The History of the Australian Hospital Ship Centaur

Centaur a motor passenger ship of 3220 Tons and, owned by Ocean Steamship Company Ltd. was engaged in the West Australia to Singapore trade until January 1941 when she was converted to a Hospital Ship for use in the South West Pacific, New Guinea wartime campaign attached to Australian, and United States Forces.

Centaur was commissioned as Australian Hospital Ship AHS on 1st March 1943 and sailed for Port Moresby on her maiden voyage on the 12th March she made her second voyage to New Guinea.

12th May 1943, with a crew of Merchant Navy personnel and 257 military personnel including 65 medical staff with some from the 113th Australian Army General Hospital (RGH Concord) and 192 members of the 2/12th Australian Army Field Ambulance.

Centaur on Friday 14th May 1943 was steaming a course 24 miles E.N.E off Point Lookout Stradbroke Island Queensland in fine and clear weather with good visibility.

Without warning at approximately 0400 hours, whilst brightly illuminated and properly marked in accordance with Article 5 of the Geneva Convention, she was struck by a torpedo from a Japanese submarine.

The torpedo struck on the Port side abaft Number 2 hatch causing the ship to catch fire and sink within two to three minutes. As most of the crew and army personnel were asleep at the time, there was little chance of escape and loss of life was heavy. Only 29 of the ships crew, 34 army medical personnel, one nurse Sister Savage and one ships pilot survived the attack.

Those alive and still in the water were rescued by the United States Destroyer Mugford after spending nearly 36 hours in shark infested waters clinging to whatever debris they could find. The survivors were landed in Brisbane Qld. On 15th May 1943
Members of the various communities adjacent have established memorials at Danger Point and Caloundra in Queensland Australia to this wartime tragedy.

Sister Mary Hamilton McFarlane lost he life whilst on duty on the hospital ship Centaur after completing nursing training and achieving degrees Returning from England she applied for duty with the Australian Army Nursing Service (AANS) in 1941 she was selected to be Liaison Officer aboard the Dutch Hospital Ship AHS Oranje She made 4 voyages aboard Oranje serving throughout the East Indies.

Returning to Australia she spent some time at hospital camps while Centaur was being equipped. On her second voyage out Centaur was torpedoed and Sister McFarlane lost her life? Vale.

Sister Ellen Savage of Sydney, had thrown a lifejacket over her silk pyjamas grabbed her Rosary Beads and jumped overboard Quote “It would be impossible to describe the ordeal underwater as the suction was like a vice and that is where I sustained my injuries—ribs fractured fracture of nose and palate by falling debris, ear drums perforated and multiple bruising. When I was caught in the ropes I did not expect to be released. Then all of a sudden I came up to an oily surface with no sign of a ship.” Unquote.

Three Companies of the 2/12 Field ambulance and attached personnel relocated by train to Sydney to board Hospital Ship AHS Centaur.

2/12th was led by their Commanding Officer LT_ Col Leslie McDonald Outridge, Marched on to the wharf at No1 Darling Harbour Sydney and fully equipped boarded Centaur for New Guinea service.

Centaur was sunk by Japanese Submarine 1-177 on 14th May 1943 off the Queensland Coast east of Brisbane
Kanemi Sakamoto a Japanese historian, pointed out in 1981 that although the official record acknowledged that the Centaur was a protected ship, this was not to say that the submarine Captain Hajime Nakagawa, knew that at the time.