Historic Murray River paddle steamer retired after sinking

The Pride of the Murray, built at Echuca on the Murray River in Victoria in 1924 as a timber barge, was relocated to Longreach last year after it was bought by a tourist park. However, in early March it started taking on water before sinking and settling on the bottom.

The boat was winched ashore earlier this month with the aim of refloating it, but its owners announced today that large parts of the hull and superstructure – the latter added in the early 1970s after the hull was rescued from where it had previously been scuttled on the Murray River – would need replacing.

Outback Pioneers founder Richard Kinnon said if there had been a simple fix for the Pride of the Murray, it would have been back on the water.

“But the boatbuilders made it clear that, after a sinking, a boat of this age would need to be virtually rebuilt from scratch to guarantee she would pass certification requirements,” Kinnon said.

“...We’re only just digesting the reality ourselves and there’s a lot of thought and planning to do now.”

He said even if the Pride of the Murray was able to return to the water, “it is likely that getting insurance underwriting would be impossible or prohibitively expensive”.

Kinnon said the aim was to restore the historic paddle steamer’s superstructure for a land-based role while a replica would take over passenger duties.

“We haven’t decided exactly what her role will be yet but she will still be here and preserved for future generations,” he said.

“Together with her identical twin [a replica dubbed the Pride of the Murray II] she will remain a tourism highlight for Longreach and will also reflect on her strong connections with Echuca in Victoria.”