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Allied Ships hit by U-boats


Edward M. House


NameEdward M. House
Type:Steam merchant (Liberty)
Tonnage7.240 tons
Completed1943 - St.John´s River Shipbuilding Co, Jacksonville FL 
OwnerA.L. Burbank & Co Ltd, New York 
HomeportJacksonville 
Date of attack29 Jun, 1944Nationality:      American
 
FateDamaged by U-984 (Heinz Sieder)
Position50.07N, 00.47W - Grid BF 3532
- See location on a map -
Complement657 (0 dead and 657 survivors).
ConvoyEMC-17 
RouteSouthampton - Utah Beach, Normandy 
Cargo1000 tons of Army equipment and troops 
History Completed November 1943 
Notes on loss

At 15.28 hours on 29 Jun, 1944, U-984 fired a spread of two LUT torpedoes at the convoy EMC-17 about 30 miles south of St.Catherine´s point on the Isle of Wight. The first struck the Edward M. House and the second the H.G. Blasdel. Six minutes later, U-984 fired a single torpedo at one of the damaged ships and missed but struck the John A. Treutlen. At 15.43 hours, a Gnat was fired which struck the James A. Farrell.

The Edward M. House (Master Austin Stuart Fithian) was struck by one torpedo under the stern as she was proceeding as the third or fourth ship in the port column. The explosion threw up a column of water several hundred feet in the air, stoved in the forepeak, flooded the #1 port and starboard deep tanks and buckled the shell plating and the collision bulkhead. The engines were stopped briefly during the damage was examined and then followed the convoy. One armed guard and one crewman were injured of the nine officers, 33 men, 28 armed guards (the ship was armed with two 3in and eight 20mm guns) and 587 troops on board. The ship continued to the Normandy beachhead, discharged her troops and equipment the same day and returned to the United Kingdom on 1 July. She was repaired at Newcastle-upon-Tyne from 9 July to 31 October and then sailed for New York, returning to service.

 


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