Into the Maelstrom

On 29 October 1914 the hospital ship Rohilla left Queensferry with 229 persons on board; the vessel was bound for Dunkirk on an errand of mercy, under wartime restrictions and in deteriorating weather. Just after 4 a.m. there was a tremendous impact as the ship ran on to rocks at Saltwick Nab, a mile south of Whitby. Rohilla was mortally wounded 600 yards from shore, 'so close to land yet so far from safety'. Over the ensuing days the heartrending loss of 92 lives in terrible circumstances would