Couldn't have put it better myself... This from Peter Maher, Secretary, HMAS Brisbane Association.
Just to bring you up to date. . .
Firstly, let me say that I have attached a couple of files – six images, and an mp3 music file. The music, if feel, is so very appropriate for the many tearful eyes and sad regrets that were felt by so many yesterday when 2 minutes and 19 seconds after the button was pressed, BRISBANE said a final farewell to the surface and sank beneath the waves.
I flew up to the Sunshine Coast on Saturday afternoon with RADM Geoff Loosli and our President, Capt Ralph Derbidge. After a vigorous discussion on BRISBANE’s battle honours (I’m right, by the way!). The flight in the flying cattle truck descended to land at the Maroochydore Airport, and we could see the “old girl” sitting off the Sunshine Coast- the local Sunshine Coast Daily had a front page photo of BRISBANE out there.
An old face from the commissioning crew, Dave “Sticky” Glew, who had arrived from WA a week before, was there to drive me to the get-together BBQ at Rotary Park, his in-car “sat-nav” saving us from driving around in circles, and no doubt, if they had that technology 38 years ago when BRISBANE commissioned, Rod Taylor, the navigator, and later Chief of Navy, and his offsider, “canvasback” Spalding, might have had different career paths.
There was already a crowd at the BBQ when we got there, and building up by the minute. So many commissioning crew on hand, it was heartening to be among some very old friends and mess mates from my days in the stokers mess on board. Even with the constant changes to the final date, six former “plank-owners” from WA made the trip across the continent to be here. In hindsight now, we should have had a “Visitors Book” on hand, so that all those who attended can be recognised – I’ll make an attendee’s list and circulate separately.
Kerry Kerr, Peter Hall and Kookie Nielson and their offsiders (and partners!) done an excellent job of feeding and watering all (even if Kerry had to go and buy a second load of beer – because the shop where he brought and paid for the first load closed before he got there to pick it up – only in Queensland!).
Apart from our own dignitaries, there was some “ring-ins” that needed to be recognised. Local Federal Member, Peter Slipper, who had a lot do with BRISBANE finally ending up on the Sunshine Coast, Local Maroochy Shire Mayor Joe Natoli, and the former Brisbane City Lord Mayor, Clem Jones, who has had a (BRISBANE’s) lifetime association with the ship.
The first couple of attached photo’s show Kerry Kerr (standing on a table – as stokers are want to do!) giving a welcome to all attending, and yes, that is “Gun’s” McDermott listening intently. The next photo is our President, Ralph Derbidge, making a presentation of a BRISBANE ships crest to local Mayor, Joe Natoli – getting our rat’s in, so to speak, as Maroochy Council will be building a memorial to the ship on Alexander Headland pointing out to where the “Steelcat” rests, and we’ll all be back for that event, later down the track. Third photo is RADM Geoff Loosli recounting days gone by as he prepared to cut a cake as a final birthday for the ship.
Sunday dawned a beautiful day, although the oggen was a little choppy. 30 of us joined two boats at the Kawana Water’s pub for the trip out to view the sinking, we had another group on two boats from the Yacht Club, as well as the chef’s on a water taxi, and various others on their own organised water transport – Peter Hall was out there on a jet-ski, and I believe Greg Currie was becalmed on a yacht sailing up from Cleveland Bay. The fourth photo shows just some of the water traffic heading out to view the sinking. I understand that this was probably the greatest concentration of watercraft in Australia since the dawning of the new millennium on Sydney Harbour – there were so many boats out there, it was near impossible to get any clear view of BRISBANE. Interesting, that with no mast, and her funnels cut down, she looked more like a Daring than a DDG as she appeared in the distance as we approached. The photo that I posted the other day as BRISBANE passed under the Gateway Bridge for the last time, there were a lot of “patches” welded on to the outside of the hull – now, on Sunday Morning, all the patches had been removed, and there were holes in the hull all along the ship’s side. Ollie Jurd, who was one of the “dib-dab’s” who commissioned the ship made the comment that “… those that followed us didn’t look after the ship’s side like we did.” And we all agreed that the Bruce Weekes would be really ropable if he saw it.
As I said earlier, it was choppy out there, and it was a real job for our boat’s skipper, (paid off 5 years ago after 22 years in pussers), to keep us in a good viewing position. There were so many boats out there, someone would be constantly obscuring our view, so our boat would have to be repositioned. It took a long time to get to the scheduled time for the sinking of 1000, then the minutes started dragging until the charges finally were detonated about 15 minutes later. The last photo shows the smoke above the ship as the charges were detonated. We saw the flashes, heard the bangs (even above the noise of all the helicopters), and then a lot of smoke descended on the water, which obsured the view of the ship going down from those of us who were to the north, on BRISBANE’s port beam. When the smoke cleared, BRISBANE was gone. Perhaps that was a good thing that we didn’t actually see her go below the waves, as it was reported that there was a lot of tears on the faces of those that did.
Because of the expected traffic jam on the waterways, we had to sit around for a while before going back in, so we dangled a line – I suspect that the wives talking frightened all the fish away – and eventually, flashed up and headed back in for the very well attended wake at the Kawana Waters Hotel.
A reminder to all.
If you took video, please arrange to send a copy of the video to Rod Jorgenson for compiling into a DVD. We seem to have contacts for the Channel Seven and Channel Nine footage – we have to explore the Channel Ten footage, which I understand was very good.
If you took still photos, please ® please, burn a copy of the photo’s to a CD and send to me, so that I can get George Hick started on our photo compilation CD – please don’t e-mail the images, as we would much prefer the images in the resolution that they were taken in.
Peter Maher,
Secretary,
HMAS BRISBANE Association
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As you said, its not the end, but the beginning of a new life for our dear old girl ... No.41. 
