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M/T Charles Racine To Charles Racine on the "Ships starting with C" page. Owner: Skibs-A/S Snefonn Launched on June 4-1937 by Odense Staalskibsværft (A. P. Møller) Odense, Denmark (Yard No. 68) as Charles Racine for Sig. Bergesen d. y., Stavanger. Completed Aug. 6 and registered in the ownership of Skibsaktieselskapet Snefonn (Sig. Bergesen d. y. & Co.), Stavanger. Captain: Arthur Svendsen
(Received from Don Kindell - His source: The late Arnold Hague's database). Follow the convoy links provided for more information on each. Compare Arnold Hague's records with these original images from the Norwegian National Archives:
Charles Racine, cargo of crude oil for Liverpool, can be found in the Bermuda portion of the Halifax-U.K. Convoy HX 44 in May/June-1940, together with Polarsol and Europe (departure Bermuda May 19; Halifax portion left on May 20 - arrival Liverpool June 3). With Lise and Spinanger, she subsequently joined Convoy OB 168, which left Liverpool on June 15, joined up with OA 168 from Southend 2 days later, the combined convoy forming the Gibraltar bound Convoy OG 34F, which arrived there on June 24. Charles Racine, however, was bound for Caripito, and she detached from the convoy in order to proceed to her destination - note that Caripito is not mentioned in the arrival information in the Voyage Record, where she's said to have arrived Kingston, Jamaica independently on July 4. (See external link in the table above for more convoy information). Note that all the OG convoys will also be added to my Convoys section, but for now the ships sailing in them are named on this page listing ships in all OG convoys. At the beginning of Aug.-1940 we find her in the Bermuda portion of the Advance Sailing Telegram for Convoy HX 63 (but she's not included in the convoy form for BHX 63). However, it looks like she did not sail to the U.K. on this occasion, because there's a note in the document saying "To proceed to Halifax to await orders", and she does not show up again until Convoy HX 86 in Nov. that year (fuel oil for Clyde, station 42), though was sent into St. John's due to an outbreak of diphtheria on board, and later joined HX 89 instead. At the end of the following month she shows up, together with Cetus, Danio and Thode Fagelund, in Convoy OB 267, leaving Liverpool on Dec. 30, dispersed Jan. 2-1941, Charles Racine arriving Halifax independently on Jan. 11 - again, see external link provided in the table above. According to A. Hague she returned to the U.K. in Convoy HX 110, which left Halifax on Febr. 19-1941 and arrived Liverpool on March 11. As will be seen when going to my own page about this convoy, the Bermuda portion only is available there, but see the external link within the Voyage Record for more convoy details. Other Norwegian ships were Brasil, Cetus, Drammensfjord, Ferncourt, Leiv Eiriksson, Skiensfjord, Stigstad and Torvanger, some of which joined with the Bermuda portion. The following month she's listed as bound for Curacao in Convoy OB 310, departing Liverpool on Apr. 13, dispersed on the 18th, Charles Racine arriving Curacao indepedently on May 4. John Bakke, Solfonn, Taborfjell and Tigre are also listed in this convoy. Charles Racine subsequently headed back to the U.K. at the end of that month in Convoy HX 128, joining from Bermuda, and in June she joined Convoy OB 335 in order to travel to New York. This convoy originated in Liverpool on June 16-1941 and Charles Racine arrived New York independently on June 28, having detached from the convoy on the 25th. Abraham Lincoln, Boreas, Hada County, Leiv Eiriksson, Ranja, Skaraas, Skiensfjord and Thorshavet are also listed.She later went back to the U.K. again in Aug.-1941 with Convoy HX 145, along with the Norwegian Annavore (station 122), Maridal (station 83), Høyanger (station 95, 3 bombers on deck), Leikanger (station 64, lumber), Vav (station 114), Kaia Knudsen (station 73), Slemdal, all listed on this website - ref. alphabet index at the end of this page. She subsequently headed back across the Atlantic in the middle of the following month in the westbound North Atlantic Convoy ON 17. At the beginning of Nov.-1941 we find her in the Halifax-U.K. Convoy HX 158. My information for this convoy is incomplete; there are several un-named ships, but a complete list, which includeds the Norwegian Chr. Th. Boe, Garonne, Kristianiafjord, Strinda, Thorshavn, Thorsholm, Thorshov and Toledo, is available at the external link in the table above. Later that month Charles Racine joined the westbound Convoy ON 40*, which left Liverpool on Nov. 25, dispersed Dec. 4, but she was involved in a collision on Nov. 26 with the British Laplace in the same convoy, and returned to port. She subsequently joined Convoy ON 46*, originating in Liverpool on Dec. 13, but again returned to port (reason not given), then eventually got away with Convoy ON 50* on Christmas Eve, bound for New Orleans, where she arrived on Jan. 13-1942, the convoy having dispersed on the 3rd. All these convoys had several other Norwegian ships, namely Arthur W. Sewall, Egda, Evita, Fernmoor, Finnanger (returned), Rio Novo, Slemdal, Storanger, Tai Shan and Velox in ON 40, Hamlet, Idefjord, Kristianiafjord and Solstad in ON 46, and Fagerfjell, Fernwood, Fjordheim (returned), Høegh Giant, Innerøy, Sama, Skandinavia, Strinda and Taborfjell in ON 50. She headed back to the U.K. with Convoy HX 173 at the beginning of Febr.-1942, together with several other Norwegian ships (follow the link), and this turned out to be her last Atlantic crossing.
Charles Racine had arrived Clyde with Convoy HX 173 on Febr. 14-1942. She left again on the 23rd, joining Convoy OS 20, bound for Baytown, Texas in ballast in station 76. Again, see the link provided in the table above; Havkong, Høegh Scout, Jenny and Sandar are also listed, while Ingerto was scheduled, but did not sail. Charles Racine left the convoy on March 1 on orders from the Commodore and continued alone, following Admiralty routings. She was torpedoed northeast of Anguilla (23 10N 60 28W) on March 9 at 23:10 ship's time by the Italian submarine Giuseppe Finzi (Giudice). The torpedo hit on the port side, forward of the engine room; water gushed in and the engines stopped. Shortly thereafter another torpedo struck, also on the port side. The radio operator sent out an SOS with their position. After the crew had gotten safely away in 4 lifeboats they observed 2 more torpedoes hitting the ship, this time on the starboard side, and later in the night they heard another 2 explosions followed by flames. 3 of the boats holding 34 men stayed together but the 4th could not be seen in the dark. They remained in the vicinity until daylight, but when the captain rowed back to the ship that morning to look for the 4th boat it was nowhere to be seen, so sail was set for Puerto Rico. They were picked up in the morning of March 12 by USS Moffet which searched for the other lifeboat all day, before heading for San Juan, Puerto Rico where the survivors were landed on the 13th. They travelled to New York on March 22, with arrival on the 27th. The following day they received the news that the 7 in the missing lifeboat (incl. the 1st mate) had been picked up by an Argentinian steamer en route to Trinidad and landed there. The hearings were held in New York on Apr. 13-1942 with the captain, the 3rd mate (on duty on the bridge), the 2nd engineer, and Able Seaman Eriksen (helmsman) appearing. According to the captain's report presented at the hearings the attack took place in 23 33N 60 10W. Rohwer gives the position as 23 10N 60 28W, and date as March 10 at 01:24, German time.
Related external links: Back to Charles Racine on the "Ships starting with C" page. The text on this page was compiled with the help of: "Nortraships flåte", J. R. Hegland, "Sjøforklaringer fra 2. verdenskrig", Volume I (Norwegian Maritime Museum), Sig. Bergesen d. y. fleet list, and misc. others as named within the text above for cross checking info. - ref My sources.
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