D/S Tejo

To Tejo on the "Ships starting with T" page.

Crew List

In Aug.-1940 we find Tejo in station 93 of Convoy HG 41 from Gibraltar to the U.K., bound for Newport with pit props. Later that year, in Nov.-1940, she sailed in Convoy HG 47. Her destination is given as Liverpool, general cargo. (She's also listed in the previous convoy, HG 46, and she could not have been in both, so perhaps she had either cancelled or returned to port?).

More voyages will be added.

Final Fate - 1941:

Tejo departed Oporto bound for Belfast with a cargo of wine on Febr. 2-1941 and arrived Gibraltar on the 5th, then left in Convoy HG 53 the following day (having been cancelled from Convoy HG 52). This convoy was attacked by U-37 (Clausen) on Febr. 9-1941. Thanks to reports from the U-boat, 5 (6?) Focke Wulf 200 bombers under Hauptmann Fliegel were sent out from Bordeaux, with the result that 4 ships were sunk, and 1 damaged (later sank) in addition to the 2 already sunk that morning by U-37 (the British Courland, and Estrellano). They are listed on my page about Convoy HG 53.

At about 3 o'clock in the afternoon Tejo became the victim of 2 bombs from Fliegel's plane, 1 exploding behind the wheelhouse on the main deck, blowing up the bridge deck and everything above it, the other near the forward mast, between hatches No. 1 and 2, 35 42N 14 38W. According to the 1st mate's statements at the subsequent inquiry, he believed the captain had been in the chart room, which was set on fire by the 1st explosion. The 1st mate was rendered unconscious, but when he came to again he ordered the hoses to be used. However, before the water came on deck the fire had spread to the 1st engineer's cabin and it was impossible to work the hoses on the bridge deck. He never saw the captain again.

The 1st mate went aft together with the 1st engineer as they could not get to the forepart where the rest of the crew had assembled. The ship was on fire and in a sinking condition, listing heavily to starboard, all the lifeboats on the bridge deck were destroyed, and the motorboat on the No. 3 hatch could not be used because the steam pipes were broken so that the boat could not be lifted. At this point a British destroyer (probably the escorting HMS Velox?) came close and launched a boat, so the 2 men jumped overboard. The 1st engineer was taken over to the destroyer by this boat, and seeing the 1st mate in the water the destroyer approached him and fished him out. The lifeboat later saved the remainder of the crew who had stayed on the forecastle head to await assistance, except the 2nd engineer who had also jumped overboard and who was picked up by another steamer. He was subsequently transferred to the destroyer because he was injured. Able Seaman Gulbransen, who had been at the wheel, was also injured, having been blown through a hole in the bridge deck and into the saloon. He was then able to walk out through the hole blown in the saloon over to the port side and forward to the rest of the crew. They were taken care of by the doctor on board, and on arrival Gibraltar on Febr. 13 the Norwegian Consul met them and sent them to the Colonial Hospital, including the 1st mate, who was suffering from concussion and shock.

The maritime inquiry was held in Gibraltar on Febr. 23-1941 with the 1st and 2nd mates and Able Seaman Gulbransen appearing; much of the information given above is taken from their statements. The able seaman also stated that another plane flew over the ship and fired with machine guns while they were waiting on the fore deck.

U-37 sank another ship in this convoy the next day, Febr. 10, namely the British Brandenburg. The British S/S Iceland was sunk by Admiral Hipper the following day, and her crew taken prisoners, though they did not reveal which convoy they had come from, according to "Nortraships flåte". See M/S Borgestad for further developments.

Crew List:
The steward and K. Lundeberg had been in the pantry just where one of the bombs exploded.
Able Seaman Eke was in the wheel house, as was the 1st mate and Able Seaman Gulbransen (helmsman).

Survivors
1st Mate Charles Elgenes	2nd Mate Jan Lund	Able Seaman John Andreassen	Able Seaman Thorbjørn Arvid Gulbransen	Able Seaman Joaquim Pacheco (Portuguese)	1st Engineer Birger Sevaldsen
2nd Engineer Johan Jacobsen	Stoker Alberto Neves (Portuguese?)	Stoker Alfredo D'Sousa (Portuguese)	Stoker Costa Joad de Ribeiro (Portuguese)	Trimmer Joaquim Bernatdino (Portuguese)
Casualties
† Captain Leif Christensen	† Able Seaman Alf Sverre Eke	† Ordinary Seaman (Mess Boy?) Karl Lundeberg	† Steward Rolf Marthinsen

Related external links:
The 4 who died - The casualties are commemorated at this memorial for seamen in Stavern, Norway.

U-37 | Asmus Nicolai Clausen

Back to Tejo on the "Ships starting with T" page.

The text on this page was compiled with the help of: "Nortraships flåte", J. R. Hegland, "The Allied Convoy System", Arnold Hague, "Sjøforklaringer fra 2. verdenskrig", Volume II, Norwegian Maritime Museum, and misc. (ref. My sources).