SHIPS SUNK BY GERMAN U-BOAT NEAR ARUBA

Compiled from information provided by Don Gray and others.

 

February 16, 1942

 

The SS Oranjestad was sunk by U-156 outside San Nicholas harbor.

 SS Rafaela sunk by U-67 west of Curacao.

The SS San Nicolas, SS Tia Juana, and SS Monagas were all sunk by U-boat 502 operating with U-156 in Operation Westindien/Group Neuland on February 16, 1942.

 

The SS Pedernales was severely damaged by U-156 outside San Nicholas harbor.

She burned and then drifted to the general area of Palm Beach where it was towed back to the Lago drydock.  The   damaged mid-section cut away, aft and bow sections were then welded back together, a temporary wheelhouse was fitted and a somewhat "shortened' Pedernales was take to Baltimore under her own steam and rebuilt.

 

February 23, 1942

The Sun, was torpedoed by U-50 and sank north of Venezuela's Penisular de Paraguana.

The Thalia in the same vicinity as the Sun was torpedoed U-502 and sunk.

 

On March 10, 1942

The Lady Nelson torpedoed by U-161 and sunk north northeast of Bonaire.

 

On May 12, 1942

The Lise torpedoed by U-69 and sunk due north of Bonaire.

 

March 18, 1943

Cities Service tanker Ceres(sp.) torpedoed and sunk 400-500 miles due north of Penisular de Paraguana, by U-68.

 

April 26, 1942

The Alcoa Partner was torpedoed by U-61 and sunk north of Bonaire.

 

March 7, 1944

 

The Valera, one of Lago’s lake tankers, was torpedoed and split in half by a German submarine (U-518), off Barranquilla, Columbia, she also sank.

 

June 11, 1944

The Casandra was torpedoed U-539 and sunk by between Curacao and Bonaire.

 

May 13, 1942

The Norlantic(sp.) was torpedoed by U-69 and sank north of Bonaire.

 

There were approximately thirty more ships sunk by German U-boats in the Venezuela-Aruba-Curacao-Bonaire-Trinidad area during the period 1942-1943, with the overwhelming sinkings occurring during 1942.

   

An added note: The U-boats participating in Operation Westindien, with five of the operation's boats under Group Neuland and concentrated in the Aruba-Curacao-Bonaire-Gulf of Venezuela area, were U-156 (Kapitan Werner Hartenstein: Aruba); U-67 (Gunther Muller-Stockheim: Curacao); U-502 (Jurgen von Rosensteil: Gulf of Venezuela); U-161 (Albrecht Achilles: northeast coast of Trinidad), and U-129 (Nicoli Clausen: between Trinidad and The Guianas).