What was supposed to be a nice day out in the Peel sunshine during the summer of 1959, turned into a tragedy that took four lives.
On January 28, 1959, Irish Catholic Priest Father Joseph O'Hara and five Irish Presentation Sisters decided to paddle to and from a picnic in Yunderup, on a beautiful day, in a fibreglass dinghy.
Mandurah Marine Rescue public relations officer Paul Durkin said the dinghy in which the group was travelling tipped over on the way back from their picnic and, sadly, Father O'Hara (29), Mother Patricia Lynch (50), Mother Finbarr Tarrant (37) and Sister Joachim Delahunty (26) passed away as a result.
Sisters Rita Goodchild and Augustine McMahon survived the event, and their struggle was one which touched the lives of many residents who heard their story.
"It has been 60 years of the Mandurah Marine Rescue, which also marks 60 years since the boating tragedy in 1959," Mr Durkin said.
According to the City of Mandurah Museum archives, the two sisters prayed throughout the night and bravely clung to the overturned dinghy, their eyes, faces and ears stinging from petrol and salt water.
It wasn't until 10am the following day when they were found by rescuers, after 17 hours in terrifying conditions in the water.
"After this tragedy, the local police constable at the time, Constable Charles Buckley, applied for a government grant alongside private donations to raise the funds to have a purpose-built vessel on standby for rescues."
Next was the founding of the Sea Rescue group in WA.
...out of this tragedy an organisation was born which has saved countless lives
- Paul Durkin
"There are now 39 Marine Rescue groups in WA, stretching from Wyndham in the far north, down to Esperance in the south which are now State Government funded and presided over by the Department of Emergency Services."
When the Marine Rescue members began preparations for Mandurah Marine Rescue's 60th, he wondered if it would be possible for him to find the two survivors from the 1959 accident, Sister Aquinas McMahon and Sister Rita Goodchild.
After a little searching, Mr Durkin located the sisters who are now 90 and 91, living in a WA convent, and they agreed to meet him for afternoon tea.
"I went up for afternoon tea with a tray of Krispy Cremes for a chat with the sisters over a cuppa at the convent."
Mr Durkin said the sisters discussed their lives with him, including the accident, which sparked further inspiration to tell their stories.
He added that the Mandurah Marine Rescue, realising the historical significance of being able to record the surviving sister's first-hand account of the incident, gained DEFES's agreement to have its videography team produce a filmed interview of the sisters.
"Finding the two sisters in good health 60 years later and able to recall that tragic incident as if it was just last week was, indeed, a most surprising discovery," Mr Durkin said.
"It presented a very rare opportunity to record a first-hand account for us to share with the generations to come."
"Out of this tragedy an organisation was born which has saved countless lives.
"We made the sisters honorary life members of the Marine Rescue."
The event changed the Peel region forever, with many places in the City of Mandurah adopting memorial sites in honour of the lives lost, including statues outside of the Mandurah Performing Arts Centre and a stained glass window at Our Lady's Assumption Catholic Parish.
The 10-minute-long video made by DEFES, which features the sisters' interview will be premiered at the Marine Rescue's gala night, to be held in November.
Mandurah Marine Rescue will also be staging an event on October 31 at Dolphin Quay, where there will be the presentation of an on-water safe summer boating display - noted as being a day out for the whole family.
"We want this to be an inaugural event, we are looking at doing this every year at the beginning of the summer season, to involve the public and show them how to be more aware of water safety.
"We are very lucky to have so much community support from the people here in Mandurah."
For more information on the Safe Summer boating display, or to enquire about memberships to the Marine Rescue, visit their website or Facebook page.
Samantha Ferguson
Samantha Ferguson is a journalist at the Mandurah Mail. She is an entertainment, sport, crime, community and education journalist with a special interest in investigative pieces and human interest stories.
Samantha Ferguson is a journalist at the Mandurah Mail. She is an entertainment, sport, crime, community and education journalist with a special interest in investigative pieces and human interest stories.
