LOSS OF ROYAL OAK

Ellesmere Guardian, Volume LX, Issue 89, 9 November 1939, Page 6

LOSS OF ROYAL OAK

SURVIVORS^ STORIES

LONG SWIM IN THE SEA

(From The Guardian's London

Correspondent)

LONDON, October 21

Vincent Marchant, of Ddncaster, a survivor—told the story of the end of the Royal Oak—sunk by a submarine in Scapa Flow. With other survivors he is now in hospital ashore. Marchant, who is 18, said he was asleep in his hammock when the first explosion occurred.

"I ran to the upper deck to see what had happened. There was a Second explosion 20 minutes later, followed by a third. Then a fourth explosion occurred. By that time the ship was tilting. She was sinking rapidly. Remembering what happened in the Courageous and the lesson that the sinking of the aircraft carrier taught us, I stripped myself of all my clothing and tying my safety belt around my waist dived into the water. Search-

lights were playing over the surface and I could see hundreds of heads bobbing around. Great volumes of oil started to rise to the

surface. My eyes began to smart and the faces of all the men swimming around turned a greasy black I was caught in a searchlight for several minutes and saw that two of my pals were swimming alongside me. Later, however, they had cramp and disappeared. A small boat passed near at hand with some one on board shouting for survivors. I 'Ahoyed' but evidently they did not hear me and the boat disappeared into the darkness.

"I swam and swam for I don't know how long but I must have gone about a mile and a half when I felt the rock under me. I Scarcely remember what happened after that. It was like a nightmare. I have just a vague recollection of climbing up the sheer face of a cliff about 30 feet high. Another figure was climbing behind me but he slipped and crashed among the rocks below. He must have been killed or drowned. I lay down on the top of the cliff and lost consciousness.

"Then I heard someone shouting from the direction of the sea. The voice told me not to try and climb down again, as help would be sent along the top of the cliff. Some time later—l should say about half an hour—six men arrived with restoratives. They wrapped me in a blanket .and took me to an hotel in the town nearby."

Robert Martin, who is 18, a seaman, living at Brighton, told a similar story. He swam ashore and was picked up on the rocks. He swam about two miles. As he lay on the [rocks a ship's boat came in sight, [shouting for survivors through a [megaphone. He called back. They heard him, and he was taken on' I board.