Eros
British Steam merchant
Photo courtesy of the Allen Collection
| Name | Eros | ||
| Type: | Steam merchant | ||
| Tonnage | 5,888 tons | ||
| Completed | 1936 - Harland & Wolff Ltd, Belfast | ||
| Owner | Morant SS Co Ltd (M.A. Kerwin), London | ||
| Homeport | Belfast | ||
| Date of attack | 7 Jun 1940 | Nationality:  British | |
| Fate | Damaged by U-48 (Hans Rudolf Rösing) | ||
| Position | 55° 33'N, 8° 26'W - Grid AM 5296 | ||
| Complement | 62 (0 dead and 62 survivors). | ||
| Convoy | |||
| Route | Montreal - Liverpool | ||
| Cargo | 301 tons of copper, 108 tons of ferro chrome and 200 tons of small arms | ||
| History | Completed in April 1936 for Erin SS Co Ltd (Standard Fruit & SS Co), Belfast. 1939 transferred to Morant SS Co Ltd (M.A. Kerwin), London. On 3 Nov 1940, the Eros in convoy WN-29 from Pentland Firth to Methil was bombed and damaged by German aircraft in 57°48N/01°54W. Post-war: | ||
| Notes on event | At 03.22 hours on 7 June 1940, U-48 fired a torpedo at the unescorted Eros about 15 miles 52° of Tory Island and scored a hit after 4 minutes 34 seconds. The shot fell from a distance of about 3000 metres because the vessel was fast and the proximity of land prevented a chase on the surface. The U-boat left the area after the crew abandoned the burning ship. The badly damaged Eros was taken in tow by HMS Berkeley (L 17) and was later assisted by HMS Bandit (W 69) and HMS Volunteer (D 71) (LtCdr N. Lanyon, RN), which had tried to salvage the torpedoed HMS Carinthia the day before. The survivors were picked up by HMS Paynter (FY 242). In the evening, the ship was beached on Tory Island and was later salvaged and repaired. | ||
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