SeaWaves Today in History December 11, 2008 Canada - Statue of Westminster Day. Canadian Navy ships in port fly the Royal Union Flag from the masthead from sunrise to sunset 1851 - Schooner Robert Bruce burns in Willapa Bay, leading to settlement of Bruceville (later Bruceport) 1881 - Six men landed from a boat on Race Point, Cape Cod, and were soon after found, wet, chilled through, and much exhausted, by the patrolman from Station No. 6, Second District. He learned that they were the captain and crew of the Canadian schooner J .A. Hatfield that had been sunk in a collision with an unknown bark the night previous. The patrolman conducted them to the lightkeeper's dwelling nearby 1915 - Submarine HMS E43 launched 1915 - German Navy Schutte-Lanz airship SL4 (C2) is wrecked in a storm while still in its shed 1916 - Destroyer HMS Vega laid down 1917 - Submarine USS S-1 laid down 1928 - Submarine HMS Olympus launched 1929 - Heavy cruiser USS Salt Lake City commissioned 1935 - Destroyers USS Cummings & Moffett launched 1936 - Destroyer HMS Imperial launched 1936 - Destroyer HMS Hardy commissioned 1936 - Soviet submarines SC-130, SC-131 & SC-132 commissioned 1936 - Submarine HMS Spearfish commissioned 1939 - U-30 was forced to return to base due to engine trouble 1939 - U-61 could not lay mines as planned in the Firth of Forth due to the presence of numerous enemy escorts in the area 1939 - U-38 sank SS Garoufalia 1940 - U-172 laid down 1940 - U-147 commissioned 1940 - U-94 sank SS Empire Statesman in Convoy SLS-56 1940 - U-96 sank SS Rotorua & Towa in Convoy HX-92 1940 - U-65 was the first U-boat to cross the Equator, in Grid FC 39 1940 - Corvette HMCS Dunvegan launched Sorel PQ 1940 - Destroyer HMCS St Clair arrived Clyde for duty with EG-4 at Greenock 1940 - Corvettes HMCS Eyebright, Mayflower, Spikenard & Orillia arrived Halifax incomplete from builders to avoid St Lawrence River freezing HMAS Napier G-97 seen in the Indian Ocean in early 1945. Photo by A. R. "Peter" Winstone RAN 1940 - Destroyer HMAS Napier commissioned 1940 - Battleship HMS King George V commissioned 1940 - Destroyer USS Farenholt laid down 1941 - HMS Talisman (Lt. Cdr. M. Willmott, RN) torpedoes and sinks the Italian merchant Calitea (4013 BRT) some 90 miles south of Cape Matapan 1941 - German and Italy declare war on the US. The US Congress declares war on Germany and Italy. " Therefore, be it Resolved by the Senate and House of Representatives of the United States of America in Congress assembled, that the state of war between the United States and the Government of Germany which has thus been thrust upon the United States is hereby formally declared; and the President is hereby authorized and directed to employ the entire naval and military forces of the government to carry on war against the Government of Germany; and to bring the conflict to a successful termination, all of the resources of the country are hereby pledged by the Congress of the United States." They also vote to use US forces anywhere in the world. The term of those enlisted under the Selective Service Act is extended for the duration plus 6 months 1941 - The Japanese landing force at Wake Island is repulsed by 450 US Marines under Commander Winfield Cunningham, who also sink 2 Japanese destroyers 1941 - Italian submarine Ammiraglio Caracciolo was sunk off Bardia by HMS Fandale 1941 - Minesweeper HMCS Grandmere commissioned 1941 - Corvettes HMCS Summerside & Drumheller departed St. John's to join eastbound Convoy SC-59 1941 - Canadian National Steamships Line SS Colborne attacked & badly damaged by Japanese a/c at Penang. She was able to return to Canada 1941 - Destroyers HMS Calpe & Tetcott commissioned 1941 - Patrol vessel HMS Lady Shirley was hit by one torpedo from U-374, exploded and sank at 0421 with all hands. HMS Rosabelle tried to find the U-boat, but was also torpedoed 0442 hours and sank 1941 - U-574 received support (supplies, etc.) in the Spanish harbor of Vigo 1941 - U-600 commissioned 1941 - U-607, U-608, U-661 launched 1941 - Contract establishes the Naval Salvage Service 1941 - Poland declared war with Japan 1941 - Nicaragua declared war on Japan 1941 - Mexico broke diplomatic relations with Germany and Italy 1942 - U-858, U-1164 laid down 1942 - Frigate HMS Calder laid down 1942 - Submarine HMS Tradewind launched 1942 - Submarine HMS Sea Dog launched 1942 - Submarine ORP Dzik launched 1942 - Minesweeper HMS Hound commissioned 1942 - Tonight another "Tokyo Express" run with 11 destroyers is lead by Admiral Tanaka. The US PT Boats sink one destroyer. Only 300 of the 1200 drums of supplies reach Japanese forces on Guadalcanal 1943 - Destroyer USS Evans commissioned 1943 - Escort carrier USS Cape Esperance laid down 1943 - Frigate HMCS Lasalle launched 1943 - Sloop HMS Peacock launched 1943 - Destroyer escort USS John C Butler launched 1943 - Escort carrier USS Kadashan Bay launched 1943 - At 1304 frigate HMS Cuckmere was hit by one Gnat from U-223 while escorting convoy KMS-34. She was towed to port, but was declared a total loss 1943 - Minesweeper USS Recruit launched 1944 - Minesweeper HMS Lioness commissioned 1944 - Corvette HMCS North Bay arrived Sydney NS for refit 1944 - Tug HMCS Gleneagle launched Kingston ON 1944 - Frigate HMCS Monnow attacked by A JU88 torpedo bomber that had suddenly appeared out of the overcast skies. Within seconds Monnow opened fire with bridge Oerlikons & registered a hit. Later, returning to station, Monnow sighted flares & upon investigating picked up 4 German airmen from a raft. They were the crew of the JU88. Picked up & eventually turned over to authorities in Greenock. Monnow later proceeded to Londonderry 1944 - Destroyer USS Frank Knox commissioned 1944 - Frigate USS Moberly commissioned 1944 - On 10 Dec, 1944, U-365 fired a Gnat at the convoy RA-62 in grid AC 8860 and heard a detonation after 10 minutes 58 seconds, probably at the end of its run. A Gnat struck destroyer HMS Cassandra from U-365, when she searched for the U-boat north of Varde, Norway to prevent a further attack on the convoy. The whole bow section was blown off. Frigate HMS Bahamas took her in tow stern first and passed later the tow over to a Soviet tug, which towed her to Kola Inlet for. In July 1945 the destroyer sailed to Gibraltar for complete repairs, which took over a year to complete and then went into reserve in 1946 1944 - U-2367 laid down 1944 - U-2534 launched 1944 - Destroyer USS Reid sunk after being hit by two Kamikaze aircraft off Limasawa Island Philippines 1944 - U-2349 commissioned 1946 - Submarine HMS Alaric commissioned 1951 - Destroyer HMCS Fraser laid down North Vancouver BC 1953 - Destroyer HMCS Athabaskan arrived Esquimalt BC from Korean War 1954 - First supercarrier of 59,630 tons, USS Forrestal, launched at Newport News 1961 - A US aircraft carrier carrying Army helicopters arrived in Saigon - the first direct American military support for South Vietnam's battle against Communist guerrillas 1962 - During the Brunei Revolt, rebels led by Salleh bin Sambas had murdered a number of Government officials at Bangar and Limbang, and threatened to kill the British resident, Mr Morris, and his wife, as well as several other hostages in Limbang. L Company of 42 Commando Royal Marines, commanded by Captain Jeremy Moore, was tasked with their rescue. Lacking reliable intelligence on rebel numbers, and with a timely rescue of the hostages paramount, Moore elected to mount a direct assault, using two river lighters operated by Royal Navy crews. The two vessels came under heavy machine-gun fire as they rounded the river bend at Limbang, but the Royal Marines managed to land and secure the town despite fierce resistance. The hostages were safely rescued. Five Royal Marines were killed, and a number of Marines and Royal Navy lighter crewmen were wounded. Over the next couple of days, the remainder of 42 Commando cleared Bangar and forced the rebels to flee up-river 1972 - USS Enterprise port call Hong Kong 1974 - USS Coral Sea port call Pearl Harbor 1975 - An Icelandic gunboat has opened fire on unarmed British fishery support vessels in the North Atlantic 1975 - USS Midway port call Subic Bay 2002 - Museum ship HMCS Haida departs Toronto under tow, her home since 1964 for refit at Port Weller and eventual relocation to Hamilton, Ontario 2002 - USCGC Cowslip decommissions at Astoria OR for transfer to Nigeria 2003 - Survey ship HNLMS Snellius commissioned as replacement for HNLMS Buyskes which was decommissioned as part of the same ceremony. Buyskes later sold to Latvia 2003 - Frank P. Schubert, America’s last civilian lightkeeper, who for six decades maintained the beacons of New York Harbor for the safe passage of seafarers in a ghostly armada of merchantmen, warships and ocean liners, died at his Coney Island light station 2004 - Chemical/oil carrier British Enterprise (23682 grt, built 2001), Batumi for Augusta, cargo 24,320 tonnes crude oil, grounded in lat 40 56 07N, long 28 50 08E, at approximately 1500 2004 - Destroyer USS James E Williams commissioned Charleston SC 2004 - Pakistan Navy commissioned a hovercraft and a military assault boat. The ceremony was held at PNS Himalaya on Manora Island in which CNS Admiral Shahid Karimullah was the chief guest 2004 - USCG reopened the Hyannis, Mass inner harbor after working with private contractors to contain an estimated 2,000 gallons of diesel fuel that spilled today. The mishap occurred at 0630 when a Scudder-Taylor Gas Company employee suffered a fatal heart attack as he was refueling the Hy-Line ferryboat Gray Lady at the dock. Dead is Kurt Garland, 48, of Hyannis, Mass 2005 - Governor Frank H Murkowski has authorized the Alaska Marine Highway System to fly the state flag at half-mast on all ferries, at the AMHS headquarters building in Ketchikan, and at DOT&PF headquarters in Juneau in memory of Capt. Tom Reed 2005 - Admiral Sir Alan West, First Sea Lord announced today a partnership Between the Royal Navy and the London 2012 'Back the Bid' team at a photo call with Lord Coe, Chairman of the London bid, in Trafalgar Square. In this Trafalgar bicentennial year the nation takes great pride in what Nelson achieved 200 years ago and what Britain has achieved as an island maritime nation, over hundreds of years. The partnership between the Royal Navy and the London 2012 'Back the Bid' team is to secure another source of national pride - a successful bid for London to host the 2012 Olympic Games 2005 - Two fishermen are recovering in hospital after Coastguards brought them in to shore following an accident in their fish hold. Shetland Coastguard were called at 2130 on the 10th by the fishing vessel Shalimar to report that two fisherman were in need of assistance. One man had gone in to the fish hold to switch pumps on after the vessel began to take water. He then began to climb the ladder, but became overcome by the fumes and fell back unconscious. A second crewman who had gone to his assistance also suffered from the effects of the fumes, although he remained conscious. Shetland Coastguard sought medical advice from Aberdeen Royal Infirmary. They were advised that the two should not be moved but should be brought to safety as swiftly as possible. The vessel was 10 miles west of Orkney and was advised to make way towards Stromness. Shetland Coastguard requested the launch of the Stromness RNLI lifeboat, but once the lifeboat arrived on scene it was unable to put anyone onboard due to the high swell. The Coastguard also scrambled the rescue helicopter from RAF Lossiemouth to assist, however by the time that the helicopter arrived on scene; the lifeboat and fishing vessel had arrived at Stromness 2005 - Chilean OPV Contramaestre Ortiz returned to Iquique after departing on a MEDEVAC mission December 8th for a Peruvian fisherman was suffering from appendicitis 500 miles offshore 2005 - Paul Allen, co-founder with Bill Gates of the Microsoft empire, recently bought a bright yellow submarine capable of taking 10 passengers. The craft is said to be docked, James Bond-style, inside Octopus, his 416ft vessel, claimed to be the world’s largest yacht 2005 - Pakistan and India have finalized a draft agreement which will pave the way to restart a ferry service between Karachi and Mumbai that was broken off 30 years ago 2005 - The Coast Guard is searching Mississippi's Pass Marianne for two crewmembers of a commercial shrimp boat after they reportedly suffered a collision with another vessel. Coast Guard Sector New Orleans was notified at about 0615 by the crew of the 60-foot towing vessel Skat, who reported that they collided with the anchored Johnny T. Kiten, 60 to 75 feet in length, in the pass about 8 miles south of Bay St. Louis, Miss. It was reported that the master of the shrimp boat was on deck at the time of the accident. The crew of the towboat rescued the master from the water. He was later transferred to a Coast Guard Station Gulfport, Miss., rescue boat for transport to awaiting EMS at Pass Christian Harbor, Miss. The Coast Guard continues to search for the remaining crewmembers from the Johnny T Kiten- the master's wife and the vessel's deckhand. Searching are a rescue boat crew from Coast Guard Station Gulfport, a rescue helicopter crew from Coast Guard Air Station New Orleans, a rescue jet crew from Coast Guard Aviation Training Center Mobile, Ala., and a dive team from Harrison County, Miss., Sheriff's Office. The waterway remains open. The shrimp boat is reportedly pinned underneath the towboat at this time. A light sheen of oil or fuel was initially reported but has dissipated. Coast Guard investigators are en route to look into circumstances surrounding the incident and conduct an investigation 2006 - Bureau Veritas is preparing an improved offer for presentation later this week to the shareholders of Germanischer Lloyd, as it pushes ahead with its plan to combine the strengths of the two societies to create a new global leader in ship classification, based in Hamburg 2006 - Salvage and towage company Multraship, working with Antwerp-based URS Salvage & Maritime Contracting, has completed two salvage operations in the River Scheldt over a period of fewer than 24 hours. The 12,600 dwt Egyptian multipurpose vessel Aburdees, loaded with general cargo, containers and cars enroute from Bremen to Antwerp, suffered an engine black-out at 1630hrs on December 6. It tried to drop anchor but began drifting in the Oostgat, near Vlissingen, and eventually started to ground in low water. Multraship and co-contractor URS, working under an LOF agreement, deployed the tugs Multrasalvor and Schouwenbank, but were unable to arrest the grounding. They were forced to wait for the next tide, whereupon the vessel was refloated, at around 0100 hrs on December 7, thanks to the efforts of five tugs. The Aburdees was then anchored at Flushing roads, where inspections – including Port State Control - got under way immediately. The salvors remain on standby, and it is not yet known when the vessel will be able to resume its voyage. Meanwhile, the same two salvors came to the rescue of the 800 dwt Dutch inland navigation lighter Ru-San when the vessel grounded at approximately 19.00hrs on December 6 near the port entrance of Terneuzen East on the River Scheldt. Multratug 16 refloated the vessel, which, although damaged and sinking, was successfully towed by Multratug 16 and the Zeeland into the port’s eastern harbor, where Multraship and URS installed pumps, and mobilized divers and a vessel to take off cargo. The salvors worked all night to effect provisional repairs, to transfer cargo, and to get the vessel stable and keep it afloat. At around 1430hrs on December 7, permission was granted to tow the Ru-San through the Terneuzen-Ghent Canal to a yard in Sluiskil, for further repair 2006 - BC Ferries announced keel laying of a new 125-car intermediate size ferry at Vancouver Shipyards in North Vancouver. The event marked the beginning of construction on the third new vessel that the company has commissioned since 2004 and was recognized at a special ceremony involving representatives from both BC Ferries and Vancouver Shipyards 2006 - NATO Permanent Representatives and the Secretary General of NATO H.E. Mr. Jaap de Hoop Scheffer travels to Kuwait on 11-13 December 2002. They will attend the International Conference on "NATO and Gulf Countries. Facing Common Challenges Through the Istanbul Cooperation Initiative", to take place at the Array Center Ball Room in Kuwait City. This conference is sponsored by the Government of Kuwait and the NATO Public Diplomacy Division. This international event will bring together NATO Permanent Representatives on the North Atlantic Council and high level NATO officials with government representatives, academics and senior scholars from countries in the region. The conference main objectives are: to promote a better mutual understanding between NATO and ICI invited countries and to introduce fresh perceptions and ideas from the region on the implementation of the Istanbul Cooperation Initiative 2006 - The first of two Auto Express 88 fast car ferries “Osman Gazi” was launched at the Austal shipyard today. The 88 meter aluminum catamaran is the ninth fast ferry Austal has built for, Istanbul Deniz Otobusleri (IDO) 2006 - Total is taking an 8.35% share in the South Hook terminal at Milford Haven in West Wales after finalizing the acquisition of a 16.7% stake in the second liquefaction train of Qatargas II, in which the other shareholders are Qatar Petroleum and ExxonMobil 2006 - A 56-year old man suffering from a neurological condition was airlifted from a fishing vessel 100 nautical miles east of Cape Cod 2006 - Nimitz-class aircraft carrier USS Dwight D. Eisenhower, flagship of the Eisenhower Carrier Strike Group, entered the Persian Gulf accompanied by the guided-missile cruiser USS Anzio 2006 - Two kayakers rescued from eight-foot swells and 50-60 knot winds in Bellingham Bay 2006 - Safmarine took delivery of a Panamax newbuilding on Monday as it continues to expand and upgrade its fleet. Safmarine Meru, which will enter service at the end of this week, also demonstrates how world trade patterns are changing. The 4,154 TEU vessel is to be deployed in Safmarine's Safari service linking Asia and South Africa, the first of four built by Hyundai Heavy Industries earmarked for this fast-growing 2006 - The first German Navy type K130 corvette has started during heavy bad weather conditions sea trials in the Baltic Sea. FGS Braunschweig will join the 1st Corvette squadron of the German Navy in Rostock-Warnemünde. The 88-meter long and 1.840 tons displacing corvette is planned to be delivered in May 2007. The K 130 corvette is armed with a 76mm gun, two RAM missile systems and four RBS 15MK3 missiles and two 27mm MLG light naval gun systems. In addition the ship has a mine laying capacity. The corvette will have a crew of 58 2007 - Aircraft from aircraft carrier Admiral Kuznetsov conducted 11 practice flights in North Sea Copyright 2008 Shirlaw News Group ISSN 1710-6966 Today in History Archives This information is licensed to the recipient only. Images may be subject to copyright. Ask before you right-click. Royal Navy photos are Courtesy of www.oldships.org.uk unless otherwise indicated. To contact us: 418-145 West Keith Rd North Vancouver BC V7M 1L3 Canada Phone: 778-338-4073 Fax: 778-338-4074 Read our Maritime Mishap Blog Manage your subscription