List of major marine casualties from 1931 to 1940

This list of serious marine casualties from 1931 to 1940 records accidents in shipping with fatalities or high property damage in the fourth decade of the 20th century .

Ship accidents between 1930 and 1939

date	Surname	dead	Course of events
September 21, 1931	Annamarie	15th	As a result of a driving error by the intoxicated skipper , the motorboat Annamarie , manned by excursionists from the Jahn Borkum gymnastics club, stranded in Haaksgat between Juist and Memmert as a result of a sea blow . The lack of navigation instruments and adequate rescue equipment and the failure to evacuate the ship after the stranding resulted in the deaths of 15 of the 19 people on board despite the emergency services being alerted quickly.
July 14, 1931	St. Philbert	483	The excursion steamer St. Philbert (189 tons) got caught in a heavy storm on its way back from the Île de Noirmoutier and sank. Only eight out of 491 people on board were rescued.
January 16, 1932	M2	60	The British submarine M2 crashed during a maneuver off Portland . The large submarine, which was equipped with an aircraft hangar in 1925, presumably sank because seawater was able to penetrate through the hangar into the interior of the boat during a dive . The entire crew of 60 men was killed in the accident. M2's sister ship , the U-cruiser M1 , had an accident as early as 1925.
May 16, 1932	Georges Philippar	54	On the return voyage from its maiden voyage, the almost 18,000 GRT French luxury steamer burned out overnight off Cape Guardafui in the Gulf of Aden . 54 people died, all of them passengers. The cause of the accident could never be properly clarified; sabotage or arson were suspected, among other things. It was the greatest disaster of the Messageries Maritimes shipping company in peacetime.
July 26, 1932	Niobe	69	The sail training ship of the German Imperial Navy was on a Baltic trip when around 14:27 near the lightship Fehmarnbelt could think of a strength rapidly increasing, almost vertical gust that brought the ship capsized within minutes. 69 sailors were killed when the Niobe sank .
December 5, 1932	Sawarabi	110	The Japanese destroyer Sawarabi sank in a heavy storm in Formosa Street . Probably, so later investigations show, the ship sank due to a design flaw which had reduced the stability. The entire crew (110 men) was killed.
January 4, 1933	L'Atlantique	19th	On a trip from Bordeaux to La Havre, a fire broke out near Guernsey on board the ocean liner L'Atlantique (42,514 t) of the French shipping company Compagnie de Navigation Sud-Atlantique , which quickly spread to the entire ship. Passengers were not on board on this trip. Of the 229 crew members, 19 were killed. The ship was towed to Cherbourg and later scrapped.
December 13, 1933	plus	11	The full- load Finnish full ship Plus sank off the Åland Islands in the Baltic Sea with the entire crew.
June 29, 1934	Miyuki and Inazuma	6th	Six people died in the collision of the Japanese destroyers Miyuki and Inazuma (1,880 t each) off the island of Tsushima . The badly damaged Miyuki sank a little later during the towing maneuver , but the Inazuma was able to reach an emergency port.
September 8, 1934	Morro Castle	137	The American luxury cruise ship Morro Castle caught fire near Asbury Park , New Jersey . Of the total of 549 people on board, 137 died and many were injured.
2nd / 3rd October 1934	Millpool	26th	In the mid-Atlantic, about 670 nautical miles east of Newfoundland , the British freighter Millpool, running from Danzig to Montreal , got caught in a hurricane. After the swell had smashed the hatches, water penetrated the holds and swelled the wheat cargo, which in turn led to the breaking of the bulkheads of the 28-year-old ship and thus to its sinking. With the Millpool , the entire 26-man crew went down.
December 12, 1934	Tomozuru	97	The Japanese torpedo boat Tomozuru (527 t) capsized in a storm off Sasebo ( Japan ) . 97 of the 113 man crew were killed.
January 19, 1935	Edgar Wallace	15th	On the return trip from a three-week fishing trip at Bear Island , the British trawler Edgar Wallace ran aground shortly before reaching the home port of Hull and, after being pushed over the sandbar by a strong current, sank so quickly that only six of the 21 Crew members managed to save themselves.
January 24, 1935	Mohawk	47	The American liner Mohawk of the Clyde-Mallory Line collided with a Norwegian freighter about eight miles off the coast of New Jersey and sank within 60 minutes. 47 of the 163 people on board came to us. 54 passengers and crew members were injured, some seriously.
26./27. February 1935	Blairgowrie	26th	The British steamer Blairgowrie (3,260 GRT) lost its rudder in a severe winter storm in the mid-Atlantic . The maneuverable ship, en route from Swansea to Boston , then hit across the waves and capsized. As a result of the cargo of ore dust, the ship sank within a few minutes with the entire 26-man crew. Despite an SOS call, no one could be rescued.
July 25, 1935	B 3 door	55	During a maneuver in the Gulf of Finland , the Soviet battleship Marat accidentally collided with the Soviet submarine B 3 Tur (650 ts). The boat collided with the capital ship's hull during a surface exercise and sank almost instantly. None of the 55-man crew could save themselves. The wreck was later lifted from a depth of around 60 meters and scrapped.
October 19, 1935	Vardulia	37	The British freighter Vardulia , which runs from Hartlepool to Newfoundland, sank in a strong storm front in the mid- Atlantic . The ship loaded with coal capsized after the cargo slipped and went down with the entire crew of 37 seafarers. The crew had previously been able to make an emergency call. However, other ships could no longer reach the site of the accident in time.
October 23, 1935	Berwindlea	0	The British freighter Berwindlea (GTFW) (5,276 GRT) ran aground in fog on Dead Man's Rock (Île du Corps Mort), a rock off the Magdalen Islands in the Gulf of Saint Lawrence . The crew of 30 were rescued by a lifeboat of the Japanese freighter England Maru (JAGD) during a heavy storm . The Berwindlea and its paper load had to be abandoned.
November 8, 1936	Isis	39	The German steamer Isis (4,454 GRT), on the route from Hamburg to New York, got into distress in a storm in the Central Atlantic after waves had destroyed the front cargo hold lids. Although an SOS call could be made and several ships set course for the damaged vessel, only a single crew member could be rescued because the ship sank very quickly. A total of 39 sailors died.
December 1, 1936	Elsa	10	The German steamer Elsa (989 GRT), with a cargo of coal from Danzig to Cherbourg, got into distress in a storm off the island of Norderney after waves had destroyed the bridge. Only two out of 12 sailors on board were able to save themselves as the ship sank very quickly over the port side.
18./19. January 1937	wave	25th	West of the island of Fehmarn , the German test boat Welle sank in a snow storm during the night while trying to save the crews of the schooner Duhnen and the tug Fairplay X ; both ships had previously got into distress. However, the boat used by the navy in attempts at communications overturned as a result of icing and meter-high waves and sank with the entire crew of 25 men.
30./31. October 1937	Calgadoc	17th	For unexplained reasons, the Canadian coal freighter Calgadoc (2,201 GRT) running from Sydney to Wabana was lost off the Canadian east coast . The transporter, a ship specially designed for use on the inland sea routes in North America, probably sank around 30./31. October. Since the freighter had to cover part of the journey off Newfoundland on the high seas, it is possible that a monster wave or a hurricane could be its undoing there. The exact background of the loss and the place where it went down are not known. The ship and its 17-man crew were considered lost.
March 1938	Admiral Karpfanger	60	The four-masted barque Admiral Karpfanger ex L'Avenir , a cargo sailing training ship of the German Hamburg-America Line , disappeared on the voyage from Port Germein (near Port Pirie , Australia) to Hamburg with a cargo of wheat in the South Atlantic. The last message “All well” was sent on March 1st at 51 ° S, 172 ° E. 60 men, including 33 cadets, were lost with the ship. A collision with an iceberg in the Cape Horn region is suspected , as years later the Admiral Karpfanger washed up in Patagonia .
March 14, 1938 (?)	Anglo Australian	38	In the mid-Atlantic, the British freighter Anglo Australian (5,497 GRT) disappeared for reasons that were not exactly clear . The ship, which runs from Cardiff to Canada , presumably sank around March 14th in the Central Atlantic. The entire crew of 38 men went down with the cargo ship . The loss was probably caused by an explosion in a coal bunker, after which the ship breaks apart. A committee of inquiry later found that the coal on board had been unevenly stowed in the port of Cardiff, which would support this thesis. The sinking of this ship is also associated with the Bermuda Triangle .
April 9-20, 1938	Mount Kyllene	4th	On the way from Panama to Amsterdam , the Greek freighter Mount Kyllene (5,313 GRT) got caught in a storm in the North Atlantic and broke apart on April 9 after an explosion in a boiler. Four sailors drowned. The remaining 31 crew members rescued themselves on the demolished stern and on the bow section of the ship, from where they were later rescued. The bow section remained buoyant for the time being and drifted about for eleven days before sank on April 20.
May 23, 1939	Squalus	26th	The submarine Squalus sank during diving tests in the Gulf of Maine because the main flood valve in the engine room was stuck in the open position. The aft area of ​​the submarine was completely flooded and 26 sailors drowned. 33 sailors were stuck in the front part of the boat at a depth of 75 meters. On May 24, they were rescued from the submarine by a diving bell in a 13-hour rescue operation.
September 13, 1939	La Tour d'Auvergne	215	In the port of Casablanca (Morocco) the mine load exploded on the French mine cruiser La Tour d'Auvergne (4,770 t). 215 of the 396 crew members were killed in the explosion and sinking of the ship.
September 13, 1939	Pluton	186	During the takeover of sea mines on the French mine cruiser Pluton in the port of Casablanca, one of the mines fell from the hoist and exploded. The detonation caused more mines to explode, completely destroying the cruiser. In the accident, 186 crew members and people died on the bank. Another 84 people on board and ashore were injured.
December 13, 1939	Indigirka	741	On the night of December 13, the Russian Indigirka ran aground in a snow storm on the north coast of Hokkaidō and lay on its side in the shallow water. A total of 741 people died, most of them prisoners who were supposed to be moved by ship.
December 19, 1939	Duchess	129	The British destroyer Duchess (1,375 t) sank west of Scotland after a collision with the British battleship Barham . 129 people were killed.
January 11, 1940	Bahia Blanca	0	The German blockade breaker Bahia Blanca (8,559 GRT), who wanted to break through from Rio de Janeiro to Germany, collided with an iceberg on January 10th in the Denmark Strait and sank the following day as a result of the damage suffered. The crew of 62 men was completely rescued by the Icelandic fishing trawler Hafsteinn and brought to Reykjavík .
January 21, 1940	Orazio	106	The Italian passenger ship Orazio (11,669 GRT) was en route from Genoa to Barcelona with over 600 people when one of the diesel engines exploded off Toulon . The ship burned out and sank, killing 106 passengers. Among the travelers were many Jews who wanted to flee Europe from National Socialism. A handful of steamers, destroyers, and auxiliary cruisers picked up the survivors.
April 23, 1940	La Railleuse	28	In the port of Casablanca (Morocco) the French destroyer La Railleuse (1,800 ts ) sank as a result of an internal explosion, which presumably took place in the boiler room. 28 of the 159 crew members died in the explosion and sinking of the ship.
29./30. April 1940	leopard	1	During a mine-laying operation in the Skagerrak, the German torpedo boat Leopard (932 ts) and the mine-layer Prussia collided in the dark. A rudder failure on board the Leopard presumably led to the collision. The torpedo boat was badly damaged and sank within about 20 minutes, killing one crew member.
April 30, 1940	Maille-Brézé	28	In the port of Greenock , the large French destroyer Maille-Brézé (3,000 ts) was destroyed by a fire and a subsequent internal explosion. 28 of the 240-strong crew came to life. A defective torpedo warhead may have caused the accident.
May 18, 1940	Effingham	0	The British heavy cruiser Effingham (9,750 ts) ran aground on an underwater rock near Bodø while the British fleet was in action . The ship was badly damaged and had to be abandoned. The crew were completely rescued. The rock had been marked on the nautical charts on board the ship, but the entry had inadvertently been overdrawn and thereby overlooked.
19./20. June 1940	O 13	34	In the North Sea, about 90 nautical miles southwest of Stavanger , the Dutch submarine O 13 (610 ts) and the Polish submarine Wilk , both boats fighting on the Allied side, accidentally collided in the dark at around 0.25 a.m. The Dutch submarine sank within a few seconds, with all 34 crew members being killed. The Polish submarine later reached a British port, badly damaged. At times it was suspected that Wilk might have collided with the German submarine U 122 . However, this submarine reported on June 21, which is why it is now assumed that the other party involved in the accident that night was most likely the Dutch O 13 .
June 28, 1940	Fraser	4th	In the sea area between France and Great Britain, the British anti-aircraft cruiser Calcutta collided with the Canadian destroyer Fraser (1,375 ts). The Fraser broke in two and sank. Four of the destroyer's crew were killed.
July 16, 1940	Imogen	18th	The British destroyer Imogen (1,370 ts) sank in the Pentland Firth after a collision with the British light cruiser Glasgow . Both ships collided in thick fog. 18 people were killed. 132 sailors were saved.
October 19, 1940	Bras d'Or	30th	The Canadian auxiliary minesweeper Bras d'Or (400 ts), used to shadow a Romanian freighter running from Sept-Îles to Sydney , got caught in a strong storm in the Gulf of Saint Lawrence and sank. The sinking could be observed from aboard the freighter, but no one could be rescued due to the bad weather. All 30 crew members of the mine sweeper were killed.
October 22, 1940	Margaree	140	In the North Atlantic , the Canadian destroyer Margaree (1,375 ts) used to secure the allied convoy OL-8 sank after a collision with the British merchant ship Port Fairy . At the time of the accident there was thick fog. 140 people were killed, only 34 men could be saved.
October 30, 1940	Sturdy	5	The older British destroyer Sturdy (1,075 ts) ran aground during a strong storm on the coast of Tiree ( Hebrides ) and was crushed by the rough seas. Five men of the crew were killed. About 90 men were able to save themselves on the bank.
November 27, 1940	Lisieux	12	The Canadian flagged former French freighter Lisieux (2,594 GRT) ran aground in a severe storm off the coast of Newfoundland . Twelve sailors were killed. 17 crew members saved themselves on the bank.
December 14, 1940	Branlebas	3	The former French torpedo boat Branlebas (669 ts), manned by a British crew , sank in a storm about 25 nautical miles southeast of Eddystone Rocks . Three men of the crew were killed. It later turned out that the ships of this type had significant stability problems.

Individual evidence

1. ^ The misfortune of "Annamarie" ( Memento from December 31, 2008 in the Internet Archive ) in the archive. Retrieved November 21, 2014.

See also

• List of disasters