John Capes: Stoker on the Perseus
Posted on 11/10/2024 5:55:19 PM PST by SunkenCiv
...Two fifths of the subs that ventured into the Mediterranean were sunk and when a submarine sank it became a communal coffin - everyone on board died. That was the rule.
In fact, during the whole of the war there were only four escapes from stricken British submarines. And the most remarkable of these took place on 6 December 1941, when HMS Perseus plummeted to the seabed...
He dragged any stokers who showed signs of life towards the escape hatch and fitted them and himself with Davis Submarine Escape Apparatus, a rubber lung with an oxygen bottle, mouthpiece and goggles.
This equipment had only been tested to a depth of 100ft (30m). The depth gauge showed just over 270ft, and as far as Capes knew, no-one had ever made an escape from such a depth.
In fact the gauge was broken, over-estimating the depth by 100ft, but time was running out. It was difficult to breathe now.
He flooded the compartment, lowered the canvas trunk beneath the escape hatch and with great difficulty released the damaged bolts on the hatch.
He pushed his injured companions into the trunk, up through the hatch and away into the cold sea above. Then he took a last swig of rum from his blitz bottle, ducked under and passed through the hatch himself...
The next morning, Capes was found unconscious by two fishermen on the shore of Kefalonia...
(Excerpt) Read more at bbc.com ...
Loved the movie Das Boot. I’d rather have been a soldier on Iwo Jima or a crew member on a B-17 over Germany than be on a submarine. My Father was on a destroyer (USS Perkins) in the Pacific during WWII. I went on a WW II destroyer in Boston. I could not believe how small they were. Those people had balls.
My father was a pharmacist’s mate on a submarine during WWII.
https://www.oneternalpatrol.com/
Say thanks to your submariner friends today. Give them a call.
“My father was a pharmacist’s mate on a submarine during WWII.”
Wow. If you watched that scene in Das Boot where they sprinkled some kind of insecticide powder on some of the sailor privates to kill crabs. I bet your dad had to deal with that kind of stuff too.
I know of one guy who requested submarine duty during WWII.
He didn't want to be maimed, and since pretty much no one came home maimed from submarine duty...
“I know of one guy who requested submarine duty during WWII.
He didn’t want to be maimed, and since pretty much no one came home maimed from submarine duty...”
Wow. That is amazing. I’d rather be maimed than drown. There is a reason they were called the greatest generation.
There sure is.
He didn't say much about his service--I wish I had asked him for more information. But he could very well have encountered such a problem because he was operating in a tropical climate. And being a pharmacist's mate he would have been the one to deal with this.
I kick myself for not asking my dad more about his experiences.
I went through the USS Seawolf on Pelican Island north of Galveston. WW2 submarine. I was 12 at the time and had a hard time moving through it. Very cramped and small. I have a lot of respect for the submariners who served on that ship.
[52 American submarines]
I can’t believe that the number wasn’t higher, though that’s still too high.
An average of 80 men per submarine? I had always figured it was about 40-60 men per.
Dang. I had a very nice reply all but ready to go, and while switching tabs managed to nuke the tab. As I often say (and I ripped it off from a Democrat), that’s a break for you! :^)
While looking for some figure, I found a very interesting vid:
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=cet24BUAuBM
WW2 HD Colorization — The Sinking of HMS Barham, 1941
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=9YC8SOvq2TQ
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