D/S Gro

Report about the s.s. "Gro's" voyage from Sydney N.S. to U.K., and thetorpedoeing in the North Atlantic

The s.s. "Gro" loaded 6200/6300 tons wheat at Montral and arrived at Sydney N.S. the 1st August for bunkers and convoy.

Bunkered at once,and the vessel anchored in the roads, awaiting orders for convoy. As the vessel was of slow speed we were to await "slow convoy".

The 15th August we received orders about degaussing and on the 24th in the evening this had been carried out at the Sydney Foundry and Engingeering Works.

The vessel left Sydney in a 7 knot convoy on Sunday the 25th August at 2.00 o'clock p.m. The convoy consisted of 58 vessels escorted by a sloop. We were proceeding in 9 columns and the "Gro", which had NO. 83, was proceeding in column No. 8 from port and No. 3 from ahead.

Everything went well until Saturday the 7th September at about 1.30 o'clock a.m. when one of the vessels ahead in the convoy was torpedoed. 2nd officer Johan Myklebust was on watch on the bridge together with look-out man and helmsman, and in addition there was look-out man on the forecastle. The captain was lying in the chart room fully clothed and he was called at once.

When the captain came out they saw the lights on the port side from 2 lifeboats from the torpedoed vessel. Zig-zag steering was at once commenced, there having first been given hard a port, about 50 degrees. At the same time the convoy was notified about the danger by 6 short blasts in the whistle.

All the men were called out and put on their lifesaving waistcoats. Zig-zag steering was continued with, but at about 2.00 o'clock a.m. the vessel was hit by a torpedo amidship on the port side and apparently one or both boilers exploded. The vessel at once commenced to sink.

The starboard motor lifeboat was competely smashed and swept away by the explosion n consequence of which the men had to go to the port lifeboat which was undamaged.

It was a very dark night, overcast, strong breeze from west and heavy sea. We succeeded in getting the boat into the water with the men in it and it remained lying alongside with painters forward and aft until everybody had got in. There was absolutely no panic and everything went very quietly.

The captain had the ship's papers packed up in a bried case in his cabin. He tried to get in there, but as the light had gone out on account of the explosion and tables, chairs and inventory had been thrown about in the saloon he could no get in and had to go out on deck again.

We assumed that all the surviving men had now got down into the boat, but there was called out forward and aft in case there should be any more. There was no reply from any quarter wherefore the captein himself jumped over the rail and came down into the boat.

The vessel was now about to sink wherefore the painters were cut and we pushed off in order not to be caught by the suction. We kept the boat against the seas a short distance away from the ship and we now caught sight of two lights on the water after having first seen two shadows on the lower bridge. We assumed that the lights came from one of the rafts or the gig on the lower bridge.

The "Gro" now broke amidship and for a short time we saw the lights from the other boat or the raft, after which there was nothing more to be seen. The sea was so heavy that it was impossible to get near to each other. The whole night we manouevred the boat with the oars against the seas, and as regards the other vessels of the convoy there was nothing to be seen.

When it became light we saw that there were 21 men in the boat, and as the crew consisted of 32 men on departure from Sydney, 11 men were thus missing. Presumably, all in the engine room, the stoke hold and the coal bunkers had been killed by the explosion and the steam pouring out, and it is also to be feared that the men who were on the starboard side amidship perished through the explosion.

The position where the vessel was torpeoed was north-west of Rockall, about 58 degrees 30 minutes North, 16 degrees 10 minutes West.

Galley boy Herolf Sørensen was at the moment of the collision standing on the grating over the engine and he was badly burnt all over the body by the steam pouring out. He was put into the lifeboat and covered up the best possible.

On account of the seas being so heavy we were lying with oars out right up till Sunday morning at 8.00 o'clock when sails were set and the course was set for land. The hood was put up on the lifeboat and this gave some shelter against the cold wind. We had water, bread, butter and tinned food in the boat, likewise a warm coat and oilskin overcoat for each man.

The wind changed to N.W. with hail showers, but the boat was going well before the weather, and on Tuesday evening the 10th we caut sight of a ship coming out. We tried to cross the vessel's course and were then seen. It was found to be the s.s. "Burnvan" of London, Captain C. R. Mill, on voyage to Cape Town. At 7.00 o'clock p.m. all had come safely on board and were treated spedidly. We at once got dry clothes and hot food an drink, and the captian, officers and men did their utmost to help us.

Besides galley boy Herolf Sørensen, who had been burnt, there were also some of the men who had become ill on account of the hardships and by sitting in wet clothes from the boat left the "Gro". All these were given treatment.

The position where we met the "Burnvan" was 56.25 North, 9.35 West, and we had thus been sailing about 245 miles in the lifeboat in the direction of North Ireland and spent 89 hours in the boat.

The "Burnvan" continued on her voyaged to Cape Town, but on the next day we met a convoy for Liverpool, and there was asked by signals whether the men from the "Gro" could ble transferred to one of the escorting ships.

At 2.00 o'clock p.m. the men were transferred by one of the "Burnvan's" lifeboats to the escort ship "Arabia", and in that ship we arrived at Liverpool on the 13th September at 8.00 o'clock p.m.

Galley boy Herolf Sørensen, fieman Oskar Moy and cook Haakon Engh were taken in ambulance and driven to hospital, and the others were accomodated at various places.

The following men were saved:-

1. Chief Officer Ingvald Dalhaug

2. Wireless Operator Arnulf Westad

3. A.B. Seaman Lars Rimstad

4. A.B. Seaman Johannes Furdal

5. A.B. Seaman Odd Gjerde

7. A.B. Seaman Arthur Bernhard Johansen

8. A.B. Seaman Magnus Isdahl

9. A.B. Seaman William Bye

10. Ordinary Seaman Aksel Olsen

11. Jr. Ordinary Seaman Einar Johnsen

12. Deck Boy Arild Storstad

13. Steward Wilhelm Wilhelmsen

14. Cook Haakon Engh

15. Galley Boy Herolf Sørensen

16. Chief Engineer Martin Tumyr

17. 2nd Engineer Odd Tumyr

18. Fireman Martin Øren

19. Fireman Oskar Moy

20. Fireman Viktor Andresen

21. Captain Paul Brun.

The following men are missing:-

1. 2nd Officer Johan Myklebust

2. 3rd Officer Olaf Monsen

3. Donkeyman Johan Svaasand

4. Fireman Otto Fugledal

5. Fireman Odd Tjosaas

6. Fireman Kjeld Nilsen

7. Trimmer Nils Skaara

8. Trimmer Sverre Jørgensen

9. Trimmer Einar Larsen

10. Mess Room Boy Anbjørn Astad

11. 3rd Engineer Gerhardt Eltervaag.

Liverpool, the 16th September 1940

Paul Brun

Master

The men left the ship in their working clothes and were unable to save any of their personal effects.

Personal effects which were used in the service of the ship, and which were lost, are as follows:-

The Captain:- 2 sextants, 1 typewriter, Remington Standard, 1 calculating machine, Burroghs up to 100.000.00, 1 steel card filing index with 4 drawers and lock, 1 pair of Zeiss prismatic binoculars, 8 x 30, All kinds of necessary navigation books, dictionary etc.

The Chief Engineer:- 1 typewriter, Renington portable, 1 indicator.

Paul Brun, Master