RAIDS ON SHIPPING

Wairarapa Times-Age, 6 February 1940, Page 5

RAIDS ON SHIPPING

SEVEN GERMAN AIRMEN DEAD AND SIX PRISONERS

PLANES ATTACK NINE SHIPS. ELEVEN SEAMEN KILLED. By Telegraph—Press Association —Copyright. LONDON, February 5. The balance sheet for the Gorman air raids on the British coast on Saturday shows at least seven German airmen dead, six taken prisoners and a number missing. One neutral ship was sunk and one British steamer set on fire. Seven of the nine ships attacked escaped with minor damage. Eleven seamen were killed, four of whom were neutrals.

The victims included tramps, trawlers, lightships and Swedish. Norwegian and Greek steamers. The majority had some of the crew injured.

The bodies of three German airmen, one of them wearing the Iron Cross, were washed ashore at Northumberland. and are believed to have been from tiie Heinkel shot down off the Tyne on Saturday. The Grimsby trawler Harlech Castle picked up four Germans from a bomber which crashed in the North Sea. One died from a head wound aboard the trawler and two of the others were wounded in the legs. The fifth member of the bomber’s crew had drowned. The British ships attacked were all small merchantmen, ranging' from a 200-ton Grimsby trawler to the 3800ton Kildare. The docks of the Kildare were swept, with machine-gun fire. MINESWEEPER CAPSIZES WHILE BEING TOWED TO PORT. HEAVY LOSS OF LIFE FEARED. (Received This Day. 10 a.m.) LONDON. February 5. The minesweeper Sphinx was being lowed into port in heavy weather after the disablement of her engines, due to enemy air attacks on Saturday, when she capsized, owing to the hawser parting. Commander J. R. Taylor and four ratings were killed while four officers and 45 ratings are feared to be drowned. Two officers and 44 ratings were landed. SWEDISH SHIP LOST TWENTY-ONE PEOPLE DROWNED. (Received This Day, 10 a.m.) GOTHENBURG, February 5. The Swedish steamer Andalusia, from Bordeaux to Gothenburg, is reported to have been sunk, with the loss of 21 lives. SHIP MINED. TWO MEMBERS OF CREW

KILLED. SURVIVORS PICKED UP. (Received This Day, 10 a.m.) LONDON, February 5. The Portelet was mined and sunk on the east coast. Two persons were killed and nine landed. A Finnish steamer picked up lhe survivors. NAZI CLAIMS TEN DAYS SINKINGS IN NORTH SEA. TWO HUNDRED THOUSAND TONS OF SHIPPING.

By Telegraph—Press Association—Copyright. (Received This Day. 10.40 a.m.) BERLIN. February 5. The official news agency says Nazi air raids sank 200.000 tons of neutral and Allied shipping in the North Sea between January 21 and 31.