TWICE TORPEDOED

Otago Witness, Issue 3331, 16 January 1918, Page 58

TWICE TORPEDOED

DUNEDIN ENGINEER'S EXPERIENCE

Writing to his mother in Dunedin, a young engineer, who was on the Avenger, tells of what happened when he joined a new steamer:

"Once more my luok has 'been out, and in another way it has been' in. I think I told you in my last letter that I had joined H.M.S. in Liverpool. She was a ship doing similar work to the Avenger. I only joined her at the last minute. The left Liverpool on Sunday night, and the, following morning, at 6, we were torpedoed. I was asleep at the time. When I pioked myself up I was lying in the centre of the .room. I immediately slipped some clothes on over the top of my pyjamas. By the time I had my boots on a second torpedo hit us, so I thought it was tkne to get on deck. My room was well awash, and I had to flounder through about a foot of water to get on deck. > When I arrived on deck the ship. was sinking very fast, so I jumped for the first boat I sa'vv, and, of course, I missed it, and landed m the water-instead. My word, it_ was cold. I was lucky to have had my lifebelt on. THIRD TORPEDO STRIKES DOOMED VESSEL. "I do not know how long I was in the water; it couldn't have been more than a few minutes. I had no sooner got into a boat when a third torpedo struck the ship—it was fair hell. This torpedo struck the ship amidships—there was an awful explosion, which cut her in halves. She then sank very rapidly. We could see guns and deckhouses rolling down the decks. A number of chaps were on her at the time, and I think they must have been all lost. The weather was very bad, and we spent six hours in the boats before being picked up, so it was a pretty rotten experience. The Avenger incident was a picnio compared with this lot. HEAVY CASUALTY LIST.

"The loss of life was pretty heavy. The latest reports state that there are 75 missing-, including six officers, out of a crew of 305. I am very much afraid that they have all gone west. Had tho weather 'been fine, I do not think there would have been nearly so many lost. We have been very well treated here—everybody has been good to us. I. lost all my gear again. This is tho shortest trip I have ever _ made on a ship. From the time of joining, only 36 hours had elapsed before we had to abandon ship. She sank in eight minutes." A GLAD SURPRISE. Writing a few days later, the sailor says that, on returning to Liverpool, after being away three days, they were much surprised and cheered to see one of their officers, whom thev had given up for lost. He and 19 others "had been picked up from a raft by a passing steamer. This brought the casualty list down to 55.