John Herbert Alton

Tower Hill Memorial Panel 49

ame Fircrest
Type: Steam merchant
Tonnage 5,394 tons
Completed 1907 - Bremer Vulkan, Vegesack
Owner Crest Shipping Co Ltd, London
Homeport London
Date of attack 25 Aug 1940 Nationality: British

Fate Sunk by U-124 (Georg-Wilhelm Schulz)
Position 58° 52'N, 6° 34'W - Grid AM 3645
Complement 40 (40 dead - no survivors)
Convoy HX-65A
Route Wabana, Conception Bay - Halifax - Middlesbrough
Cargo 7900 tons of iron ore
History Completed in May 1907 as German Riol for Roland Linie AG, Bremen. 1914 interned at Valparaiso and 1921 allocated to Britain as war reparation, managed by Reardon Smith. 1927 sold to Yugoslavia and renamed Preradovic for Jugoslavenski Lloyd Akcionarsko Drustvo, Zagreb. 1940 renamed Fircrest for Crest Shipping Co Ltd, London.
Notes on event
Between 23.50 and 23.56 hours on 25 Aug 1940, U-124 fired four single torpedoes at four ships in convoy HX-65A 23 miles north of Butt of Lewis, Hebrides and claimed the sinking of all four. However, only three ships were hit: Harpalyce and Fircrest were sunk and the Stakesby was badly damaged.

The Fircrest (Master Russell H. Tuckett, OBE) in the most starboard column sank immediately after being hit amidships by a torpedo due to her cargo of iron ore. There were no survivors: the master, 38 crew members and one gunner were lost.

Unknown