Hebe Reef

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Hebe Reef is a reef located about {{convert|5|km}} northwest of the mouth of the Tamar River in Tasmania, Australia. Part of the reef is visible at low tide, however it is completely submerged at middle and high tide.

Hebe Reef's unsuspected location in the middle of what one would believe to be the channel to the river has deceived many, and numerous ships have been wrecked on its rocks.

Name

Hebe Reef was named after the first ship that struck the reef, Hebe. Hebe was "a full-rigged ship of 250 tons built at Chittagong, India in 1804".{{cite web |url=http://museum.lowhead.com/html/hebe_reef.html |title=Low Head Pilot Station: Shipwrecks on Hebe Reef |work= Low Head Pilot Station Maritime Museum |accessdate=27 April 2018 }} The ship departed from Madras, India in late March 1808 and was destined for Sydney; when the decision was made on 15 June to turn into George Town, Tasmania - then Port Dalrymple - Hebe struck the reef due to a mixture of lack of knowledge and bad weather.

One person on the ship died, and most of its fittings and cargo were salvaged and sold in Sydney.

Ever since, the reef has been known as Hebe Reef.

Shipwrecks

There have been a total of six shipwrecks on Hebe Reef:

class="wikitable"
Date

! Ship

! Departed

! Destined for

15 June 1808

| Hebe

| Madras, India

| Sydney

24 January 1851

| Phillip Oakden

| London

| Exeter, Tasmania

8 June 1883

| Asterope{{cite web |url=http://passengersinhistory.sa.gov.au/node/920360 |title=Asterope |work=Passengers In History: The South Australian Maritime Museum |accessdate=28 April 2018 }}

| London

| Launceston, Tasmania

24 April 1886

| Esk

| Hobart

| Sydney

6 January 1907

| Eden Holme{{cite web |title=SV Eden Holme (+1907) |url=https://www.wrecksite.eu/wreck.aspx?54405 |website=Wreck Site |access-date=17 January 2022}}

| Hobart

| Launceston

10 July 1995

| {{MV|Iron Baron|1985}}

| Port Kembla (seaport)

| Bell Bay, Tasmania

References