TRANSPORT TORPEDOED.

Marlborough Express, Volume XLIX, Issue 250, 21 October 1915, Page 2

TRANSPORT TORPEDOED.

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DESCRIPTION OF THE DISASTER.

Mr lewin, Town' Clerk at l>unecun, , has received a letter from Ins son, a member of the sth Reinforcements, who states that a transport contain-, mo- Australian and New Zealand j troops was torpedoed The wnter j states that the total casualties were ; 51 \usti alians and three New oca- | landers including a Dunedm toy. The troopship was attacked on the way from Alexandria to Anzac, and the torpedoing iock place at 10 a.m. | Mr Lewin's son was rescued by a { French . destroyer. The troopship was j not actually sur.k, and was able to ; proceed tc» iDort under her own steam. \ In the course ofvthe letter the writer says. "The torpedo blew Iho middle of +he apartment where bunks had | been fitted all round the hold. The ' explosion blew the ? hatches and steps leading from the hold clean off, and a number of men were caught down j below. A chain happened to be hang— i ing* down from the deck ;>l>ove, and \ the men climbed up ' .somehow or Jothfi. Everyti. ing was very orderly on deck as far as the soldiers v- ere concerned, but Most of the me?i in our Lovit were ihrown into the sea,

as one of the'crew 'owered the boat with a rush, while the other held on."

( Lewir. swam away and .cot into another 'oat, i<r.-d after nicking up live rr six men they made for an island which appeared about ten "miles off. Boats from the cruisers an:! defitvovors commenced to arrive a >out an hour f.nd a-half after the tvans--1 port was torpedoed. Lewin's boat I was picked up by a French destroyer I about 3.30 p.w { Three New Zcalanders belonging to the N"e\v Zealand Headquarters Staff and i-bout 51 Australians were lost. The first torpedo miss-ed the en^ine- | room and the .second missed the vessel s altogethoi

I The toipodoing is supposed to have f happened about September :?.