H.M.S GIPSY MINED 1939

BRITISH DESTROYER MINED OFF THE EAST COAST

40 MEN MISSING, 21 INJURED

SHIP BEACHED DISASTER SEEN FROM SHORE

The mining of the British destroyer GIPSY off the East Coast was announced by the admiralty last night.

Forty ratings are missing and 21 officers and men injured.

The GIPSY is the second destroyer to fall victim of German action during the war, one was mined and sunk off the South East coast last week, when two men were killed and sixteen injured.

The communique issued by the Admiralty was :-

"The Secretary of the Admiralty regrets to announce that his Majesty's destroyer GIPSY struck a mine off the East Coast yesterday and was subsequently beached.

Twenty one officers and men have been reported injured and about forty ratings are missing.

Next of kin are being informed as details become available.

A casualty list will be issued shortly."

Just over 100 survivors were landed at an East Coast town by various vessels on Tuesday. One vessel lying at anchor close to the scene picked up 30 survivors who were swimming strongly against an ebb tide. The men were being led by a powerful swimmer, who continually encouraged them with shouts of, "Come on boys, here we are."

A sailor told a reporter he was in the engine-room when the explosion occurred. "The next minute I found myself in the water," he said. "How I got there I do not know." He escaped with a superficial wound on the forehead.

Hundreds of people on the sea front East Coast town watched the rescue by the beams of searchlights of survivors of the destroyer. The watchers attracted to the shore by violent explosions, thought at first to be due to an air raid. Gazing out to sea they saw vessels hurrying to the stricken warship, which was already partly submerged. Small boats were launched and soon the survivors were brought to shore.

Survivors arrive singing

Many sailors amazingly cheerful after their ordeal were brought singing into port. They were wearing all kinds of clothing, including dressing gowns and bathing suits, and one man, clad in a black and white football shirt, shouted as he stepped ashore, "All right chaps, I am playing for Newcastle tomorrow."

Another, limping, refused assistance saying.

"I don't need any help, there are others worse than me, look after them."

"The spirit of the men was amazing," a bystander told a reporter. "They came ashore singing and appeared to be wonderfully cheerful. Their coolness and courage created a great impression."

One of the rescue boats landed 24 men, one a stretcher case.

Another spectator said, “I heard a violent explosion and went out to see what had happened. There was a huge volume of smoke out to sea, and when it cleared I saw the destroyer sinking, almost in the harbour. Search lights from the land and naval crafts were playing on it and the survivors were being picked up from the water."

One man declared the vessel had been struck amidships and had broken in half.

An irony of the disaster was that during the day the GIPSY had rescued three German airmen found adrift in a rubber boat in the North Sea, and brought them safely to port, it had also rescued the crew of a ship sunk in the North Sea a few days ago, £14 collected for the survivors went down with the ship.

The GIPSY was launched in November 1935 and was completed 3mths later at a cost of £300,000. She was one of 8 destroyers in the 1933 program, and was the 5th craft of her name in the navy.

November 25th 1930

30 LOST IN HMS GIPSY

Death toll smaller than feared.

Includes 1 rating who died from injuries, 29 missing believed dead.

1 officer seriously injured, 2 officers slightly injured, 1 rating seriously injured, 9 ratings slightly injured.

Full list as follows:-

Officers

Seriously injured, Lieut Com W. J. CROSSLEY. R.N.

Slightly injured, Probationary Lieut J. B. RIGG. R.N.V.R, Midshipman M. A. J. LANDON. R.N.R.

Ratings

Died of injuries, H. C. EVERETT. AB.

Missing believed dead.

H. CARTER OS.

G. C. CALLAN, AB, R.F.R

L. G. CONVIN. AB

James COOK, Stoker, R.F.R

D. DALTON, AB

C. F. DAVISON, AB

S. DOUCE, Acting stoker, PO

A. W. EDWARDS, Stoker

C. GRECH. OS

F. GREEN. CERA

J. E. HASKELL, ERA, 2nd Cl

W. HOLDEN, Stoker, R.F.R

D. E. HORN, AB

Richard W. JONES, AB

S. LAVIS, AB

W. C. MAY, Stoker

S. W. MURE, Sto, PO

L. L. NICHOL, AB

W. J. OFFILER, OS

D. RENSHAW, Stoker, R.F.R

H. J. SHACKELL PO

G. L. SMART, OS

A. H. SMITH, PO

T. H. SMITH, Stoker

J. TOWNSON, Leading stoker

A. H. TUTTEN, Chief stoker

W. H. UREN, Stoker

J. VASSALLO, Leading stoker

D. WOODS, OS

Copyright 2002 / To date

MAIN PAGE