Merchant ships and the Ohio tanker
Heroes Remember
Merchant ships and the Ohio tanker
Other, other merchant ships were just being picked off by torpedo
either from submarines or by aircraft or bombed and we were
gradually losing them all the way. In fact on the last day
alone 5 merchant ships were lost. We only got into Malta, we
got 5 merchant ships and the tanker Ohio. The tanker Ohio on
the last day received a bomb right down her funnel right into
the engine room; that blew the engine room to pieces. Another
aircraft, German aircraft, crash-landed on her deck and another
aircraft bounced off the water, that was attacking her, bounced
off the water and landed on her deck. Her deck was ablaze and
still the crew refused to abandon ship. Eventually they had to,
she had settled into the water but they re-manned the ship a few
hours afterwards and two destroyers were sent to assist
her and they tied themselves, they secured themselves on both
sides of her because she, the rudder had become damaged and she
could not steer. And another vessel towed her and this is how
she limped into Malta. She was the last vessel to come in that
day or the next morning actually she came in.
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