The 5,358 GRT steamship was built at the Harland & Wolff shipyard in Belfast , Northern Ireland , and was launched on December 15, 1894. The 128.3 meter long and 14.9 meter wide passenger and mail ship was the first of the shipping company to be christened Orissa . She was the sister ship of the Oropesa (I) and the Oravia (I). The Orissa was able to take 70 first class passengers, 104 second class and 456 third class on board.
During a strong earthquake in Valparaíso in August 1906 with thousands of deaths, it was anchored there and was then used as accommodation for the earthquake victims.
On June 25, 1918, the Orissa was on a westbound Atlantic crossing from Liverpool to Philadelphia when she was torpedoed and sunk by the German submarine UB 73 (Kapitänleutnant Karl Neureuther) 21 nautical miles southwest of the rocky island of Skerryvore on the west coast of Scotland . The vessel dropped to the position of 56 ° 20 ' N , 7 ° 20' W . Six people were killed.
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