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A/Able Sea. Cyril Ernest Abraham
Royal Navy SS Garoet
from:Northampton
(d.19th Jun 1944)
My great-uncle Cyril Abraham was just 22 years old when he was lost with all but 10 hands on the S.S. Garoet, a Dutch steam merchant vessel of 7,118 tons built in 1917. On 19th of June 1944, when en route from Bombay and Marmagoa to Durban, she was torpedoed by German submarine U-181 and sunk. From a total crew of 99, 89 crew were lost.
Cyril had been detailed to the SS Garoet, it is told in our family, after he either overstayed his leave or went AWOL to attend, and be best man at, his younger brother's wedding in Northampton in December 1943. As the story goes, he was detailed as a member of the DEMS (Defence Equipped Merchant Ships), gunners especially trained at shore bases like HMS President III, for defence on merchant vessels. They were typically equipped with 12-pounder anti-aircraft guns, 3-inch or 6-inch guns, or older Lewis guns. They operated whatever guns were installed on supply ships on critical missions, and the postings were considered highly hazardous. Our family believes that Cyril was posted on a particularly dangerous route as part of his punishment for the leave violation.
S.S. Garoet, operating in the Indian Ocean and taking supplies from India to Africa, was hit by two torpedoes fired by U-181 and sank within two minutes. Eleven days later, on 30th of June, 5 crewmen were picked up by the British mule transport S.S. Nirvana and taken to Durban. On 4th of July, 5 other crew were rescued after 16 days at sea and having drifted over 550 miles WNW, they were landed at Mauritius on 9th of July.
