Ben Harvey: Volunteers push for memorial to highlight sacrifices made by WA’s commercial fishing fleet

As a heaving six-metre swell crashed onto nearby reef, Joe Pittorino steadied himself as he walked to the back of his boat.

He was preparing to cut through a rope tied to the stern of the Lapwing, a 45-foot lugger.

At the other end of that towline was a stricken fishing boat called the Mary.

The Mary had just been smashed by a 50-foot wave and her seawater-filled sail was forcing the boat to capsize, threatening to drag The Lapwing with her to the sea bed three nautical miles off Cervantes.

Joe knew that by cutting the Mary adrift he would be consigning to death her crew but his skipper, Antonino La Cava, had given the order so he had no choice.

As Joe started sawing into the rope he would likely have peered into the darkness behind him, straining to see what was happening on the deck of the listing Mary, which was 50 metres behind the Lapwing.

He may have seen skipper Domenico Cappellutti clinging to the bulwark of the stern and may have heard calls for help, faint over the whistle of the wind and the thunderous crack of waves.

If Joe did hear those voices, he may have recognised one of them.

His father Luigi was aboard The Mary on that fateful night of October 1, 1946.

The six deaths recorded when the Mary went down made it WA’s worst commercial fishing disaster.

It had a lot of competition for that title; since the early days of the 19th century more than 350 people have drowned whilst trying to put seafood on our tables.

That’s figure doesn’t include the countless pearlers and whalers who have perished at sea. Going to work on a boat was and is a dangerous way to make a living.

A small group of volunteers wants to highlight the bravery of, and sacrifices made by, WA’s commercial fishing fleet.

The WA Fishers Lost at Sea Memorial Association (FlatSea) has come up with a pretty amazing idea about how to do that.

“We originally thought about some kind of a statue but it really didn’t feel like it was doing justice to what these people went through,” FlatSea convenor and Fremantle Octopus executive Arno Verboon said.

“We started investigating some more engaging and interactive options for the memorial.”

Arno and fellow FlatSea Memorial Project member James Paratore stumbled upon an interesting concept in the Croatian city of Zadar.

Walk along that town’s foreshore and you will hear a gentle melody that will remind you of voices carried over water.

The hauntingly beautiful sounds are created by a sea organ constructed by the water’s edge. The sounds are generated when the gentle swell pushes air through pipes.

One of the world’s biggest musical instruments, it is a triumph of art and engineering.

The organ is quite the tourism destination, enticing visitors from the better-known Croatian hotspots of Split and Dubrovnik.

Arno and James reckon a sea organ would be a perfect tribute to the hundreds of souls who have died at sea while pulling pots, lines and nets along the WA coast.

I completely agree. Imagine it — a giant, naturally powered musical instrument filling the beachside air with notes from the ocean.

As well as being a place for reflection about what is considered the world’s most dangerous industry (watch one episode of Deadliest Catch and tell me otherwise) it could become an education point and tourism magnet.

As for location, Fishing Boat Harbour in Fremantle is an obvious choice, but we could think outside the box.

What about incorporating it into the design of the new marina slated for Ocean Reef?

Or using it to activate a regional town that has a pier or marina and a history with commercial fishing.

Who wouldn’t stop in to Dongara on the way to Geraldton if this thing was there?

Why wouldn’t you duck down to Augusta during your weekend in Margaret River?

It’s worth a discussion so if you are a bureaucrat or politician who gets a call from Arno and Peter, please take the call!

Side note 1: There was one survivor from The Mary. James Back was found clinging to a dinghy at 9.45am the morning after his ship sank.

Side note 2: The Mary seemed to be cursed. A month before she sank, the boat had dragged her moorings and run aground at Cervantes Island, forcing one of the crew to walk from Cervantes to Jurien Bay to get help.