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Pocklington Reef: Difference between revisions

Coordinates: 10°48′44″S 155°44′18″E / 10.81222°S 155.73833°E / -10.81222; 155.73833
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On 28 April 1962, the [[Panama]]nian vessel SS ''Dona Ourania'' (8,716 tons)<ref>[http://sunderlandships.com/view.php?ref=101549 Dona Ourania] Wear Built Ships </ref> grounded on Pocklington Reef.<ref>Gerald Forsberg [https://books.google.com/books?id=tpo9AAAAIAAJ&pg=PA40&lpg=PA40&dq=%22Pocklington+Reef%22&source=web&ots=_dWQuJkqs4&sig=bvxhGPmAA-Qh0Hows-7WMzAFt6g&hl=en&sa=X&oi=book_result&resnum=37&ct=result Salvage from the Sea] Publisher: Routledge and Kegan Paul, Jan 1, 1977</ref>
On 28 April 1962, the [[Panama]]nian vessel SS ''Dona Ourania'' (8,716 tons)<ref>[http://sunderlandships.com/view.php?ref=101549 Dona Ourania] Wear Built Ships </ref> grounded on Pocklington Reef.<ref>Gerald Forsberg [https://books.google.com/books?id=tpo9AAAAIAAJ&pg=PA40&lpg=PA40&dq=%22Pocklington+Reef%22&source=web&ots=_dWQuJkqs4&sig=bvxhGPmAA-Qh0Hows-7WMzAFt6g&hl=en&sa=X&oi=book_result&resnum=37&ct=result Salvage from the Sea] Publisher: Routledge and Kegan Paul, Jan 1, 1977</ref>


The Japanese ship ''Amigi Maru'' (2,249 tons) ran aground during a cyclone in May 1972.<ref>[https://trove.nla.gov.au/newspaper/article/250295864?searchTerm=“%20Pocklington%20Reef” ''Papua New Guinea Post-Courier'', 30 May 1972, p.4]</ref> It could not be saved and had to be abandoned.<ref>[https://trove.nla.gov.au/newspaper/article/250296130?searchTerm=“%20Pocklington%20Reef” ''Papua New Guinea Post-Courier'', 1 June 1972, p.1]</ref>
The Japanese ship ''Amigi Maru'' (280 ft,<ref>{{cite news |url=http://nla.gov.au/nla.news-article250295864 |title=Distress call by ship |newspaper=[[Papua New Guinea Post-courier]] |volume= |location=International, Australia |date=30 May 1972 |accessdate=16 October 2022 |page=4 |via=National Library of Australia}}</ref> 2,249 tons) ran aground during a cyclone in May 1972.<ref>[https://trove.nla.gov.au/newspaper/article/250295864?searchTerm=“%20Pocklington%20Reef” ''Papua New Guinea Post-Courier'', 30 May 1972, p.4]</ref> It could not be saved and had to be abandoned.<ref>[https://trove.nla.gov.au/newspaper/article/250296130?searchTerm=“%20Pocklington%20Reef” ''Papua New Guinea Post-Courier'', 1 June 1972, p.1]</ref>


In April 1974 the soviet vessel ''Fedor Litke'' spent a week at a sandbank on the reef. An Australian naval vessel visited the site soon after and it was reported a concealed electronic monitoring device was found there.<ref>[https://trove.nla.gov.au/newspaper/article/116343762?searchTerm=“%20Pocklington%20Reef” ''Canberra Times'', 23 April 1975, p.1]</ref>
In April 1974 the soviet vessel ''Fedor Litke'' spent a week at a sandbank on the reef. An Australian naval vessel visited the site soon after and it was reported a concealed electronic monitoring device was found there.<ref>[https://trove.nla.gov.au/newspaper/article/116343762?searchTerm=“%20Pocklington%20Reef” ''Canberra Times'', 23 April 1975, p.1]</ref>

Revision as of 03:17, 16 October 2022

Pocklington Reef
ISS image of Pocklington Reef
Pocklington Reef is located in Papua New Guinea
Pocklington Reef
Pocklington Reef
Geography
LocationSolomon Sea
Coordinates10°48′44″S 155°44′18″E / 10.81222°S 155.73833°E / -10.81222; 155.73833[1]
TypeReef
ArchipelagoLouisiade Archipelago
Adjacent toSolomon Sea
Total islands2 inhabited on Bentley Group
Major islands
  • North islet
Area0.01 km2 (0.0039 sq mi)
Highest elevation1 m (3 ft)
Administration
ProvinceMilne Bay
DistrictSamarai-Murua District
LLGYaleyamba Rural Local Level Government Area
Demographics
Population0 (2014)
Pop. density0/km2 (0/sq mi)
Additional information
Time zone
ISO codePG-MBA
Official websitewww.ncdc.gov.pg

Pocklington Reef is a coral reef and a mostly submerged atoll in the far southeast of Papua New Guinea.

It is 162.4 km from the closest island, Loa Boloba, which is a tiny coral islet within the fringing reef near Cape Deliverance, the south east point of Rossel Island (Yela) in the Louisiade Archipelago, and belongs to Milne Bay province, Samarai-Murua District, Yaleyamba Rural Local Level Government Area.

Pocklington Reef sits on top of Pocklington Ridge, which extends north-east from Rossel Island. The reef is 32 km long and up to 4 km wide. Its longer axis is north-east-south-west. The rim of the reef encloses a deep lagoon. The northern rim reaches closer to the surface, and several above water rocks with heights between 0.9 and 3 metres high lie along its length. There is a small spit of sand about the size of a football field (less than one hectare) at the north-east end.

It is isolated from other reef systems by deep water and relatively pristine.

Before Papua New Guinea achieved sovereignty in 1975 it was decided Pocklington Reef should be part of the new nation.[2]

History

The reef was discovered and named by the captain of the Sydney whaler Pocklington in 1825.[3]

A number of vessels have been wrecked on the atoll.[4] The brig Reindeer (324 tons) was on the way from Melbourne to China for a cargo of tea when she was wrecked here in September 1855.[5] Among the crewmen aboard was Walter Powell.

The Earl of Hardwick (280 tons) was on the way from Newcastle, New South Wales, with a cargo of coal to Hong Kong in 1862 when it was wrecked on 10 June.[6][7]

The Genevieve (1,000 tons) was a relatively new vessel built at Quebec in 1870 and sailing from Melbourne to Manilla when she came to grief in September 1874.[8]

HMS Renard under the command of Lieutenant G.E. Richards surveyed the reef in 1880 and noted there was no anchorage around its perimeter.[9]

On 28 April 1962, the Panamanian vessel SS Dona Ourania (8,716 tons)[10] grounded on Pocklington Reef.[11]

The Japanese ship Amigi Maru (280 ft,[12] 2,249 tons) ran aground during a cyclone in May 1972.[13] It could not be saved and had to be abandoned.[14]

In April 1974 the soviet vessel Fedor Litke spent a week at a sandbank on the reef. An Australian naval vessel visited the site soon after and it was reported a concealed electronic monitoring device was found there.[15]

Illegal drugs worth $30 million were hidden in a wreck on the reef in 1978. Stored in watertight bags, the cannabis had been left by a trawler from Thailand.[16][circular reference]

Fishing

A Taiwanese fishing vessel was detected illegally fishing off the reef in October 1979 within PNG’s 200-mile fishing zone. The skipper was fined 1000 kina and the vessel’s fishing gear was seized.[17]

Sports fishing takes place off Pocklington Reef.[18]

Marine protected area

Pocklington Reef Marine Park is a proposed marine protected area.[1]

References

  1. ^ a b Pocklington Reef Wood, L. J. (2007). MPA Global: A database of the world's marine protected areas. Sea Around Us Project, UNEP-WCMC & WWF. www.mpaglobal.org
  2. ^ Papua New Guinea Post-Courier, 18 September 1974, p.2
  3. ^ Nicholson, Ian (1981). Gazetteer of Sydney shipping, 1788-1840 (First ed.). Canberra: Roebuck. p. 144. ISBN 0909434182.
  4. ^ Catalog of Nautical Charts.
  5. ^ Morning Bulletin, 30 May 1903, p.6
  6. ^ Loney, Jack (1980). Australian shipwrecks, Vol 2: 1851-1871 (First ed.). Sydney: Reed. p. 133. ISBN 0589501003.
  7. ^ Sydney Morning Herald, 28 November 1862, p.4
  8. ^ Northern Argus (Rockhampton, Queensland), 22 September 1874, p.2
  9. ^ Pacific Islands pilot, with supplements and Admiralty notices to mariners. London: Admiralty Hydrographic Department. 1885. p. 54.
  10. ^ Dona Ourania Wear Built Ships
  11. ^ Gerald Forsberg Salvage from the Sea Publisher: Routledge and Kegan Paul, Jan 1, 1977
  12. ^ "Distress call by ship". Papua New Guinea Post-courier. International, Australia. 30 May 1972. p. 4. Retrieved 16 October 2022 – via National Library of Australia.
  13. ^ Papua New Guinea Post-Courier, 30 May 1972, p.4
  14. ^ Papua New Guinea Post-Courier, 1 June 1972, p.1
  15. ^ Canberra Times, 23 April 1975, p.1
  16. ^ Canberra Times, 17 June 1978, p.1
  17. ^ Papua New Guinea Post-Courier, 23 October 1979, p.3
  18. ^ “Giant Pelagics in Pocklington Reef Expedition!”, accessed 20 April 2021
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