well hello and welcome in this video we're going to continue to explore the
South Wales coast but in particular the sites are Wales's worst maritime
disaster the wreck of the SS Samtampa and the loss of the Mumbles lifeboats it
is heroic rescue attempt
so as we walk west from Porthcawl along Rest Bay towards the site of the
wreck at Sker Point especially on a calm day like today with flat seas and a
blue sky it's hard to imagine how dangerous this stretch of coast can be
so at the end of the video I will be showing you how to find the site of the
wreck it is quite difficult to find but I'll be showing you some key features
which will help you locate it
The Samtampa was enroute from Middlesbrough in the north of England to
Newport on the South Wales coast when on the 23rd of April 1947 it encountered a
severe storm in the Bristol Channel the the Samtampa was a 7200 tonne Liberty ship
these were ships mass produced in the US during the war and many were used in the
Atlantic convoys to make them quickly the ships were made out of prefabricated
sections welded together unfortunately this construction would
later play a major part in the ship's fates, well during the afternoon of the
23rd of April the ship tried to seek shelter close to the North Devon coast
but at around 3 o'clock she sent a message that she was drifting across the
channel towards the Welsh coastline it tried to put down the anchors but one
chain broke and then it dragged the other one and around 5:08 p.m. the Samtampa sent an SOS stating she was running aground. At this point the
Mumbles lifeboat was launched the Edward, Prince of Wales, the Mumbles lifeboat
station is about 12 miles away from Sker Point across Swansea Bay the
conditions were so bad and the ship was already aground the chances of a
successful rescue was minimal but the crew still went.
The next day as it grew light and the storm subsided the upturned hull of
the lifeboat Edward Prince of Wales was found on the shore of Sker Point
sadly the 39 crew of the SS Samtampa and the eight volunteer crew of the
members lifeboats were all lost in the disaster
as mentioned during the storm the ship broke up into its three prefabricated
parts along the weld lines also during the wreck, fuel oil was spilt and a
fine layer covered the entire area it was even found on the windows of some of the
local houses instead of drowning it was said that many of the sailors actually
suffocated in the thick layer of oil which covered the sea just look at these
rocks and these gullies the ship didn't have a chance and the sad thing about it
200 yards west and about a hundred yards to the east there's sandy beaches and if
the ship went aground there it probably would have been saved
so the eight crew of the mumbles lifeboat were buried in Oystermouth
cemetery overlooking Swansea Bay most the crew of the SS Samtampa were
returned to their native Middlesborough area but twelve of the crew were buried
locally in Porthcawl cemetery, I went to see that grave earlier today
amongst the rocks you can find a commemorative plaque this was laid where
the upturned lifeboat was found and in keeping with a tradition of the RNLI
the lifeboats was then burnt at this spot.
A few days ago there was a particularly low tide and I managed to get down to
the rocks and found the wreckage of the old engine so this is what I filmed
let's take a look.
Well during the storm the light bow and stern section of the ship broke apart
and they ended up on the rocks near the shore but the heavier midsection containing
the engine got stuck on the lower rocks and you can still see the engine at low
tide
if you want to come up here you have to come on a particularly low tide and
you've got a window of only about an hour so you have to time it right.
Even on a calm day like today the wind's picked up, so to find the plaque walk
along the coastal path until you get to Sker House it'll be on your right and then
there's a small wall alongside the field keep following this wall until you get to
a coastal path post and the wall turns sharply right, behind us you should see
Sker House so from the coastal path post
look out to sea then turn 45 degrees then if you walk about 50 to 75 yards in
this direction you will come to the commemorative plaque that's in the rocks
it is quite hard to find but you should be able to find it if you walk in this
direction
so that was the true story of Welles's worst maritime disaster the loss of the
SS Samtampa and the Mumbles lifeboat Edward Prince of Wales, 39 crew of the
ship were lost as well as a to the lifeboat crew on the 23rd of April 1947
So join us again as we explore the South Wales Coast it won't be as dark as this
we do fun stuff as well and it's normally more fun when Mel comes along but
unfortunately she's not with me again today, she hasn't left me, we're still
married anyway join us again as we explore South Wales and hopefully we'll
be able to get out of the house and explore further afield soon, so we'll see
you next time