San Blas
Panamanian Steam merchant
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| Name | San Blas | ||
| Type: | Steam merchant | ||
| Tonnage | 3,601 tons | ||
| Completed | 1920 - Workman, Clark & Co Ltd, Belfast | ||
| Owner | Balboa Shipping Co Inc (United Fruit Co), Balboa | ||
| Homeport | Panama | ||
| Date of attack | 17 Jun 1942 | Nationality:  Panamanian | |
| Fate | Sunk by U-158 (Erwin Rostin) | ||
| Position | 25° 26'N, 95° 33'W - Grid DK 3445 | ||
| Complement | 44 (30 dead and 14 survivors). | ||
| Convoy | |||
| Route | Galveston - Puerto Barrios, Guatemala | ||
| Cargo | Ballast | ||
| History | Completed in August 1920 for Unifruitco SS Co Ltd (United Fruit Co), Glasgow. 1931 registered in Panama for Balboa Shipping Co Inc (United Fruit Co), Balboa. | ||
| Notes on event | At 04.50 hours on 17 June 1942, U-158 fired two torpedoes at the unescorted San Blas (Master Anders Weesgaard), the first missed the stern but the second struck at the port quarter. The explosion destroyed the stern, blew away the #4 hatch cover and the mainmast, stopped the engines and caused the ship to sink by the stern with a heavy starboard list after four minutes. The master, 26 crew members and three armed guards of the 39 crew members and five armed guards on board were lost. The survivors had no time to launch any lifeboats and abandoned ship on four rafts. They were picked up on 29 June by a US Navy Catalina flying boat in position 28°01N/96°02W and landed at Corpus Christi. The master Anders Weesgaard had already experienced another sinking when his last ship, the Ontario was sunk by U-507 (Schacht). | ||
| On board | We have details of 44 people who were on board. | ||
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