Empire Steel
Photo courtesy of The Mariners Museum, Newport News VA
| Name | Empire Steel | ||
| Type: | Motor tanker | ||
| Tonnage | 8.138 tons | ||
| Completed | 1941 - Cammell Laird & Co Ltd, Birkenhead | ||
| Owner | Andrew Weir & Co, London | ||
| Homeport | Liverpool | ||
| Date of attack | 24 Mar, 1942 | Nationality:  British | |
| Fate | Sunk by U-123 (Reinhard Hardegen) | ||
| Position | 37.45N, 63.17W - Grid CB 8173 - See location on a map - | ||
| Complement | 47 (39 dead and 8 survivors). | ||
| Convoy | |||
| Route | Baton Rouge (13 Mar) - Halifax - UK | ||
| Cargo | 11.000 tons of aviation spirit and kerosene | ||
| History | Completed in March 1941 for Ministry of War Transport (MoWT) | ||
| Notes on loss | At 03.00 hours on 24 Mar, 1942, the unescorted Empire Steel (Master William John Gray) was hit by two torpedoes from U-123, caught fire and exploded. The U-boat finally sank the burning tanker with gunfire northeast of Bermuda. 35 crew members and four gunners were lost. The master, six crew members and one gunner were picked up by the American tug Edmund J. Moran (towing the Robert E. Lee) and landed at Norfolk, Virginia. | ||
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