- Kyarra
The Kyarra was a 6,953 ton (7,065 t) steel cargo and passenger luxury liner, built on the
River Clyde ,Scotland in 1903 for the Australian United Steam Navigation Co. Ltd.Construction and launch
The "Kyarra" was built at Dumbarton by Denny Bros and launched on
February 2 ,1903 on theRiver Clyde ,Scotland .Career
For ten years "Kyarra" sailed between
Fremantle, Western Australia where she was registered, and Sydney, New South Wales carrying cargo and passengers.On
November 6 ,1914 she was requisitioned and converted into a hospital ship (HMAT A.55 Kyarra) for the purpose of transporting Australian medical units to Egypt. The hull was painted white with a large red cross on the side.In March 1915 "Kyarra" was converted into a troop transport.
Commonwealth control ended
January 4 ,1918 .Fate
On
May 24 ,1918 , she sailed from Tilbury for Devonport,Plymouth towards the western end on the Channel where she was to embark with civilian passengers and full general cargo. OnMay 26 however, before she could do so, she was attacked and fatally wounded by UB-57 nearSwanage and sent to the bottom. Six lives were lost.Today the wreck of "Kyarra" lies in about 30 metres of water just a short boat ride out of Swanage at coord|50|35|27|N|1|56|58|W|region:GB_type:submergedwreck|display=inline,title|name=Wreck of Kyarra. The wreck is one of the most visited wrecksites in England and draws thousands of divers to her each year.
External links
* [http://www.sskyarra.com/ SS Kyarra.com]
* [http://www.ukdiving.co.uk/wrecks/wreck.php?id=221 UK Diving: WRECKS: Kyarra]
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