Malda (ship)
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The Malda (II) was a 1913 passenger ship of the British shipping company British India Steam Navigation Company . She was sunk by a German submarine on August 25, 1917 near the Isles of Scilly.
history
The 7,884 GRT steamship Malda was built at the Barclay, Curle and Company shipyard in the Whiteinch district of Glasgow and was launched on March 7, 1913. On April 29, 1913, the Malda was completed. The passenger and cargo steamer was 137.16 meters long, 17.68 meters wide and had a side height of 10.1 meters. The three-cylinder, triple expansion steam engine made 900 nominal horsepower.
On Saturday, August 25, 1917, the Malda was under the command of Captain Charles Davidson on a crossing from Boston to London . The ship was armed. At around 1.40 p.m. during a strong wind coming from the northeast , the Malda was torpedoed 130 nautical miles southwest of Bishop Rock in front of the Isles of Scilly by the German submarine U 70 under the command of Kapitänleutnant Otto Wünsche .
The torpedo struck the port side and filled the engine room . The lifeboats were launched, but the Malda did not initially sink. U 70 appeared and wanted to make contact with the boats, but because of the stormy winds this did not happen. Captain Davidson wanted to call at the Isles of Scilly with his boat, but was picked up by a ship and put on land in Milford Haven .
The lifeboat in which the first officer was stayed near the still buoyant Malda , as it was hoped to be able to board the ship again shortly. However, the submarine forced the lifeboat to flee. The following morning the steamer capsized and sank. The lifeboats came ashore at various points. 64 people were killed by the sinking of the Malda .