HMAS Sydney II
TED McGowan thought he was going to take it all in his stride. Then on Tuesday evening, the call came from Canberra; the final resting place of the unknown sailor had been unearthed on remote Christmas Island in the Indian Ocean.Two issues give Mr McGowan hope: a good set of teeth and a canvas shoe. When the body was examined by the island doctor on or about February 6, 1942, the corpse had a “perfect set of teeth”, as did Tom McGowan, a rarity in those days, and a shoe in the raft had “McCowan” or “McEwan” branded on it. I hope it works out for you, TedJohn Perryman, the Royal Australian Navy historian, told him a forensic team was dusting off the skeletal remains of what may be the only physical link to Australia’s worst maritime disaster, the sinking of HMAS Sydney in November 1941 off Western Australia.
It may also turn out to be Mr McGowan’s brother Tom. “I feel exhausted,” Mr McGowan admitted yesterday. “I thought I would be able to handle it, but I was completely overcome.” He has been the driving force behind the navy-led expedition to Christmas Island.