HEAVY DEATH ROLL REPORTED

Hawke's Bay Herald-Tribune, Volume 81, Issue 69, 14 December 1937, Page 5

HEAVY DEATH ROLL REPORTED

(By Telegraph — Per Press Association — Copyright).

16 Killed on Gunboat and 96 on Refugee Ships FOUR VESSELS BOMBED BY PLANES

(Received 14, 10.50 a.m.) . . SHANGrHAI, Dec. 13. The TJnited States gunboat Panay and three Standard Oil fenkers, tbe Meiping, Meisha and Meian, were bombed and sunk in tbe Yangtse River, near Nanking, by Japanese planes. The Panay replied with her anti-aircraft guns before sinking. LieutenantCommander J. J. Hughes received a broken leg, and an executive officer, Lieutenant A. P. Anders, was among the wounded. An American sailor was killed. The Panay was serving as a floating American Embassy. lt is believed the vessel had 12 people on board, of whom 16 were killed. The United Press states that the Standard Oil Co. at New York has private advice that 96 were killed on the oil-tankers. The 54 survivors from the Panay were landed at Hoshien, above Nanking. H.M.S. Bee and the TJnited States gunboat Oahu proceeded at full speed to Hoshien to remove the survivors to ."Wuhu, but it was later reported that the Oahu's efforts to reach the survivors were hindered by a rain of bombs and shells along the Yangtse. Mr. George Acheson, secretary to the TJnited States Embassy, who was aboard the Panay, was rescued unhurt. Two newsreelmen, several journalists, and members of the staff: of the Italian Embassy were also on board. Twenty of the survivors are reported to be wounded, some seriously. A consular investigation is being made at Shanghai into the incident last Saturday, when the Japanese fired on a launeh flying the German flag near Kiangnan. * The Japanese, it alleged, beat up the Swiss commander of the launeh Jean Comtesse for refusing to go aboard a Japanese tug.