Modern Mysteries

Mystery of missing wreck solved 50 years on

By T.K. Randall
August 2, 2016

Image: AI-generated (Midjourney) The story of the Darlwyne began 50 years ago when the pleasure cruiser, along with its 31 passengers, departed from Mylor harbor and headed for Fowey on the coast of Cornwall.

Sadly the vessel, which was designed to support only 12 passengers, was riddled with dry rot and was carrying only two life jackets. Shortly after leaving Fowey it ran in to a storm and sank beneath the waves somewhere within the vicinity of Dodman Point.

The Royal Navy conducted an extensive search of the area and although they were able to find the bodies of 19 of those who had been aboard, the whereabouts of the ship and the other passengers proved elusive and the rescue operation was eventually called off.

Now though, thanks to the tireless efforts of local diving instructor Mark Milburn, the final resting place of the Darlwyne has at last been found after an appeal on a local radio station revealed the story of a fisherman who recalled finding pieces of debris from the boat back in the 1980s.

Using this information Milburn was able to locate the site of the wreckage on the sea floor."The fact that I found it on the third dive shows how lucky we were as I know people who have been looking for it for 20 years," he said. "I found a winch and the right type of anchor for the Darlwyne, as well as lots of rusting metal and timber. It's obviously wreckage from a ship. "

"We can never be 100 per cent sure it was the same boat unless we find an engine, but that could well have been pulled up by a trawler and used for scrap."

As for the missing passengers however, sadly no trace of them is ever likely to be found.

"I met some relatives of the people who died on the boat when they came to lay a wreath in the water," said Milburn. "They haven't asked us to bring anything up and I don't plan to."

"It's an underwater memorial to the victims now and it was such a tragedy."

Source: Telegraph

Tags: Darlwyne, Wreck