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or national pride. No man in the harbour was willing to admit in front of the navies of other nations that he was afraid of the elements. Everyone refused to take precautions. The merchant ships that accompanied them were not allowed to move either. Thirteen ships, and some larger vessels, were left
304:
The result was catastophic when the cyclone hit made its landfall. The local people had taken themselves to safety way before the storm struck. The ships that were in the bay only began to evacuate at the very last minute. All the ships were crowded toward the entrance to the bay when the cyclone
316:
against the oncoming wind and sea. She dragged herself to the open sea, despite being less than six feet from a reef at one point. She was able to ride out the ensuing winds easily once she was out to sea. Her survival is attributed to her size (2,227 tons), and her more powerful and modern
174:
Apia is an exposed harbour, unprotected by high ground or an enclosing reef. The northern part of the harbour is open to the
Pacific. It is possible for the winds and the waves to sweep through the area, and to drive onto the reefs at the Southern end, or to toss up the beach any shipping which
165:
Increasing signs of the impending disaster were visible during the days that were preceding the cyclone of March 15. March was the cyclone season in this area. Apia was hit by a cyclone just three years earlier. The local people told the captains of the ships about the cyclone. The weather was
170:
was beginning to fall. The captains were experienced
Pacific seamen, as were many members of their crews. Everyone saw the approaching signs of impending disaster. Everyone knew that the only chance of riding out the 100 mph (160 km/h) winds was to take to the open sea.
379:
came to rest on her side, on the reef. In total, 96 men from their crews drowned in the storm, and both ships were totally destroyed. All six of the merchant ships remaining in the harbour were wrecked, and the death toll was well over 200 sailors from several nationalities.
162:. In order to be ready should such an opportunity arise, both nations had dispatched squadrons to the town to investigate the situation and act accordingly. A British ship was also present, ostensibly to observe the actions of the other nations during the Samoan upheavals.
387:. The incident did not blunt the Pacific ambitions of any of the imperial powers involved in the disaster. However, the Germans and British continued to make territorial gains amongst the Samoan islands and New Guinea, whilst the United States focused on the
327:
was tossed against the beach in the afternoon, dragged back into the sea and wrecked on a reef at 10 p.m. that evening, although the majority of her crew survived unhurt and were able to participate in the ensuing rescue operation.
335:
was smashed into the same reef in the early afternoon, and her surviving crew spent a miserable day and night clinging to her rigging before being rescued, by which time 43 of her complement had drowned.
158:
Events ashore had led to upheaval in the
Pacific nations and colonies. Both the United States and Imperial Germany saw this as a potential opportunity to expand their holdings in the Pacific through
175:
remained in the bay. No officers made a move, even though each officer of the various navies was well aware of the necessary procedures in the face of such a threat. This has been attributed to
140:. The effect on shipping in the harbour was devastating, largely because of what has been described as "an error of judgement that will forever remain a paradox in human psychology".
343:
was thrown high on the beach with eight of her crew missing or dead and her internal systems totally wrecked. She would however later be refloated and eventually reconstructed in
727:
Andre
Trudeau, Noah. "'An Appalling Calamity'-In the teeth of the Great Samoan Typhoon of 1889, a standoff between the German and US navies suddenly didn't matter."
566:
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Overturned on the reef, on the western side of Apia Harbor, Upolu, Samoa, soon after the storm. Note her battered hull, the well for her hoisting propeller, a
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were less fortunate, because they were caught at the harbour mouth by the initial blow and were bodily picked up and smashed together.
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The incident is often cited as a clear example of the dangers of putting national pride before necessity, especially in the face of
817:
107:
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came off best, thrown high onto the beach where she was wrecked but many of her crew survived, escaping onto higher ground.
1313:
870:
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was
Japanese. This is not true and is probably caused by those names sounding "ethnic" to an uninformed observer.
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engines, built only five years earlier, as compared to the ten or twenty years for many of the other ships.
956:
75:
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672:
649:
227:, Samoa soon after the storm. The view looks northwestward, with the shattered bow of the German gunboat
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1045:
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395:, although more care was taken to respect the weather phenomena of the Pacific from this point on.
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A view of the sunken USS Vandalia from the deck of USS Trenton, March 1889.
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mounted on her stern, and decorative windows painted on her quarters.
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wrote an account of this disaster, differing from this article in
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s starboard quarter gallery has been largely ripped away.
650:"Six War Vessels Sunk; Wrecked in a Hurricane at Samoa"
713:
A Footnote to
History, Eight Years of Trouble in Samoa
180:
at anchor close to one another in the Apia harbour.
550:Some unreferenced and early sources claim that the
736:
320:Chaos reigned in the harbour for the other ships.
1305:
538:Memorial tablet to Henry Pearson (died 1936) in
625:"German Navy Ships--Adler (Gunboat, 1885-1889)"
195:for 27 April 1889; artist's conception of HMS
811:
231:on the beach in the foreground. The stern of
31:Damage in Apia, Samoa after the cyclone hit.
818:
804:
762:, Watford: Model and Allied Publications,
25:
701:SMS Adler (1883) German Knowledge article
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520:
288:
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16:Category 1 South Pacific cyclone in 1889
596:Geoffrey Regan's Book of Naval Blunders
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252:is on her side in the center distance.
1306:
108:Pre-1900 South Pacific cyclone seasons
61:Category 1-equivalent tropical cyclone
799:
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589:
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199:being cheered on by the crew of USS
143:
350:The German ships fared much worse:
13:
1334:Unknown-strength tropical cyclones
825:
721:
14:
1350:
777:
711:Project Gutenberg online text of
554:was a Russian ship, and that the
919:
783:
705:
694:
665:
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617:
312:escaped, making less than one
245:alongside. The German gunboat
223:Wrecked ships in Apia Harbor,
183:
136:on March 15, 1889, during the
1:
573:
434:Beached and repaired, 8 dead
238:is at right, with the sunken
166:beginning to change, and the
7:
514:Wrecked and sunk, 20 dead
403:
207:escapes from Apia Harbour (
86:120 km/h (75 mph)
10:
1355:
1314:Tropical cyclones in Samoa
947:Cities, towns and villages
911:2021 constitutional crisis
676:(contemporary book review)
599:. AndrƩ Deutsch. pp.
542:, with a reference to HMS
498:Wrecked and sunk, 73 dead
375:sank in deep water, while
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758:Thornton, J. M. (1978),
743:, London: Andre Deutch,
735:Regan, Geoffrey (2001),
673:"R.L Stevenson on Samoa"
529:
398:
193:Illustrated London News
1329:1889 natural disasters
886:New Zealand occupation
729:Naval History Magazine
562:Robert Louis Stevenson
547:
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301:
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38:Meteorological history
1091:Deputy Prime Minister
876:Tripartite Convention
760:Men-of-War, 1770-1970
567:A footnote to history
537:
524:
482:Beached and repaired
292:
276:
266:
222:
191:
128:, which swept across
47:before March 13, 1889
1339:19th century in Apia
1125:Western Samoan pound
792:at Wikimedia Commons
540:Winchester Cathedral
525:Port of Apia in 2003
168:atmospheric pressure
55:after March 17, 1889
731:25.2 (2011): 54-59.
466:Survived the storm
211:actually passed to
21:
1135:Telecommunications
967:Samoan plant names
871:Colonial governors
680:The New York Times
658:The New York Times
548:
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302:
300:, photo taken 1902
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83:Highest winds
68:1-minute sustained
19:
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1081:Political parties
1067:O le Ao o le Malo
1046:Foreign relations
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859:1889 Apia cyclone
790:1889 Apia cyclone
788:Media related to
518:
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450:Wrecked, 43 dead
160:gunboat diplomacy
144:The growing storm
118:1889 Apia cyclone
114:
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20:1889 Apia cyclone
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682:. 14 August 1892
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661:. 30 March 1889.
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627:. Archived from
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418:Wrecked, 1 dead
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385:natural disaster
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154:Samoan Civil War
122:tropical cyclone
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1051:Law enforcement
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977:Protected areas
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906:2009 earthquake
896:Trust Territory
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769:0-85242-610-0
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631:on 2013-09-27
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126:Pacific Ocean
124:in the South
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1203:Demographics
1188:Coat of arms
1178:Architecture
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1036:
1026:Constitution
901:Independence
891:World War II
881:German Samoa
858:
759:
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684:. Retrieved
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633:. Retrieved
629:the original
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106:
105:Part of the
67:
1235:LGBT rights
957:Earthquakes
844:Archaeology
389:Philippines
283:rescue buoy
184:The cyclone
99:ā¤ 147 total
1308:Categories
1230:Literature
1214:FaŹ»a SÄmoa
1128:(historic)
1119:(currency)
1076:Parliament
1061:Ministries
994:(mountain)
635:2013-07-02
574:References
393:Micronesia
148:See also:
96:Fatalities
52:Dissipated
1208:Ethnicity
1147:Transport
1037:FaŹ»amatai
1031:Elections
992:Silisili
952:Districts
930:Geography
686:4 October
504:SMS
488:SMS
472:SMS
456:HMS
440:USS
424:USS
408:USS
366:SMS
359:SMS
352:SMS
338:USS
330:USS
322:USS
307:HMS
295:SMS
247:SMS
240:USS
233:USS
213:Trenton's
1293:Category
1255:Religion
1245:Proverbs
1225:Language
1056:Military
1009:Politics
593:(2001).
544:Calliope
463:British
458:Calliope
442:Vandalia
332:Vandalia
309:Calliope
242:Vandalia
209:Calliope
205:Calliope
197:Calliope
177:jingoism
1284:Outline
1193:Culture
1161:Society
1105:Economy
1021:Cabinet
972:Hotspot
836:History
511:German
495:German
479:German
410:Trenton
324:Trenton
254:Trenton
235:Trenton
201:Trenton
1260:Sports
1183:Cinema
1173:Anthem
982:Rivers
854:Crisis
766:
747:
607:
556:Nipsic
426:Nipsic
345:Hawaii
340:Nipsic
279:Adler.
215:port).
120:was a
44:Formed
1240:Music
1198:Dance
1117:TÄlÄ
962:Fauna
827:Samoa
653:(PDF)
601:30ā31
530:Notes
506:Adler
399:Ships
377:Adler
361:Adler
257:'
249:Adler
225:Upolu
134:Samoa
72:SSHWS
1220:Flag
942:Bays
764:ISBN
745:ISBN
688:2009
605:ISBN
552:Olga
490:Eber
474:Olga
391:and
373:Eber
368:Eber
364:and
354:Olga
314:knot
297:Olga
229:Eber
152:and
130:Apia
116:The
76:JTWC
1140:.ws
203:as
1310::
678:.
655:.
603:.
582:^
570:.
347:.
132:,
819:e
812:t
805:v
773:.
754:.
690:.
638:.
613:.
78:)
74:/
70:(
Text is available under the Creative Commons Attribution-ShareAlike License. Additional terms may apply.
