| Summary : 1916 wreck of a French cargo vessel which foundered 4 miles ESE of Scarborough after detonating a mine, while en route from North Shields for Dunkirk with coal. Constructed of steel in 1896, she was a steam-driven vessel. She was first in British service as ISLANDER, coasting from Bristol, until being sold in 1901, when she entered Austro-Hungarian service, first at Ragusa (now Dubrovnik in Croatia) as SIPAN, then as FLINK, operating from Trieste, now in Italy. Her final owners from 1913 were a shipping company founded by Italian immigrants in the port of Oran in Algiers, now in the modern state of Algeria, although one source states that she was sold on to a French company based in mainland France in 1916. The vessel was recorded at the time of loss as French, which would at the time have been regarded as applicable in either circumstance, since Algeria was then under French colonial rule. |
More information : Primary Sources:
05-SEP-1916: A French vessel of 401 tons which was mined 4 miles ESE of Scarborough. She was en route from North Shields to Dunkirk with coal. (2)
(In French.) The survivors were saved by the crew of the DORA DUNCAN, upon whom the French Government conferred medals: a 'silver lifesaving medal, 2nd class' for her master, and five bronze medals for the crew. The date of loss is cited as 4 September 1916. (3) repr. in (4)
The involvement of the DORA DUNCAN, the location of loss, and the date make it almost certain that the below account, although heavily censored, refers to the VILLE D'ORAN:
'Captain Arthur Dye, of 26, Upper Cliff road, Gorleston-on-Sea, Great Yarmouth, wishes to thank Captain Hutchinson (master) and the crew of the Tees tug DORA DUNCAN, to whom he owes his life.
'Captain Dye is a North Sea pilot, and recently left - with the steamer -, bound south. The morning after, when off -, a heavy concussion was felt under the ship's bottom, and the vessel immediately commenced to settle, taking a heavy list to starboard. Captain Dye seized a lifebuoy, and clambered ontot he port side of the ship, which soon sank, drawing him down with her.
'He was unable to get both arms through the lifebuoy, so clung on with one arm. As the vessel was sinking the lights of the DORA DUNCAN were seen about a mile and a half distant. The whistle cord was tied down, to keep the whistle blowing to attract her attention.
'The weather was very bad, blowing hard from the north, with heavy sea.
'The DORA DUNCAN bore down to the spot where she had heard the ship's syren blowing, but, seeing nothing, the captain decided to hang about the spot until daylight. Owing to the high sea it needed very skilful manoeuvring to do this. At about 5.30am Captain Dye was observed from the tug, a line was thrown, and he was hauled on board.
'Four members of the crew had previously been picked up by the DORA DUNCAN, the remainder, twelve in number, were drowned.
'The DORA DUNCAN, it may be added, is one of the fleet owned by Messrs Charles Duncan and Sons Ltd., of Middlesbrough.' (7)
Secondary Sources:
'Ex. FLINK; ex-SIPAN; ex-ILANDER [sic]. This vessel foundered after detonating a German-laid mine.' (1)
Built as ISLANDER, 1896 (5), for the Islander SS Co., Bristol. (6)
SIPAN 1901 for Nav. a Vapore Ragusea, Ragusa (Dubrovnik); FLINK 1912 for C. Martinolich & Figlio, Trieste; VILLE D'ORAN 1913 for Scotto, Ambrosino & Pugliese, Oran; 1916 to the Societe Maritime Nationale, Rouen. (6)
Dimensions: 395 tons, 45.7m x 7.3m. (5)
05-SEP-1916: Mined 4 miles ESE of Scarborough en route from North Shields for Dunkirk with coal. (5)
Further background history to this vessel, principally in French, noting that she was 'naufragé' (wrecked) by 'une voie d'eau' (a leak), rather than 'coulé' (sunk) by a mine. (8)
Built: 1896 (1)(5)
Builder: R Thompson and Sons (1)(5)
Where Built: Southwick (5); Sunderland (1)
Official No.: [when in UK ownership] 102493 (6)
Propulsion: Screw-driven, 2-cylinder compound engine (1)
Engine HP: 78 (1)
Boilers: 1 (1)
Machinery: Jameson and MacColl, Sunderland (1)
Construction: 1 deck; 4 bulkheads; quarter-deck 83ft; bridge-deck 16ft; forecastle 15ft; well-deck (1)
Master: Cantarelli (1)
Crew: 16 +pilot (6)
Crew Lost: 12 (6)
Owner: Scotto, Ambrosino and Pugliese (1); Scotto, Ambrosino, Pugliese & Cie., Oran (4), as penultimate owner (6) before being sold to the Societe Maritime Nationale, Rouen (6)(8)
Date of Loss Qualifier: Actual date of loss
Additional sources cited in Shipwreck Index of the British Isles:
LR 1915-16 No 449(V) |