Empire Caribou
British Steam merchant
Name | Empire Caribou | ||
Type: | Steam merchant | ||
Tonnage | 4,861 tons | ||
Completed | 1919 - Downey Shipbuilding Corp, Arlington NY | ||
Owner | Sir William Reardon Smith & Sons Ltd, Cardiff | ||
Homeport | London | ||
Date of attack | 10 May 1941 | Nationality: British | |
Fate | Sunk by U-556 (Herbert Wohlfarth) | ||
Position | 59° 28'N, 35° 44'W - Grid AK 1390 | ||
Complement | 45 (34 dead and 11 survivors). | ||
Convoy | OB-318 (dispersed) | ||
Route | London - Loch Ewe - Boston, Massachusetts | ||
Cargo | 2020 tons of chalk | ||
History | Completed in November 1919 as Waterbury for US Shipping Board (USSB). 1921 renamed Northern Star for American Star Line Inc, New York. 1923 renamed Defacto for American Sugar Transit Corp, New York. On 18 Mar 1940 given to Britain and renamed Empire Caribou by Ministry of War Transport (MoWT). | ||
Notes on event | At 07.52 hours on 10 May 1941 the Empire Caribou (Master Bernard Edwin Duffield), dispersed from convoy OB-318, was torpedoed and sunk by U-556 about 465 miles southwest of Reykjanes. The master, 31 crew members and two gunners were lost. Nine crew members and two gunners were picked up by HMS Malcolm (D 19) (Cdr C.D. Howard-Johnston, DSC, RN), landed at Reykjavik and brought to Greenock by HMS Scimitar (H 21) (Lt R.D. Franks, OBE, RN). | ||
On board | We have details of 30 people who were on board. |
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