HMS Bombala

[Aneurin]

Would it be possible please to get a copy - or pointer - to that press story Aneurin? Not sure where my great uncle fits in - capatin or first officer or simply Lietenant Commander. . He was picked up an hour after the sinking but died a few days later from exposure according to family reecords. Two others survived so presume they told the story for local press.

Cheers max

Max

Sorry Max. I have been unable to locate my detailed notes of the newspaper item. I'll try to look it up again for you in Cardiff Library but it may be several weeks before I can do so. In the meantime, I will keep searching.

As I recall - and it is some years since I last read it - there were only two survivors and only one was named. Presumably he was the source of the story about Sub-Lt Allan. The other, I think, was an African or Caribbean seaman. Of course, the account would have probably filtered through several hands before reaching the press, so it cannot necessarily be relied on as totally accurate.

Cheers

Aneurin

[SiegeGunner]

Wondewr why only two survived. maybe all mortally wounded.

If the clusters of later dates of death are correct, we are perhaps looking at lifeboats wrecked or swamped while trying to make landfall.

[James A Pratt III]

The "The Killing Time" has the following fates of the survivors : "One lifeboat disappeared and was never seen again. The other drifted helplessly under a blazing sun for nine days. Eleven of the sailors went mad after drinking sea water and twelve more died from exposure and exhaustion after making landfall near the mouth of the Senegal river." Only two sailors who were picked up by friendly arabs when they reached shore survived.

[James A Pratt III]

Other books that deal with the sinking of this ship and of the U-154 include: U-boats Destroyed, U-boat Inteligence, and possibly U-boat Hunters by Robert Grant, add to this "We Dive At Dawn" and possibly "Q-ships and Their Story". One hope this is of some help.

[SiegeGunner]

Thanks for that, James – I'm sorry to have my suspicions confirmed.

[caroline@linkagecomputing.co.uk]

I have just been searching for information on H.M.S. "Bombala" and found this .

I have an interest in the Wallasey Hospital War Memorial and Lieutenant Anderson Bernard is named there together with his brother Stanilaus Anderson who was Fourth Engineer Officer on the S.S." Saint Ursula".

Caroline

[Gary Charles]

Dear Michael,

I have just read your previous post and would very much like a copy of U153 KTB. I am very interested in this particular action and subsequent events.

best wishes Victory.

[dorbel]

Eight years on... The following taken from a site listing for sale the medals of PO GE Tumblety.

Further to all the above posts, after the action two boats went away.

The two boats contained a total of forty-six survivors,twenty-one in one boat under the command of the Captain and twenty-five in the other under the command of Leading Seaman J.Leadley: During the day following the two boats became separated and the Captain's boat was never seen again: The remaining boat drifted about under the blazing sun for eight days and on the morning of the ninth day made land in the estuary of the Senegal River, but only fourteen men remained alive, the rest having died from the effects of starvation and thirst: Most were too exhausted to leave the beach where they had landed and only two men subsequently managed to find assistance from local Arabs and finally reach Dakar: The rest of the crew perished:The recipient is known to have died at sea the day before the boat reached land: He has no known grave and is commemorated on Chatham Naval Memorial.) : Sold with verification; copy Service Record and copy Report written by Leading Seaman J.Leadley, who was the only white survivor from 'Bombala':

http://www.naval-history.net/xDKCas1918-04Apr.htm

lists 12 killed on 25th April and a further 22 for the 26th.

http://www.naval-history.net/xDKCas1918-05May.htm

lists a further 11 men as having died in the boats on the 3rd May.

[Guest]

Hi Dorbel

I've just came across a relation who was on this ship. He was Albert Dugald McFarlane. I assume he was killed on the ship and never made it to lifeboats. I'm doing some research on his cousin James McFarlane but got distracted. Albert was from Belfast and as far as I know an only child of Dugald and Martha McFarlane. I would think he worked in the shipyards before joining the RNR. My James was Dugald' s nephew - Albert' s cousin. 

Thanks for the links

AR

[Malcolm12hl]

If there is any ongoing interest in the last action of the WILLOW BRANCH/BOMBALA, it is covered in some detail in my history of the Nautilus Steam Shipping Co. Ltd. Ritsons' Branch Line published by the World Ship Society in 2002.  Apart from an account of the action, it includes a photo of the ship itself (that posted in this thread a decade ago is a later vessel - Ritsons were a Sunderland company and the WILLOW BRANCH was registered there - BOMBALA was just one of four different names she operated under as a Q-Ship), and another of Lt. Cecil Mee, the 1st Lieutenant (an ex-submariner), as well as a crew list.

 

If you want to track down Engine Room Artificer Albert McFarlane's service record, his RNR service was 1863 EA.  

[Guest]

Hi Malcolm12hl 

I got his RNR service no from CWGC - I don't have membership to any sites to look at his record - unless there is a pay for view somewhere?  I know that his mother and father were both dead by 1918 and that he was an only child. I was surprised there is no mention of his wife on CWGC. They married in 1913. He was born in Belfast and had one child. 

I didn't get a notification for your post I saw it by chance.🙂

[seaJane]

7 minutes ago, Ailsa Reynolds said:

unless there is a pay for view somewhere

Available for £3.50 from The National Archives (you don't need to subscribe or be a member) -https://discovery.nationalarchives.gov.uk/details/r/D8533858

 

 

Edited 1 May , 2019 by seaJane

[Bertie-the-bubble]

Other victims that I have found are:

 

 HARPER, George William  J29532 (Able seaman)

HENDRY, William  237057 (Able Seaman)

LLOYD, Herbert Henry J37022 (Able Seaman)

KING, John 236213 (Able Seaman)

GRAHAM, George J5976 (Able Seaman)

BRINKLEY, Frederick William J78131 (Ordinary Seaman)

LLOYD, Edward Samuel J39238 (Able Seaman)

KIBBLE, Samuel Saunders J27667 (Able Seaman)

 

Regards,

 

Richard

Edited 4 April , 2020 by Bertie-the-bubble