504095 Wilfred Marten Royal Air Force My father Wilfred Marten was on board the SS Anselm and has always had great admiration for the
actions of the padre Cecil Pugh, he mentioned how he helped the erks when the
stair case had been blown up, as far as my father knows the ship was still
moving along as the 'padre' was consoling the men.
My father was on the first deck down only because on arrival
in Liverpool they asked for volunteers to man the machine guns he thinks the
may have been browning's. As he had done some shooting at Blackpool on
training and was a member of the rifle club. All bullets having gone through the
same hole at a hundred yards.
Wilfreds hammock was attached to the stair well so he was knocked out of bed
by the explosion. Somebody pulled my father up from the first deck down to
the main deck, he does not know the name of the man who lowered the rope and
does not know what became of him? They had been told that it was safe enough to
undress so he was only in undergarments, no boots and airforce trousers.
My father and one other man went around throwing ropes into the hold, and
could hear them shouting. After first affixing the ropes to anything fixed
atop. He also let rafts down and threw them into the sea. The deck of the ship at
this time was empty except maybe for two others helping the best they could.
The front of the ship started to go down and LAC W Marten (butch) moved to
the stern, got to the railings and got ready to jump in. It was just getting
daylight. he jumped in and went a long way down and then swam for the light
and looked for something to hold on to.
He floated around for an hours or so with only a small Naval float which
kept him up.
An officer who had removed his epaulette's and any notification of rank
started to order my father to row. After being picked up by a rowing boat 'butch'
looked near deaths door and was exhausted, a kindly naval rating possibly a
petty officer came to his aid and suggested that if he did not shut his mouth
he would go over the side. My father had been in the water for a few hours
and he was treated very well by the ratings that picked him up, he was in no
fit state to row a boat.
He was taken to the Starwort and climbed with help the netting. When on the
boat they were treated like Lords. He was given rum and got rid of the sea
water. He thinks that he was taken to Flora bay. He still does not know where he
was bound for but this site has given me some information to act on. The
following day 150 approximately of RAF personnel were sent to Bo. He would like
to hear from anyone aboard.
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