Dive standard : Basic – Intermediate
Launch site : Lady bay boat ramp
Chart no : AUS 140 (see also AUS 786)
Latitude : 38" 24’22" south
Longitude : 142"29’14" east
Compass Bearings:
Dive Conditions:
The currant is usually minimal although in south-westerly winds the swell can make boating dangerous, particularly near the reef.
If you wish to dive on the La Bella, please register at the Flagstaff Maritime Village.
Description : A four masted barquentine sailing ship constructed from iron and steel. It was used as a trading vessel in the pacific.
The sinking of the La Bella triggered one of the most heroic rescues in Victoria’s shipwreck history.
The La Bella was at the end of the end of a rough and tedious 37-day voyage, bringing timber from Lyttleton, New Zealand to Warrnambool. Rough conditions forced the La Bella to run aground on a reef at lady bay only a few 100 yards from the Warrnambool breakwater. The brave actions of young fishermen and a volunteer lifeboat crew managed to save the lives of five of the 12 crew.
In fact Warrnambool did not hold happy memories for the La Bella. On its only other visit a year prior to wrecking, it was anchored at the mouth of Hopkins River in rough weather. The captain went ashore to find a tow. When he returned he found his crew drunk and unwilling to take up there posts even though the ship was dragging its anchors and in a precarious position.
Today the wreck of the La Bella lies partly intact off La Bella reef near the Warrnambool breakwater and is an excellent recreational dive.
The La Belle lies on its port side, with its bow facing
southwest, in 13 meters of water, 300 meters southeast of the end of the
Warrnambool breakwater
Although heavily covered in thick kelp and weed growth, the La Bella is a spectacular dive.
The five-meter high ships bow lies on its port side. Divers swimming around the bow will be able to see the bowsprit, several anchors, an anchor chain, catsheads, winches and hawspipes.
In the midships region divers should see a donkey engine, parts of the rigging, decking frames, a deck winch, bilge pumps and bollards.
Over time the stern has broken up and has now disappeared. An information plinth lies in the midships region off the port side of the ship. It was placed there by staff of the National Safety Council and the Flagstaff Hill Maritime Museum, sponsored by Warrnambool Textiles.
La Bella was a medium sized sailing ship operating in the
pacific trade when steam driven vessels were superseding those operating on
wind power.
Built in Norway in 1893, the La Bella was a brigantine. It had three masts, square rigged only on the foremast with the main and mizzenmasts being fore and aft rigged.
La Bella was constructed from iron and steel and measured 144ft(43.9m) in length, 27.3ft(8.3m) in breadth and a depth of 12.5ft (3.8m) and a gross tonnage of 406 tons.
The ship was registered in New Zealand and was a frequent visitor to Port Phillip Bay.
On the 10th November 1905 the La Bella was approaching Warrnambool. The night was misty and there was a heavy south-westerly swell. Captain Mylius was steering the ship towards Lady Bay Channel when it was thrown to one side into heavy breakers and onto a submerged reef south of the Warrnambool breakwater. Waves crashed over the ship and the force of the sea wrenched a one and a half-ton anchor from its fastenings and tossed it overboard.
The crew clung to the La Bella exhausted and cold. The hull, which shone with a reddish glow in the moonlight, could sometimes be seen for nearly its whole length but would then disappear under the breakers for some minutes.
During the ten-hour ordeal, which followed, several attempts were made to rescue the anxious sailors. At times the lifeboat crew could not get close enough to the ship and were faced to return to shore. One by one the crew succumbed to exhaustion and exposure. Worried onlookers watched in the moonlight as the men weakened and were washed overboard.
On shore, the lifeboat crew could see the La Bella was about to break up and made a final attempt to rescue the five distraught sailers remaining on the ship. A young local fisherman, David Ferrier had taken a small dinghy out to help with the rescue. Both boats could get no closer than 200 yards from the La Bella. Two of the sailors, clinging to the wreck’ including the Captain, took there chances and jumped overboard. The Captain made it to Ferrier’s boat and signalled to the remaining three sailors to do the same. Two of the sailors summoned the courage to jump but left one terrified sailor on board to watch as the lifeboat and dinghy returned to shore.
By this stage conditions had eased. Ferrier decided to attempt to rescue the last sailor left on board the La Bella. He rowed to the stern and brought the dazed man to safety. Shortly afterward the vessel broke up and sank.
News of the daring rescue spread and William Ferrier became a national hero. He was honoured by the governor and the Prime Minister and was awarded a medal for bravery by the Royal Humane Society.
An inquiry into the disaster found Captain Mylius at fault for sailing into the bay without obtaining the services of a pilot. His licence was suspended for twelve moths. A short time later he was charged with manslaughter of one of the crew who died when the La Bella was wrecked. Although Captain Mylius was found not guilty, the tragic sequence of events, adverse publicity and damage to his career took its toll on his health. He died of a heart attack six months after the wreck at the age of thirty-seven.