Introduction / The Island / Accidents and Wrecks / The "Hope"

Raising the Alarm

There was still a blizzard on the morning of Tuesday 29th December 1908. At the weather station in Deerness, winds of 78 miles per hour were recorded.

John Harcus from Doggerboat was out feeding cattle when light came in and he saw the wreck between the squalls. Doggerboat is up on the top of the island and was probably about the only place where he could have seen the wreck.

He raised the alarm and gathered all the men of the island together at the north end, nearest the Holm. There were just the eight families on Pharay then to carry out the rescue.