SS Prunelle (1874)

SS Prunelle was a British cargo ship that the German submarine SM UB-112 torpedoed on 22 August 1918 in the North Sea 2 nautical miles (3.7 km) south east of Blyth, Northumberland. Prunelle was carrying a cargo of jute from London, United Kingdom, to Dundee, Scotland, United Kingdom.[1]

History
Name
  • Sweden Gota (1874-1878)
  • Norway Saturnus (1878-1911)
  • United Kingdom of Great Britain and Ireland Prunelle (1918)
OwnerTSC - The Shipping Controller (WWI)
Port of registry UK, London
Ordered1874
BuilderBergsund Mekaniske Verksted
Yard number114
LaunchedSeptember 1874
In service1874
IdentificationOfficial number: 142461
FateTorpedoed and sunk 22 August 1918
General characteristics
TypeCargo ship
Tonnage579 GRT
Length47.5 metres (155 ft 10 in)
Beam7.9 metres (25 ft 11 in)
Depth4.3 metres (14 ft 1 in)
Installed power1 x 2 cyl. compound engine
PropulsionScrew propeller
Speed8 knots
Crew16

Construction

Prunelle was built at the Bergsund Mekaniske Verksted shipyard in Stockholm, Sweden in 1874. Where she was launched and completed that same year. The ship was 47.5 metres (155 ft 10 in) long, had a beam of 7.9 metres (25 ft 11 in) and had a depth of 4.3 metres (14 ft 1 in). She was assessed at 579 GRT and had a 2 cylinder compound engine driving a screw propeller. The ship could reach a maximum speed of 8 knots.[2]

Sinking

Prunelle left London and set sail for Dundee on 22 August 1918 with a crew of 16 and a cargo of jute on board. One of the crew members, second officer Alfred Cheetham had served on four Antarctic expeditions: Captain Robert Scott's Discovery Expedition and Terra Nova expedition and on Ernest Shackleton's Nimrod and Imperial Trans-Antarctic expeditions.

At 1.40 pm on the same day as it had left London, Prunelle was targeted by the German submarine SM UB-112 when the ship was 2 nautical miles (3.7 km) south east of Blyth, Northumberland. The U-boat fired a torpedo at the ship without warning and the torpedo hit the ship on the port side near the engine room. The following explosion and rapid sinking of the ship killed 12 of the 16 crewmen on board including Captain Storm and second officer Cheetham. The four survivors were rescued shortly after, having clung themselves to the ships wreckage, and were brought ashore at Blyth.

Wreck

The wreck of Prunelle lies at a depth of 24 metres (78 ft 9 in).[2]

References
  1. "Prunelle". uboat.net. 1995. Retrieved 12 March 2017.
  2. "SS Prunelle [+1918]". wrecksite.eu. 22 October 2009. Retrieved 12 March 2017.
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