Holmelea
British Steam merchant
| Name | Holmelea | ||
| Type: | Steam merchant | ||
| Tonnage | 4,223 tons | ||
| Completed | 1928 - Sir John Priestman & Co Ltd, Southwick, Sunderland | ||
| Owner | John Morrison & Son, Newcastle-upon-Tyne | ||
| Homeport | Newcastle | ||
| Date of attack | 28 Feb 1941 | Nationality:  British | |
| Fate | Sunk by U-47 (Günther Prien) | ||
| Position | 54° 24'N, 17° 25'W - Grid AL 6910 | ||
| Complement | 38 (28 dead and 10 survivors). | ||
| Convoy | HX-109 (straggler) | ||
| Route | Rosario - Halifax (13 Feb) - Hull | ||
| Cargo | 7000 tons of grain, linseed and maize | ||
| History | Completed in August 1928 | ||
| Notes on event | In the early morning on 28 February 1941 the Holmelea (Master John Robert Potts), a straggler from convoy HX-109, was damaged by gunfire by U-47 and sunk by a coup de grâce southwest of Rockall. The ship had been missed by a torpedo from U-99 (Kretschmer) earlier that night. The master, 26 crew members and one gunner were lost. On 5 March, ten crew members in one lifeboat were picked up by the Icelandic trawler Baldur and landed at Fleetwood. On the same day, the trawler had picked up 39 survivors from the Dutch merchant Simaloer, which had been bombed and sunk by a German aircraft 60 hours before. | ||
| On board | We have details of 29 people who were on board. | ||
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