and waves eased enough so we could leave the wheelhouse and check on the girls; after forcing our way into the accommodation area we found the girls alive and well. Now it was time to check the damage: engine room flooded (we will need a tow), accommodation: unliveable due to no power, fumes and ankle deep water mixed with paint (we can live on the front deck). Food: none. Water: yes (we can hand pump it from the boats water tank). Now where the hell are we?

We were looking at a sandy beach with a bush backdrop, not the sandstone cliffs off Darwin where we had dropped the anchor the night before. We sorted the batteries in the wheelhouse and powered up the radio but received no signal. There was plenty of debris in the water, a shack on the beach with a vehicle we had seen moving and nothing else to give a clue to our location. We fired some distress flares when a RAAF DC3 flew over our position on Christmas Day, this gave us hope that our position was known and help would soon be on its way. When help had not arrived by Boxing Day, Geronimo volunteered to go ashore in the boats dingy to find out what was going on. By this time we had worked out where we thought we were, Shoal Bay at Gun Point. Tracy had dragged us all the way with the anchor down, missing Elliot Point, Emery Point, East Point, Nightcliff and Lee Point; talk about luck, it was certainly with us that night. After two hot/wet/cold nights on the front deck with no help arriving, I suggested to Greg that we go ashore; he was happy for Lynda and I to go, but as skipper, he would stay onboard until help arrived. In our minds, Darwin was as we had left it on Christmas Eve, we had no idea of the destruction Tracy had caused. The penny was still to drop.

Going Ashore:

In preparation to go ashore, Lynda and I grabbed some essentials, water and my rifle. We freed the life raft that was caught on the rear deck, put it over the side climbed onboard and allowed the wind and waves to take us in. On reaching the shore we beached the raft and followed some vehicle tracks that led to the shack we had see from the boat. At the shack we were met by an older couple who confirmed we were at Shoal Bay and told us that 90% of Darwin had been destroyed. They kindly offered us some food and told us Gun Point Prison Farm was only a short walk away where we should be able get a lift back to the Darwin. Lynda and I became the centre of attention as we walked into the farm, a girl and a guy with a rifle over his shoulder walking through prison grounds. We were met by a prison guard who took us to the Wardens Office where I was politely asked to surrender my rifle for safe keeping. After explaining our situation, a ride was organised to take us in to Darwin. The realisation of what had happen on the ground began to set in the closer we got to Darwin, no leaves on the trees, no noticeable bird life and the destruction of buildings was a shocker. We were dropped at Stokes Hill Wharf and after making inquiries found out that a plan was already in progress to recover the Buckingham. Our love affair with the sea had come to an abrupt and lucky ending.

Thank you to all the wonderful people who went out of their way to help the people of Darwin and the city to rebuild and prosper.

 

John Howard

21st February 2023

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