Ships › GANDIA
S/S GANDIA
Lost during the Second World War
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79crew
65lost
- Type
- Steam merchant
- Tonnage
- 9,626 GRT
- Built
- 1907 – Swan, Hunter & Wigham Richardson Ltd, Wallsend
- Owner
- Compagnie Maritime Belge (Lloyd Royal) SA, Antwerp
- Home port
- Antwerp
- Date
- 22 January 1942
- Fate
- Sunk by U-135 (Friedrich-Hermann Praetorius)
- Attacker
- U-135 (Friedrich-Hermann Praetorius)
- Convoy
- ON-56 (dispersed)
- Voyage
- Liverpool → St. John, New Brunswick
- Cargo
- 500 tons of potash as ballast
- Position
- 45.0000, -41.0000 · grid BC 9159
Of the 79 aboard, 65 were lost. For each man the source records which lifeboat he reached (no. 2 or no. 4); many of them died even so. The 14 survivors were 10 men from boat 2 and 4 from boat 4.
Position of the attack. Click the map to enable zoom.
Crew list (79 names)
| Rank | Name | Nationality | Fate |
|---|---|---|---|
| Master (Kapitein) | †Potie Maurice shipwrecked in lifeboat no. 2 | Lost | |
| 1st Officer (1ste officier) | Hubert Albert shipwrecked in lifeboat no. 4 | Survived | |
| 2nd Officer (2de officier) | Lardinoy François shipwrecked in lifeboat no. 2 | Survived | |
| 3rd Officer (3de officier) | †De Saegher Lionel | Lost | |
| 4th Officer (4de officier) | Swartwaeger Albert shipwrecked in lifeboat no. 4 | Survived | |
| Radio Officer (Marconist) | †Pelzer Camille | Lost | |
| Purser (Commissaris) | †Hintjens Jerome shipwrecked in lifeboat no. 4 | Lost | |
| Carpenter (Timmerman) | †Leysen Jozef | Lost | |
| Boatswain (Bootsman) | Wanders Albert shipwrecked in lifeboat no. 4 | Survived | |
| Able Seaman (A.B.) | †Cleerbaut Adolf shipwrecked in lifeboat no. 4 | Lost | |
| Able Seaman (A.B.) | †De Westerlinck Kamiel | Lost | |
| Able Seaman (A.B.) | Michielsen Petrus shipwrecked in lifeboat no. 4 | Survived | |
| Able Seaman (A.B.) | †Poncelet Jules | Lost | |
| Able Seaman (A.B.) | †Ponjaert Alfons | Lost | |
| Able Seaman (A.B.) | †Segers Victor | Lost | |
| Able Seaman (A.B.) | †Sweeney John shipwrecked in lifeboat no. 2 | United Kingdom | Lost |
| Able Seaman (A.B.) | †Van Den Eynde Maurice shipwrecked in lifeboat no. 4 | Lost | |
| Able Seaman (A.B.) | †Van Der Struyft Jozef | Lost | |
| Able Seaman (A.B.) | †Vandevelde Jozef shipwrecked in lifeboat no. 4 | Lost | |
| Able Seaman (A.B.) | †Vercauteren Jozef shipwrecked in lifeboat no. 4 | Lost | |
| Ordinary Seaman (Lichtmatroos) | †Cullen William shipwrecked in lifeboat no. 4 | United Kingdom | Lost |
| Ordinary Seaman (Lichtmatroos) | †Kenney James shipwrecked in lifeboat no. 4 | United Kingdom | Lost |
| Chief Engineer (Hoofdwerktuigk.) | †Cnops Leon | Lost | |
| 2nd Engineer Officer (2de mecanicien) | Swevers Arthur shipwrecked in lifeboat no. 2 | Survived | |
| 3rd Engineer Officer (3de mecanicien) | †Crespi Vital | Lost | |
| 4th Engineer Officer (4de mecanicien) | †Jacobs Albert shipwrecked in lifeboat no. 4 | Lost | |
| 5th Engineer Officer (5de mecanicien) | †Van Santvliet Jan shipwrecked in lifeboat no. 4 | Lost | |
| Assistant Engineer (Ass.-mecanicien) | †Paris Isidore shipwrecked in lifeboat no. 4 | Lost | |
| Assistant Engineer (Assistant-mecanicien) | †Ponsard Henri | Lost | |
| Assistant Engineer (Ass.-mecanicien) | Wouters Jan shipwrecked in lifeboat no. 2 | Survived | |
| Donkeyman | †Hansen Louis | Lost | |
| Donkeyman | †Reunis Jozef | Lost | |
| Donkeyman | Van Wonterghem Andre shipwrecked in lifeboat no. 2 | Survived | |
| Fireman and Trimmer (Stoker-Tremmer) | †Buys Eugeen shipwrecked in lifeboat no. 4 | Lost | |
| Fireman and Trimmer (Stoker-Tremmer) | †Cantens Martin shipwrecked in lifeboat no. 2 | Lost | |
| Fireman and Trimmer (Stoker-Tremmer) | †Cloostermans Willem | Lost | |
| Fireman and Trimmer (Stoker-Tremmer) | Coppens Jozef shipwrecked in lifeboat no. 2 | Survived | |
| Fireman and Trimmer (Stoker-Tremmer) | †Davis Donald shipwrecked in lifeboat no. 4 | United Kingdom | Lost |
| Fireman and Trimmer (Stoker-Tremmer) | †Davis John shipwrecked in lifeboat no. 4 | United Kingdom | Lost |
| Fireman and Trimmer (Stoker-Tremmer) | †Denys Constant shipwrecked in lifeboat no. 2 | Lost | |
| Fireman and Trimmer (Stoker-Tremmer) | De Wever Frans shipwrecked in lifeboat no. 2 | Survived | |
| Fireman and Trimmer (Stoker-Tremmer) | †Dwyer James shipwrecked in lifeboat no. 4 | United Kingdom | Lost |
| Fireman and Trimmer (Stoker-Tremmer) | †Everaert Frans | Lost | |
| Fireman and Trimmer (Stoker-Tremmer) | Gautier Gaston shipwrecked in lifeboat no. 2 | Survived | |
| Fireman and Trimmer (Stoker-Tremmer) | †Govaert Bernard shipwrecked in lifeboat no. 2 | Lost | |
| Fireman and Trimmer (Stoker-Tremmer) | †Issa Joseph shipwrecked in lifeboat no. 4 | Senegal | Lost |
| Fireman and Trimmer (Stoker-Tremmer) | †Mets Alfons shipwrecked in lifeboat no. 2 | Lost | |
| Fireman and Trimmer (Stoker-Tremmer) | †Michiels Leonard | Lost | |
| Fireman and Trimmer (Stoker-Tremmer) | †Morgan John shipwrecked in lifeboat no. 2 | United Kingdom | Lost |
| Fireman and Trimmer (Stoker-Tremmer) | †Neegers Leopold shipwrecked in lifeboat no. 2; boat number printed in lower case | Lost | |
| Fireman and Trimmer (Stoker-Tremmer) | †Noens Daniel | Lost | |
| Fireman and Trimmer (Stoker-Tremmer) | †O'Handley Ronald | Canada | Lost |
| Fireman and Trimmer (Stoker-Tremmer) | †Reunis Edward | Lost | |
| Fireman and Trimmer (Stoker-Tremmer) | †Symens Henri | Lost | |
| Fireman and Trimmer (Stoker-Tremmer) | †Van Koert Jozef | Netherlands | Lost |
| Fireman and Trimmer (Stoker-Tremmer) | †Van Oudheusden Robert shipwrecked in lifeboat no. 2 | Lost | |
| Fireman and Trimmer (Stoker-Tremmer) | †Van Roten Albert | Lost | |
| Fireman and Trimmer (Stoker-Tremmer) | †Van Steenlandt Gustaaf shipwrecked in lifeboat no. 2 | Lost | |
| Fireman and Trimmer (Stoker-Tremmer) | †Verhaegen Henri | Lost | |
| Fireman and Trimmer (Stoker-Tremmer) | †Willems Fernand shipwrecked in lifeboat no. 4; boat number printed in lower case | Lost | |
| Fireman and Trimmer (Stoker-Tremmer) | †Wilson Kenneth shipwrecked in lifeboat no. 4 | United Kingdom | Lost |
| Steward | †Van Der Velden François | Lost | |
| 1st Cook (1ste kok) | †Van Roy Jan | Lost | |
| Cook and Baker (Kok-bakker) | †Vermeulen Petrus shipwrecked in lifeboat no. 4 | Lost | |
| Butcher (Beenhouwer) | †Bleikertz Gustaaf shipwrecked in lifeboat no. 4 | Lost | |
| Messroom Steward (Messroom-steward) | †Manguis Fernand | France | Lost |
| Assistant Steward (Assis.-steward) | †Lawson Stanley shipwrecked in lifeboat no. 4 | United Kingdom | Lost |
| Assistant Steward (Assis.-steward) | Polfliet Polydore shipwrecked in lifeboat no. 2 | Survived | |
| Cabin Boy (Cabin-boy) | †Mc Nally Michael shipwrecked in lifeboat no. 4 | United Kingdom | Lost |
| Galley Boy (Galley-boy) | †Richardson Thomas shipwrecked in lifeboat no. 4 | United Kingdom | Lost |
| Gunner | †Adiens Emiel | Lost | |
| Gunner | †Baeyens Jozef | Lost | |
| Gunner | Billows William shipwrecked in lifeboat no. 2 | United Kingdom | Survived |
| Gunner | †Ceuppens Charles shipwrecked in lifeboat no. 4 | Lost | |
| Gunner | †Curtiss John shipwrecked in lifeboat no. 2 | United Kingdom | Lost |
| Gunner | Hayley John shipwrecked in lifeboat no. 2 | United Kingdom | Survived |
| Gunner | †Provoost Guillaume shipwrecked in lifeboat no. 4 | Lost | |
| Gunner | †Rutten Theodore | Lost | |
| Gunner | †Van De Casteele Frans | Lost |
The convoy ON-56
- Dates
- 22–27 January 1942
- Sunk
- 5 · 42,163 tons
The dotted line follows the great circle the ON series ran, Liverpool to New York, with the coastal bends the fairway imposes. The red point is where the Belgian ship was hit, from the U-boat’s attack report.
About the line on this map
A convoy steered the great circle: the shortest way over the globe, not the straight line on the map. That is why the Atlantic crossing here runs so far north, and why ships on that route were hit around 55 to 58 degrees and not at 48. The bends closer to land follow the fairway – the North Channel above Ireland, round Land’s End, through the Strait of Gibraltar.
The line is the route of the series, not the track that one convoy actually steered. The Admiralty shifted convoys north or south from sailing to sailing, according to the season and where the U-boats were; ONS-154 was deliberately routed south past the Azores in December 1942. And a straggler or a dispersed ship was by definition no longer with the group. Where the red point sits far from the line, that is usually what you are looking at.
Convoys (13)
From the Arnold Hague Convoy Database. Convoys only, not independent voyages: a ship sailing alone does not appear. See the convoy page.
| Convoy | Departed | Route | Sunk |
|---|---|---|---|
| HX.66 | 16 August 1940 | Halifax – Liverpool | 4 sunk |
| OB.253 | 2 December 1940 | Liverpool - Dispersed | |
| HX.103 | 15 January 1941 | Halifax – Liverpool | 2 sunk |
| OB.295 | 8 March 1941 | Liverpool - Dispersed | 1 sunk |
| HX.120 | 10 April 1941 | Halifax – Liverpool | |
| OB.328 | 29 May 1941 | Liverpool - Dispersed | 1 sunk |
| HX.141 | 27 July 1941 | Halifax – Liverpool | |
| BB.60 | 11 August 1941 | Belfast Lough – Milford Haven | |
| ON.13 | 5 September 1941 | Liverpool - Dispersed 53.32N 26.16W | |
| HX.153 | 5 October 1941 | Halifax – Liverpool | |
| ON.34 | 7 November 1941 | Liverpool - Dispersed 46.18N 52.40W | |
| HX.164 | 8 December 1941 | Halifax – Liverpool | |
| ON.56 | 12 January 1942 | Liverpool - Dispersed 59.00N 17.00W | 1 sunk |
The source’s search page broke off halfway for this ship; this list may be incomplete.
Sources
Crew list from the printed source.