The vessel left Wellington at 6 p.m. on Friday, and up to 7 p.m. on Sunday experienced perfectly calm seas.
Then the trouble commenced. The wind rose from the southward, and before long the vessel was in a gale of unusual severity. Through the night the fruit locker and the ice-chest were blown down, the bar was damaged, and a large quantity of crockery was broken. Chaos reigned in the pantry. The seas became mountainous, and the waves frequently washed the upper deck.
The spectacular effect for those who had the fortitude to witness it was magnificent.
On Monday morning the storm greatly increased in violence, and, to make matters worse, the vessel took a great list to starboard. The buffeting she received from the rollers was extreme, and the plight of the passengers became pitiable indeed.
Only the brave few (including a few ladies, be it stated to their credit) essayed the balancing feats necessary to proceed to the saloon, and even then they met difficulty in handling the food on the table, supported as it was by "fiddles." The remainder of the passengers, forced to their cabins, managed as best they could, those on the starboard side having a particularly uncomfortable time. The gale never abated until the vessel was within "coo-ee" of the Heads.
Numberless injuries occurred both to passengers and the crew. The first victim was the carpenter, R. Leftwick, who was blown on to a stanchion, sustaining severe and painful injuries to the groin. The sufferer was attended to by Dr Hoskins of Masterton and sent to the hospital on the vessel's arrival. A great wave fell on the promenade deck, and temporarily flooded the smoke room.
Mr Carlyle Studholme, of Canterbury, rose to close the door but was forced on to a post, and as a result had his left shoulder put out.
Dr J. P. D. Leahy, of Napier, at once put it back, and the sufferer is doing as well as can be expected. Two ladies collided in the saloon, one receiving a severe cut over the temple. One of the passengers got his nose smashed. While descending a companion-way with a tray of crockery, Stewardess Dixon fell, sustaining shock and some severe bruises.
A number of the stewardesses and stewards were subjected to minor injuries, and many passengers received sprains and less severe hurts. - ODT, 27.7.1912.
