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D/S Olaf Bergh To Olaf Bergh on the "Ships starting with O" page. Owner: Eie's Rederi A/S Built by Furness Shipbuilding Co. Ltd., Haverton Hill, Middlesbrough in 1921. Previous name: Rigi until 1929.
Early in the war in Norway, on May 14 and 15, D/S Olaf Bergh, with a cargo of ore, was at Fiskefjord near Tjeldsund, and was attacked by German bombers both days. She did not receive bad damages but the crew was sufficiently shaken up to request an escort for the voyage out. The British had no warships to spare just then, but the Norwegian vessel Kvitøy took on the job of escorting Olaf Bergh to Harstad, where Svalbard II took over the job on May 17 part of the way out, then Olaf Bergh continued west on her own and went to a British port. In July-1940 she was scheduled for the Halifax-U.K. Convoy HX 57, but did not sail. She was also cancelled from HX 58 and HX 59, but eventually got away in Convoy HX 60 later that month, cargo of scrap iron for Manchester. In Sept.-1940 she's listed in Convopy OB 217, leaving Liverpool on Sept. 21, dispersed on the 25th (ref. external link at end of this text). She also shows up in the Sydney, C.B. portion of Convoy HX 82 in Oct.-1940, cargo of grain for Methil, and the following month she's listed in Convoy HX 89, but it seems to me she would not have had time to unload her cargo after the former voyage, go back across the Atlantic (load another cargo) then return to the U.K. in HX 89(?). If she did, it would have been a very quick turn-around. Follow the links for further details on these convoys. In Febr.-1941 she's listed in Convoy OB 285, which left Liverpool on Febr. 11, dispersed on the 17th. She was in station 124 of Convoy HX 140 in July-1941, carrying steel and scrap for Swansea (having cancelled from HX 139). Other Norwegian ships were Madrono (112), Boreas (16), Velox (56), Velma (96), Alaska (106), Stiklestad (95), Vardefjell (84), Evita (114), Thorshov (83), Skiensfjord (97), Ferncastle (113), Thorshavet (43), Bonneville (82) and Helgøy (77). Beth and Petter were also initially in this convoy but left due to engine problems. At the end of the following month we find her in station 26 of the westbound North Atlantic Convoy ON 11, bound for Hampton Roads. The external site that I've linked to below also has her in Convoy HX 155, leaving Halifax on Oct. 16-1941, arriving Liverpool on the 31st. This convoy is not available on my own site. At the beginning of Dec.-1941 she's listed as bound for New Orleans in the westbound Convoy ON 42*. She was scheduled for Convoy HX 175 in Febr.-1942, but instead joined Convoy HX 176, which left Halifax on Febr. 19-1942 and arrived Liverpool on March 6. At the beginning of Apr. she's listed as bound for Mobile, Alabama in the westbound Convoy ON 83*, returning to the U.K. in May with Convoy HX 189. Going back to the external site below, we find Olaf Bergh in station 12 of Convoy OS 32 in June/July-1942, voyaging from Milford to Freetown and The Middle East - follow the link provided for more convoy details. According to this posting to my Ship Forum Olaf Bergh rescued the surviving crew from the British D/S Llandilo on Nov. 7-1942 and landed them in Trinidad on the 26th. This ship had been sunk by U-172 on Nov. 2. Here's a more recent forum posting, which includes the names of Llandilo's casualties. There's now a big gap in my voyage informatioon for this ship, but checking the site below it looks like she made, among others, some voyages Capetown-Durban and back in this period; other voyages can be found by following the instructions at the link. In the fall of 1943 she's mentioned in Convoy SL 137 / MKS 26, bound for Loch Ewe, cargo of linseed and general. SL 137 left Freetown on Sept. 23-1943, joined up with MKS 26 from Gibraltar on Oct. 5 and arrived Liverpool on Oct. 17. The Norwegian Drammensfjord and Jenny are also listed - the external site about these convoys has more details (the Gibraltar portion is also available on my own site at MKS 26). The same site also has her in station 95 of Convoy OS 63 / KMS 37* in Dec.-1943/Jan.-1944, voyaging from Belfast to Freetown with coal, then in Febr.-1944 she shows up in Convoy SL 150 / MKS 41*, the SL convoy having left Freetown on Febr. 21, joined up with the MKS convoy from Gibraltar on March 3, arriving Liverpool on March 14. Voyage information for Olaf Bergh on this occasion is given as Dakar-Loch Ewe, cargo of groundnuts, also carrying 1 passenger. It now looks like she started making some voyages between the U.S.and U.K again. Towards the end of Apr.-1944 she appears in the westbound North Atlantic Convoy ON 233*. In June/July-1944 she's listed in the New York-U.K. Convoy HX 297, bound for Methil and London with a cargo of sugar, returning across the Atlantic in Aug. with the westbound Convoy ON 248(S)*, subsequently heading back to the U.K. the following month with Convoy HX 306. This time she had a cargo of grain, and destination is given as Belfast Dock. This convoy had originated in New York on Aug. 31, but Olaf Bergh joined from Sydney, C.B., as did the Norwegian Hardanger and Velox. At the end of Sept. she joined the westbound Convoy ON 256*, and early in Nov. that same year she shows up in the slow Halifax-U.K. Convoy SC 160, bound for Avonmouth with grain, again joining with the Sydney, C. B. portion, together with the Norwegian Cetus. The following month she's listed in Convoy OS 97/KMS 71*, voyage Milford-Oran for Marseilles with coal in station 21.
Related external links: Back to Olaf Bergh on the "Ships starting with O" page. The text on this page was compiled with the help of: "Nortraships flåte", J. R. Hegland, "Skip og menn", Birger Dannevik (and various sources named on each convoy page) - (ref. My sources).
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