Thursday, 24 December 2009

Saturday, 19th December 2009 - The Maheno


The S.S. Maheno was an Edwardian liner on the Tasman Sea crossing between New Zealand and Australia, and was used as a hospital ship by the New Zealand division of the Royal Navy during World War I.


A landmark on 75 Mile Beach in Fraser Island is the shipwreck of the Maheno. Maheno was originally built in 1905 in Scotland as a luxury passenger ship for trans-Tasman crossings. During the First World War the ship served as a hospital ship in the Mediterranean, Gallipoli, and the English Channel, before returning to a luxury liner. In 1935, the ship was declared outdated and on June 25, 1935 the ship was being towed from Melbourne to Japan for scrap metal when it was caught in a strong cyclone. A few days later, on July 9 1935 she drifted ashore and was beached on Fraser Island. During the Second World War the Maheno served as target bombing practice[citation needed] for the RAAF. The ship has since become severely rusted. Climbing on the shipwreck is not permitted.

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