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Allied Warships

HMCS Fraser (H 48)

Destroyer of the C class

NavyThe Royal Canadian Navy
TypeDestroyer
ClassC 
PennantH 48 
Built byVickers Armstrong (Barrow-in-Furness, U.K.) 
Ordered 
Laid down1 Dec, 1930 
Launched29 Sep, 1931 
Commissioned17 Feb, 1937 
Lost25 Jun, 1940 
Loss position
 
HistoryAt 10.30 PM on the 25th of June 1940 HMCS Fraser (Cdr. Wallace Bourchier Creery, RCN) was given orders to proceed to Bordeaux, France to help in the rescue of an estimated four thousand refugees trapped in the area by the German military forces. Accompanying the Fraser was the Canadian destroyer HMCS Restigouche and the British cruiser HMS Calcutta. In rough seas and poor visibility, the captain of the Fraser decided that the three ships should move closer together and ordered a turn to port in order to bring his ship behind HMS Calcutta. In doing so the two ships collided, the bow of the heavier Calcutta sliced into the side of the Fraser with such force that the lighter vessel was cut into three pieces. Forty-five crewmembers were killed and nineteen men from the Calcutta lost their lives. Many survivors from the Fraser were later lost on October 22, 1940, after being transferred to the destroyer HMCS Margaree which sank after a collision with the freighter Port Fairy.

Commanding Officer
Cdr. Wallace Bourchier Creery, RCN
1 September 1938 - 25 June 1940 

Former nameHMS Cresent

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