Fire onboard Janus August 1914

The British India line steamer Janus arrived at Fremantle from Calcutta (via Colombo) on Monday 24th of August 1914 at 18:00 loaded with a cargo of “Indian produce” including tea, jute and coconut fibre. Some of the cargo assigned to the Eastern States had to be unloaded to provide access to the Fremantle cargo. The Eastern States cargo was stored in a wharf shed until the unloading was completed then it was reloaded.

The vessel sailed at 13:30 on Wednesday 26th , bound for Adelaide, rough weather was experienced along the coast, especially while rounding Cape Leeuwin. At 10:00 on the 27th the Chief Officer, Mr J.H. Hughes examined the holds as per his normal duties and found all was in order.

SS. Janus

Despite the efforts of three tugs, the fire brigade, cadets and Janus’s crew it was necessary to flood the vessel. The services of the dredge Premier were requisitioned at 13:00 to assist by pumping copious amounts of water into the hull of the ship,but finally her sea cocks were opened and she settled on the bottom with 20 feet of water in her. By this time the steel decks in the vicinity of number one and number two holds had buckled and considerable damage had been done to other parts of the ship. The Officers and crew of Janus came ashore that night to sleep, the passengers having disembarked much earlier.

The officers, men and all eight passengers were warm in their praise of Janus’s commander, who throughout displayed the coolness characteristic of British seamen when faced with difficult situations.

Janus on fire in Albany harbour with "Bruce" and "Dunskey" alongside

With the fire now well and truly out, a diver was sent down to plug the sea cocks from the outside and the job of pumping the sea water out of the hull began on the 2nd of September. On the evening of Thursday the 3rd, hulks were brought alongside to receive the cargo from the two after holds on the shelter deck which was not damaged. All the forward cargo was severely damaged by fire and water. The pumping out was finished on the Friday and the launches Bruce and Dunskey attempted to drag Janus out of the mud but they could not move her. More cargo was removed from the stricken ship that evening and the following morning another attempt to move her was sucessful. With Janus now free she was taken alongside the town jetty on Monday the 7th to discharge the badly damaged portion of the cargo, while this was being done the engines were being cleaned due to being immersed in sea water (the fire had not damaged the engine room).

The unloaded cargo was auctioned on the wharf and a Melbourne company bought the tea for what they thought was a bargan price. Reports of the day say tea from the damaged cargo realised £1,400.

Janecki Pty Ltd of Little Collins-street, Melbourne shipped 685 of the cases of tea to Melbourne in McIlwraith MacEacharn's Karoola, to be sold on the wharf on arrival. Click here for the full story on the tea sale.

Advertisement for the Fire Sale apperaring in the Daily News (Perth), Monday 7 September 1914

The West Australian Saturday 5th September 1914

Letter to the Editor

THE STEAMER JANUS.

To the Editor.

Sir, I was a passenger on board the steamer Janus when she caught fire, about fifty miles from Albany. I was asleep in my bed, but. I was awakened by the noise of some of the native crew, and I thought that something was wrong. So I got up, and put on my clothes. When I reached the deck I found that the fire was blazing in No. 2 hold, and I could not see two yards in front of me for smoke., There were eight passengers on board, two ladies and six gentlemen. By order of Captain Macdonald. some of the crew and passengers got the small boats ready, in case of emergency. After that I obtained a hose, and went beside the captain's son, and we had the hoses playing on No. 2 hold for several hours. The fire was burning in three different places within one hour of the start, and we had to keep running from one place to another to try to prevent the flames from spreading. I must give the crew credit for the excellent manner in which it did its work, and as regards the captain of the ship, I should like to accord him praise for the able way in which he did his duty. He was in the thick of the fire all the time, giving orders, and he kept quite cool. I can safely say that if he had lost his head, I should not have been where I am at present.

Yours, etc.

J. McKEVEIR,

Passenger, lately of the 1st Royal Scots

Note the Captains son referred to in the above letter was H.M. Macdonald on the left of the adjacent photograph

Left to right -Hector Millar Macdonald, Colin McDonald, Bruce George Macdonald

Janus finally sailed for Adelaide during the evening of Saturday the 12th, 17 days after the fire and still sporting major damage. On arrival in Adelaide on 17.09.1914, The Register newspaper, (Friday 18 September 1914, page 7) describes the fire damage:

"The whole of the forepart of the Janus bears unmistakable evidence of tbe severity of the fire. Practically from amidships the frames and deck beams have been buckled by the intense heat. The floor under the saloon is in the same deplorable condition and even the woodwork of the saloon has been twisted out of shape. Plates and frames in the hull, particularly in the forward section, have come through the fiery ordeal so misshapen that a large proportion will doubtless have to be removed. This also applies to the 'tween and upper decks. It is obvious to the veriest novice in ship construction that the expense in effecting repairs will be very great."

As reported in the The West Australian, Saturday 19 September 1914, page 5 a board of inquiry found everything had been done properly and no blame was attached to the Master, no cause of the fire was found. You have to wonder if, with smoke pouring from his vessel, Colin's mind went back to his brothers command the ss. Fortunatus which had been lost at sea due to a fire in the Indian ocean in 1907.

On the 19.09.1914 Janus made her way through Port Phillip Heads and into the bay, coming alongside the number 2 berth at Victoria Dock in Melbourne. The Melbourne portion of the cargo (much of it damaged) was unloaded and stored in a shed at Victoria Dock. This material was disposed of by means of 5 separate auctions held between 25.09.1914 and 13.10.1914. To see the advertisements for these auctions click here.

With her Melbourne cargo unloaded she set sail for her final destination of Sydney, arriving there on October 5th, she came alongside in Morts Dock Balmain under the sheer legs. That evening, the Officers and crew were again engaged in a fire fighting episode, however, this time it was not their ship. The Officers and Crew of Janus came to the rescue of a motor launch which caught fire at the near by yeend Street Wharf in Balmain, To read an account of this fire click here

Janus went into refit in Sydney, over a period of aproximately 3 months she had all of her fire damage replaced or repaired. The newspapers of the day claim the repair cost was around £20,000.

Eventually on the fifteenth of January 1915 Janus sailed for Calcutta via Newcastle and Melbourne, to resume her trade and start her war service.

The saga of the cargo fire did not finish when Janus went back to sea. While she was loading in Calcutta a salvage claim commenced in a Western Australian courtroom.

Below is an account of the case as described in the newspapers of the day.

Daily News , Monday 1 March 1915, page 4

THE JANUS CASE.

CLAIM FOR SALVAGE.

The special sitting of the Supreme Court, which opened yesterday, was contlnued this morning, and lasted all day. The case was that in which Armstrong and Waters claimed £1,000 from the ship Janus for salvage work in August last, when the ship entered the harbor on fire. Mr. Justice Booth presided. Mr. R. T. Roblnson, K.C., who is acting for the claimants, called Geo, Waters, A. H. Dickson, W. Wheeldon and A. Sanda to give evidence in support of his case. At 3.30 this after
noon the case for the claimants was concluded. Mr. Moss, K.C., opened the case for the defendant ship, and when the Court rose for the day Captain Winzar, the first witness, had not concluded his evidence.

Daily News , Monday 1 March 1915, page 5

JANUS SALVAGE CASE,

ALBANY. Saturday,
The case in which Messrs. Armstrong and Waters are claiming £ 1,000 as salvage from the, steamer Janus, which entered the Albany harbor on August 28. now being, heard at the Court House by Mr. Justice Booth, was continued all day yesterday. Mr. Robinson having completed his case, further evidence was called for the defence by Mr. Moss. In addition to Captain Wlnzar, the case for the defendant steamer was given by Captain Arundel, Pilot T. Howe, William Mackay,Wm. Nelson, C. Sherlock, W. Orr, and E. Donohue, after which the evidence taken at Sydney on Commission was read by Mr. Watkins. This concluded the evidence, and the court adjourned till Monday, when counsel for both sides will address the court.

Daily News , Wednesday 3 March 1915, page 3

THE SALVAGE CASE.

ALBANY, Tuesday.
The action for £ 1,000 for salvage claimed by Messrs. Armstrong and Waters from the steamer Janus heard before Mr. Justice Booth, was concluded at the court-house yesterday. The morning was occupied by counsel for both sides, Messrs. R. T. Robinson and M. L. Moss, K.C's., addressing the court. At the conclusion of the addresses, His Honor Intimated that he would give his decision in the case on his return to Perth.

Daily News , Thursday 11 March 1915

THE SHIP JANUS.

Echo of Recent Fire.

CLAIM FOR SALVAGE BY ALBANY FIRM.

£471 AWARDED.

Reserved judgement, in the action, recently tried by his Honour at Albany, in which Armstrong and Waters, launch proprietors, of Albany, claimed £ 1,000 as salvage from tho owners of the ship Janus, a steel screw steamer of 3,075 tons net and 4824 gross registered tonnage, was delivered by his Honour, sitting In Admiralty Jurisdiction, at the Supreme Court this morning. Mr, R. T. Robinson, with Mr. A. C Braham, appeared for the plaintiffs and Mr. M. L. Moss,KC, with Mr. C. T. Watkins, for defendants.

The Janus, it will be remembered, steamed into Princess Royal Harbour between four and five o'clock on the morning of August 28 last with her holds on fire, and it was claimed that the plaintiffs' launches Dunskey and Bruce went to her assistance immediately, and, putting their hoses on board her, commenced pumping operations, which were continued until 10 a.m. on August 28. Plaintiffs also had a centrifugal pump, capable of pumping 600 tons an hour, working continuously for about 26 hours, from 5 am on August 28, and it was claimed that they thus saved the ship and her cargo, valued in all at about £50,000, from a dangerous and critical position. It was argued for the defence that the statements in plaintiffs' petition were greatly exaggerated and untrue. It was contended that when the ship entered the harbour her fire was being kept under control by her crew, and, further, that the hoses of the Dunskey and Bruce were worked by the members of the crew and the Albany Fire Brigade. In addition, the launch Awhina was engaged in the work of extinguishing the fire, and the fire engine used by the brigade was operated by the Awhina. The fire was extinguished by opening the sea cocks of the Janus and by the dredge Premier (with a pumping capacity of 3,000 tons per hour) pumping water into the holds of the ship, by which means the ship was flooded.

The plaintiffs' centrifugal pump was not instrumental in putting out the fire or saving the ship. It was used in an unsuccessful endeavour to preserve the contents of the fore peak and forecastle from destruction; the pump was ordered by the master of the ship, and the services rendered by it were not salvage services, but given pursuant to a request, and a fair and reasonable price for It was £8 per hour. Defendants paid into court £500 in satisfaction of the claim.

In giving judgement, His Honour said the plaintiffs vessels were not what would be regarded as salvage ships in the sense in which the, words were used in England, but they had certain appliances which could be used for salvage purposes, especially where salvage services were required, in case of fire. He was satisfied that, It was the flooding of the ship that, had saved her and that the efforts of the launches had assisted very slightly.

The fire in the hold had, however, spread aft and caught the saloon, and there had been some controversy as to whether it was the hoses of the plaintiffs that had put out that fire which had saved the passenger accommodation. He had come to the conclusion that whilst there was some doubt he should believe the evidence of the ship's witnesses when, they said it was the hoses on the ship itself, passed through the port hole, which had saved that portion of the ship from destruction. There was no doubt that the plaintiffs had materially, assisted the naval cadets, who had been called out, In preventing the fire from spreading to the after part of the ship, and there was no doubt that services rendered by the plaintiffs were prompt.

It was said also that considerable danger had been incurred in giving the services, and no doubt that was a material matter which ought to be taken into consideration. He was unable, however, to accept the view put forward by plaintiffs that there was any really serious danger. The evidence of the ship's people was that the ships could have been removed from any danger if there had been any. It seemed to him that there was no material danger that he ought to take into consideration at all, that the sum of money he ought to award was fairly estimated at £443, and that was the amount the plaintiffs should recover.

There was an other item of £87 which was not, strictly speaking, a salvage matter at all, and which by agreement between the parties had been left to his decision. On that claim which had reference to hulk towage services rendered, wages and disbursements in connection with the fire and goods sold and delivered, he would award a sum of £28 3s, making a total of £471 3s. Judgement was accordingly entered for the plaintiffs for £471 3s, with costs for the defendant's. Leave to apply in Chambers respecting the £500 paid Into court by the defendants was also granted.