1852: Birkenhead, this British iron paddle-driven steam-powered frigate was en route to the Buffalo River in East London with reinforcements for the Eighth Frontier War when it wrecked off Danger Point in the Western Cape. It struck an uncharted rock at night in calm weather and broke up within 20 minutes. Only two lifeboats were launched, and 445 men lost their lives, with all the women and children surviving. The Lioness and Rhadamanthus assisted in rescuing survivors but only arrived there the next morning. Although the unofficial ‘women and children first’ protocol had been used for many years, probably due to the high survivor rate for women and children during this wrecking event, it is commonly claimed that this protocol became a standard because of this specific event. The wreck had been heavily disturbed in the past before it was formerly excavated and salvaged in the 80’s under a National Monument’s Council permit. What little remains of the wreck now lies on the eponymous Birkenhead Rock off Danger Point in the Western Cape.
1858: Buffon, this French brig wrecked on the eastern side of Roman Rock in Algoa Bay in the Eastern Cape.
