Lt Ellen SAVAGE

Kyt · Nov 25, 2007

Savage, Eleanor - Australian Women Biographical entry

Servicewoman
Born: 17 October 1912 Quirindi, New South Wales, Australia

For lifesaving after the ship Centaur was attacked by a Japanese submarine, Lieutenant Ellen Savage was awarded the George Medal on 22 August 1944.
Career Highlights
Ellen Savage joined the Australian Army on 18 November 1941. She was one of 12 nurses posted to the hospital ship Centaur. At dawn on 14 May 1943, while sailing between Sydney and Port Moresby, the ship was torpedoed by a Japanese submarine off the Queensland coast. Only having time to grab a lifejacket, Lieutenant (Lt) Savage jumped into the sea before the ship went down. Managing not to be sucked into the whirlpool, she found a piece of debris to help her stay afloat. She and other survivors drifted until they were able to tie-up with other rafts. During the thirty-four hours that they floated, before being picked up by the US destroyer Mugford, Lt Savage attended to the wounded without disclosing the extent of her own injuries.

For her courage Lt Ellen Savage became the second Australian woman to be awarded the George Medal.

liverpool annie · Dec 6, 2008

The Centaur was clearly marked as a hospital ship: it was appropriately lit and marked to indicate that it was a hospital ship, with prominent red crosses and green lines painted on her hull. Red crosses were also attached to her funnel and stern with another lying horizontally on the after deckhouse. Painted on the bow was the number 47. This was the Centaur's registration number with the International Red Cross and indicated that, through diplomatic channels, the enemy had been notified of her status as a hospital ship. But it was attacked by Japanese submarine 1-77, commanded by Lieutenant Commander Nakagawa. I would like to share some of the memories of that terrifying night on 14 May 1943. At 4.10 a.m. Sister Ellen Savage was asleep in her cabin when the Centaur collapsed around her. She notes:
Merle Morton and myself were awakened by two terrific explosions and practically thrown out of the bed. I registered mentally that it was a torpedo explosion … in that instantly the ship was in flames...We ran into Colonel Manson, our commanding officer, in full dress even to his cap and life jacket, who said, "That's right, girlies, jump for it now" … The first words I spoke were to say, "Will I have time to go back for my great-coat?" as we were only in our pyjamas. He said "No", and with that climbed the deck and jumped and I followed … The ship was commencing to go down. It all happened in three minutes.
That account is from registered nurse Ellen Savage's "In Loss of the Hospital Ship Centaur", produced by the Department of Veteran Affairs in 1995, at page 5. The suction of the sinking Centaur dragged Sister Savage down into a whirlpool of moving metal and wood. Her ribs, nose and palate were broken, her ear drums were perforated and she sustained multiple bruising. Then she was propelled to the surface in the middle of an oil slick. The survivors spent the daylight hours of Friday 14 May huddled together. In this crisis, individual examples of optimism and hope were shown. Seaman Morris led them in vigorous singing of Roll Out the Barrel and Waltzing Matilda. Captain Salt, a Torres Strait pilot, despite his severe burns, kept assuring everyone that rescue must be on its way. Lieutenant Colonel Outridge and Sister Savage did what they could for the wounded. Sharks circled them and occasionally nosed the rafts. On the raft Seaman Morris was crammed up next to the badly burnt Private Waldren. Morris recalls Waldren's death:
He'd died next to me and his burns just stuck on my arm … And I said to Sister Savage, who was practically opposite me, "I think this young chap's dead". And she said, "Are you sure?" And I said, "Well, I'm pretty sure." As she felt over she said, "He's passed on." So I took his identification disc off him and his name was John Waldren, New South Wales army man. I gave his identification disc to Sister Savage and she said, "Will you answer the Rosary?" And I said, "Yes, I'll do my best." She said the Rosary and I answered it and we buried him at sea.
Of the Centaur's complement of 332, only 64 survived, with Sister Ellen savage among them. All the other nurses had drowned. Before the 64 survivors were rescued, the survivors spent 32 hours in the water on makeshift rafts. Sister Ellen Savage was awarded the George Medal for her courage and inspiring behaviour during the sinking of the Centaur. The sinking of the Centaur touched Australians deeply during World War II. A series of posters calling on Australians to invest in war loans showed the sinking of the ship and carried the slogan "Avenge the Nurses"
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Centaur Memorial Service - 23/06/2004 - PRIV - NSW Parliament

HMA Centaur

Hugh · Dec 6, 2008

CENTAUR official number 147275 built in 1924 for the Blue Funnel Line (Alfred Holt & Co Ltd)

"Beyond the Call of Duty" by Brian James Crabb devotes a chapter to the loss of the CENTAUR including the courage of Ellen Savage the only woman survivor.

In 1944, Ellen Savage was awarded the George Medal and after the war she gained a Florence Nightingale scholarship and attended the Royal College of Nursing in London to study nursing administration. She eventually became Matron of the Rankin Park Chest Hospital until her retirement in 1967. She died on 14 May 1985 (Anzac Day and the 42nd anniversary of the sinking) while waiting for a taxi in Sydney. She had attended a remembrance ceremony at Sydney's cenotaph and made a speech at the annual hospital ship reunion lunch at Sydney Hospital. She was 72 years old.

Regards
Hugh

liverpool annie · Dec 6, 2008

Hugh said: ↑

CENTAUR official number 147275 built in 1924 for the Blue Funnel Line (Alfred Holt & Co Ltd)

"Beyond the Call of Duty" by Brian James Crabb devotes a chapter to the loss of the CENTAUR including the courage of Ellen Savage the only woman survivor.

In 1944, Ellen Savage was awarded the George Medal and after the war she gained a Florence Nightingale scholarship and attended the Royal College of Nursing in London to study nursing administration. She eventually became Matron of the Rankin Park Chest Hospital until her retirement in 1967. She died on 14 May 1985 (Anzac Day and the 42nd anniversary of the sinking) while waiting for a taxi in Sydney. She had attended a remembrance ceremony at Sydney's cenotaph and made a speech at the annual hospital ship reunion lunch at Sydney Hospital. She was 72 years old.

Regards
Hugh
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I found this ... naming the Japanese submarine I-177 - thought I'd post just in case anybody is looking for more information !

On 13 May 1943, No. 23 Radar Station RAAF had plotted a surface vessel which was located about 40 miles off the coast of Moreton Island. The blip was characteristic of a surfaced submarine. W.A.A.A.F. Operators P. Woodward, K. Rae and M. Hess reported the plots to the 8 Fighter Sector Headquarters in Brisbane. The plots were verified by the Commanding Officer of No. 23 Radar Station, Pilot Officer W. Fielder-Gill.

At approximately 4.10am on Friday 14 May 1943 the hospital ship A.H.S. Centaur, ablaze with lights, was torpedoed by Japanese submarine I-177 south east of Cape Moreton. The Centaur was struck in an oil fuel tank on the port side behind No. 2 Hatch. Centaur caught fire, and sank within two or three minutes .

Of the 322 persons on board, only 64 survived. Of the 12 Army Nurses on board, Sister Ellen Savage was the only survivor.

USS Mugford had been escorting the British Steamer "Sussex" on a voyage across the Tasman Sea. A lookout on board USS Mugford had spotted something on the horizon. Shortly after this an Avro Anson from 71 Squadron RAAF based at Lowood Airfield, spotted survivors in the water at 1400 hours on 15 May 1943 and radioed United States destroyer, USS Mugford, to "rescue survivors in water ahead". The Anson had been providing anti-submarine visual protection for Force "Z", which I assume was the USS Mugord and the British Steamer "Sussex".

Survivors in the first group of rafts recovered, told Lieutenant Commander H.J. Corey, the Captain of USS Mugford that they were from the hospital ship "Centaur".

The Naval Officer in Charge in Brisbane (N.O.I.C. Brisbane), Captain Edward Penry Thomas, received a signal from the USS Mugford that afternoon stating they were picking up many survivors of the Australian hospital ship Centaur at a position about 40 miles east of Cape Moreton. This was the first official indication on the mainland of this tragic event.

The Captain of USS Mugford requested the Anson to protect the "Sussex" while they continued to rescue the survivors of the "Centaur". A number of false alarms were reported on board USS Mugford of periscopes and torpedo trails. This caused a number of unnecessary distractions to the rescuers.

The survivors were mostly found within a 2 mile radius of the main oil slick and wreckage. They were in two larger groups and three smaller groups. USS Mugford rescued 63 men and 1 woman.

Corporal Maurice Peter Thomas (VX64840) a member of the medical staff of AHS Centaur escaped from the sinking ship and managed to locate a piece of planking at Daybreak. Cpl Thomas and Privates Jones and Private McCosker, and Privates Taylor and three of the ships crew all clambered on this piece of planking. They spent all day on the planking. Between midnight and daybreak the next day (Saturday) they heard the sound of engines about 3/4 mile away. Two emergency flares were light by some survivors on two rafts. They could not see anything. A crew member of Centaur indicated that it was a submarine engine that they could hear. He instructed the survivors on the rafts to extinguish the flares. The engines stopped soon after this.

Second officer, Mr R. G. Rippon, indicated that he had heard the engines of a surfaced submarine between mid-night and 4 a.m. on 15 May 1943. Able Seaman J. Cecich and Seamen's Cook F. Martin indicated that they had also sighted the submarine.

USS Mugford arrived in Brisbane on 15th May with the survivors. The Captain of the USS Mugford passed over the command of the rescue the N.O.I.C's chief staff officer, Lieut-Commander McManus. Further searches of the area were completed at 6 pm on the 16 May 1943 by U .S .S . Helm, H.M.A.S. Lithgow, and four motor torpedo boats without success.

Corporal Thomas (VX64840) remembered seeing four men from the AASC attached to the 2/12 Field Ambulance come on board Centaur in Sydney carrying their rifles. There have been many unsubstantiated rumours about armed troops on board Centaur and about her carrying stores of weapons and ammunition. The carrying of rifles by the AASC soldiers was in accordance with Article 8 of the "Convention for the Adaptation of the Principles of the Geneva Convention to Maritime Warfare" which allowed for the carrying of arms "for the maintenance of order and defence of the wounded and sick"
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Sinking of the hospital ship "Centaur" by Japanese submarine I-177 on 14 May 1943 off the Queensland coast east of Brisbane

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