Emergencies and World Disasters
Declared Dead at Sea: The Ship That Left a Hundred Alive
23 min•17 augusti 2026
Om avsnittet
Declared Dead at Sea: The Ship That Left a Hundred Alive
A hundred people survived two shattered ships on a sandbank in the Coral Sea on August 17, 1803 - and were later officially declared dead by a report that named the third ship, the Bridgewater, as having lost both vessels with no survivors. How could a captain file a false report that erased more than one hundred lives, and why did the Bridgewater vanish two years later before anyone could answer that question?
In this episode, we tell the sequence of events recorded in the archive: the Bridgewater’s long service for the East India Company, the final voyage with Captain E. H. Palmer, the wrecking of HMS Porpoise and the Cato, and the surviving castaways left on the reef - and we return to the unresolved question of what Palmer saw and reported.
Person: E. H. Palmer
Date: August 17, 1803
Location: Coral Sea (157 miles north of Sandy Cape, 51 miles east)
Event: Wrecking of HMS Porpoise and the Cato; survivors on sandbank
Ship: Bridgewater (launched 1785; eighth and final voyage)
- The Bridgewater was launched in 1785 and served eight voyages for the East India Company.
- Captain E. H. Palmer departed Port Jackson on August 10, 1803, in company with HMS Porpoise and the Cato.
- On August 17, 1803, the Porpoise struck a coral bank and rapidly sank; the Cato struck the same bank within minutes.
- More than one hundred crew and passengers reached a nameless sandbank with no shelter and no fresh water, 157 miles from the Queensland coast.
- The Bridgewater cleared the bank, arrived in Bombay, and later filed a report stating both vessels were lost with no survivors - a report contradicted by survivors on the reef.
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© 2026 OBOMEDIA. All rights reserved.
This episode and its content (audio, text, and related materials) are the exclusive property of OBOMEDIA and are protected by applicable copyright laws. Reproduction, distribution, editing, or commercial use, in whole or in part, without prior written permission from OBOMEDIA is prohibited. For permissions, licensing, and business inquiries: [email protected].
A hundred people survived two shattered ships on a sandbank in the Coral Sea on August 17, 1803 - and were later officially declared dead by a report that named the third ship, the Bridgewater, as having lost both vessels with no survivors. How could a captain file a false report that erased more than one hundred lives, and why did the Bridgewater vanish two years later before anyone could answer that question?
In this episode, we tell the sequence of events recorded in the archive: the Bridgewater’s long service for the East India Company, the final voyage with Captain E. H. Palmer, the wrecking of HMS Porpoise and the Cato, and the surviving castaways left on the reef - and we return to the unresolved question of what Palmer saw and reported.
Person: E. H. Palmer
Date: August 17, 1803
Location: Coral Sea (157 miles north of Sandy Cape, 51 miles east)
Event: Wrecking of HMS Porpoise and the Cato; survivors on sandbank
Ship: Bridgewater (launched 1785; eighth and final voyage)
- The Bridgewater was launched in 1785 and served eight voyages for the East India Company.
- Captain E. H. Palmer departed Port Jackson on August 10, 1803, in company with HMS Porpoise and the Cato.
- On August 17, 1803, the Porpoise struck a coral bank and rapidly sank; the Cato struck the same bank within minutes.
- More than one hundred crew and passengers reached a nameless sandbank with no shelter and no fresh water, 157 miles from the Queensland coast.
- The Bridgewater cleared the bank, arrived in Bombay, and later filed a report stating both vessels were lost with no survivors - a report contradicted by survivors on the reef.
To listen to this podcast ad-free and access premium episodes, try our subscription with a 14-day free trial at obomedia.com.
© 2026 OBOMEDIA. All rights reserved.
This episode and its content (audio, text, and related materials) are the exclusive property of OBOMEDIA and are protected by applicable copyright laws. Reproduction, distribution, editing, or commercial use, in whole or in part, without prior written permission from OBOMEDIA is prohibited. For permissions, licensing, and business inquiries: [email protected].
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