BLOWN UP

Wairarapa Times-Age, 24 October 1940, Page 5

BLOWN UP

ITALIAN DESTROYER IN RED SEA ANOTHER HIT BY BOMB. SEQUEL TO ATTACK ON BRITISH CONVOY. (British Official Wireless.) RUGBY, October 22. An Admiralty communique states: “During the night of October 20-21 one of our convoys in. the Red Sea was attacked by two Italian destroyers, which fired torpedoes at 1 he escorting vessels and shelled the convoy. l ’Our escorting vessels immediately opened fire on the enemy and gave chase. Contact was temporarily lost, but H.M.S. Kimberley regained touch at daylight and engaged one enemy destroyer, identified as the Francesco Nullo. After an action lasting 40 minutes the Italian destroyer, having been heavily damaged, ran ashore and was blown up by a torpedo, fired from the Kimberley. * “The Kimberley came under tine fire of a shore battery of three guns and received one hit, splinters from which damaged a steam pipe and reduced her speed. However, the Kimberley succeeded in silencing two of the three shore guns. “In this spirited action the Kimberley had three men wounded. No other ship, either the escorting vessels or in the convoy, received any damage.” Another enemy destroyer in the Red Sea was attacked by the R.A.F. and a direct hit was scored on its stern. The Kimberley is one of a class of eight destroyers completed last year, the others being the Kelly (leader, and named after the late Admiral of the Fleet, Sir John Kelly), Kashmir, Kandahar, Kelvin, Khartoum, Kingston, and Kipling. The Kimberley took part in the second action at Narvik in April, when a number of German destroyers were sunk. The Kimberley is a vessel of 1690 tons displacement, fitted with engines of 40,000 horse-power, giving her a speed of 36 knots. She is armed with six 4.7 in. guns, several anti-aircraft guns, and eight 21 in. torpedo tubes. The Francesco Nullo was one of a class of four destroyers built in 1926-27. She was a vessel of 1060 tons displacement, fitted with engines of 32,000 horse-power, giving her a speed of 36 knots. She was armed with 4.7 in. guns, several small anti-aircraft guns, and six 21in. torpedo tubes. She was also fitted as a mine-layer and carried 52 mines. ITALIAN LIES CLAIM LAID TO SUCCESS. LONDON, October 22. An Italian communique says, that torpedo-boats made contact with a very large British convoy escorted by warships in the southern Red Sea on the night of October 21. They decisively attacked the convoy, sinking six ships with torpedoes, despite violent fire from the warships. A fierce engagement then occurred between the Italian ships and a preponderant British naval force and lasted till dawn. A British cruiser of the Sydney class came within range of the Italian shore batteries on Red Sea islands and the batteries scored hits. The cruiser was brought to a standstill while other British ships came to her aid. One of the Italian ships was hit but managed to reach safety.