Coastal freighter torpedoed by a Japanese submarine in WWII has been discovered off Crescent Head NSW

During World War Two 19 merchant vessels were sunk in NSW coastal waters.

On 27 April 2020 it was announced that the wreck of one of these ships - sunk by torpedo with only 5 survivors out of a crew 37 - had been found off Cresent Head.

The Wollongbar II was a single screw steamship owned by the North Coast Steam Navigation Company Ltd. At 2239 tons and 87 metres in length, the vessel had been built at Lithgow’s Ltd shipyard at Port Glasgow, Scotland in 1922. Wollongbar II was built to replace an earlier steamer of the same name wrecked at Belongil Beach, Byron Bay in 1921. IMAGE: NSW Government Premier & Cabinet information sheet.

The Daily Examiner, 29 April 2020, p.5:

A coastal freighter torpedoed by a Japanese submarine in WWII has been discovered off Crescent Head. 

Acting Minister for Veterans Geoff Lee said the SS Wollongbar II was confirmed by archaeologists from Heritage NSW after it was reported by the local community. 

“In 1943 a Japanese submarine, the I-180, destroyed the freight vessel with two torpedos killing 32 people on board,” said Mr Lee..... 

Director of Heritage Operations at Heritage NSW Tim Smith OAM said the discovery would reveal some amazing stories. 

“We want relatives of those who sailed on the SS Wollongbar II to get in contact, so we can share findings of the survey conducted by our archaeologists,” Mr Smith said.