D/S Tunni
Updated Jan. 17-2012

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


From Bjørn Milde's postcard collection.
Another picture is available on this external page (click in it to make it larger).

Notes:

It'll be noticed, when going to Page 1 above, that Tunni appears to have had a long stay in Hong Kong in the fall of 1940.

Final Fate - 1942:

Tunni was scuttled at Sourabaya on March 2-1942 (possibly March 3) - my page about Prominent has some background history.

Tunni had had a cargo of sugar on board since the middle of Jan.-1942, intended for the Persian Gulf, but she was held back by the authorities, possibly because the Americans wanted her for military transport to the Philippines. According to Page 2, she had arrived Sourabaya on Jan. 6.

The captain was later told through the ship's agents Hodden & Co. that she would be controlled by the Dutch Government, who wished the captain and officers to remain on board. However, at the end of Febr. it was determined at a meeting of all captains that all the ships at Sourabaya were to be scuttled to keep them from falling into Japanese hands, as any attempts to leave seemed hopeless. At another meeting on March 1 it was decided that Tunni was to be scuttled at 05:00 on March 3. On the day of this meeting all officers and crew were taken off the ship by Dutch Naval personnel. This happened without previous warning, so nobody was able to save any of their personal belongings. By then the destruction of the harbour had already begun and it was in flames after oil and gasoline tanks had been blown up, resulting in burning oil flowing into the harbour, so they had to get ashore as quickly as they could. Therefore, none of Tunni's complement actually saw her being scuttled because access to the harbour was prohibited.

With the help of the Swedish Consulate at Sourabaya all stranded Norwegian seamen were accommodated at a house there, but were later placed in internment camps (from Dec. 12-1943?). My POWs page has the names of her Norwegian officers. Her chief engineer, Albert Albrigtsen died while interned. He's commemorated at the memorial for seamen in Stavern, Norway, see the link below. According to "Våre falne", a series of 4 books naming Norwegians who lost their lives during the war, he died of dysentery on Apr. 9-1945 (on Java).

Related external link:
Stavern Memorial commemoration - Chief Engineer Albert Albrigtsen is commemorated.

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

The text on this page was compiled with the help of: "Nortraships flåte", J. R. Hegland, "Sjøforklaringer fra 2. verdenskrig", Vol II - (ref. My sources).