On the 28 of February 1908, the 3295-ton screw steamer Darius was being shifted from one crane to another to take in further coal when the stern line attached to the wharf parted, pulling on the bow line until it too snapped. After several failed attempts the Darius drifted into the canal and collided with the American schooner Jane L. Stanford, which, with a full cargo of coal, was also shifting cranes. The two vessels were locked for a while and then the Darius drifted onto the Pinnacle Rocks at the Newcastle Port. She was later refloated during high tide and taken to the King’s Wharf to complete loading. The schooner was badly damaged and had to be repaired.
The 103.6-metre Darius was built in 1892 by W Doxford in Sunderland, UK and powered by a triple expansion engine. The steamer was registered in Melbourne and belonged to the Currie line of steamers trading to India with cargoes of coal.
