At 06.09 hours on 18 Feb 1940 the neutral Sangstad (Master Leif Bryn) was hit on the port side by one torpedo from U-61 east of Kirkwall and sank with a heavy list to port after 15 minutes. The port lifeboat had been destroyed by the explosion, so the survivors abandoned ship in the starboard boat and a raft and were rescued about 12 hours later. The master was last seen swimming towards the lifeboat but he drowned. The six survivors on the raft were picked up by HMS Diana (H 49) (LtCdr E.G. Le Geyt, RN) and the 22 in the lifeboat by HMS Brazen (H 80) (LtCdr Sir M. Culme-Seymour, RN) and landed at Kirkwall on 21 February.