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Three people drowned out of the entire complement of passengers and crew. Initial press reports

indicated that eight had drowned, but this was later amended. Those who drowned were the third
officer during the lowering of the first lifeboat, a woman, and one African labourer who perished

when a lifeboat capsized near the shore.

The tug Scotsman under the command of Lieutenant Beckett with 228 passengers arrived at
14h00 at the new quay in Simon’s Town Docks, and they were landed under the charge of the

Immigration Department. Most of these passengers were Africans. The seven lifeboats from

which the passengers were rescued were towed at the rear of the tug as well as Lieutenant
Beckett’s cutter. The passengers were provided with a hot meal and refreshments before

embarking on a train for Cape Town.

HMS Forte landed the remaining passengers and crew, including some baggage, at Table Bay
Docks. Captain Favia, who was the last to leave the Lusitania, was aboard HMS Forte and had

initially refused to leave the stricken vessel. All means of persuasion had failed until Captain

Hutton of the Forte went in a boat to fetch him. He finally persuaded Captain Favia not to
sacrifice his life. The unfortunate captain then hoisted the flag at half-mast and joined Captain

Hutton’s boat, but in a very distressed condition.

It took nearly a month to repatriate all the passengers and crew out of Cape Town. And so ended

the largest rescue of passengers and crew in South Africa.

SS Clan Monroe 1 July 1905

The wrecking of the Clan Monroe was unique in that it had an unusual distress message and this

was later followed by a series of rescue mishaps. Outward bound from Liverpool to Lourenco
Marques (Maputo) in Delagoa Bay, with a general cargo which included motor-cars, dynamite

and gun-cotton for Natal, this single-screw steamer of 4,853 tons came broadside on and struck
rocks at 23h30 on Sunday 1 July 1905 at Slangkop Point, Kommetjie, where she stuck fast some

250 metres offshore. The master Captain Brown had a complement of 82 crew, of whom 65 were
Lascars. The Clan Monroe was built in 1897 by W. Doxford and Sons, Sunderland, and was a