The Fate of the SS Star of Oregon

Click on the headlink, for redirection to a brief description of the fate of the SS Star of Oregon, from uboat.net.

At 08.28 hours on 30 Aug, 1942, the unescorted "Star of Oregon" (Master Ellis Penryn Thomas) was hit by one torpedo from U-162 about 50 miles northeast of Tobago, while steaming a zigzag course at 11.4 knots. The torpedo struck on the starboard side in the #4 hold and blew the hatch covers off the #4 and #5 holds and cargo into the air. A workaway, a seaman being repatriated, lay sleeping on a hatch cover and was blown overboard and never found. As the ship settled by the stern, the armed guards fired five rounds from the stern gun without having sighted the U-boat and the eight officers, 30 crewmen and 14 armed guards (the ship was armed with two 3in and eight .30cal guns) abandoned ship in four lifeboats within minutes. 25 minutes later, the U-boat surfaced and questioned the survivors and asked if anyone remained on board. The Germans apparently misunderstood the name as "Star of Orania" and then began shelling the port side of the ship from a distance of 500 yards. After firing about 18 rounds, the ship sank by the stern one hour after being hit by the torpedo. The survivors were picked up by an American patrol boat and landed them at Port of Spain the next day.