That Time a Rogue Wave Nearly Caused One of the Worst Losses of Life During World War II
Yesterday, I talked about the Queen Mary and The Queen Elizabeth, ocean liners that were so fast, they could literally outrun enemy submarines while crossing the Atlantic. But this was not to say the crossing from America to the United Kingdom was without danger. There was still a fear that German aircraft could locate and sink the vessels as they approached Europe. We all know about the incident where the Queen Mary accidentally rammed and sank the HMS Curacoa in October 1942.
Queen Mary’s Near-Disaster
But there was another incident during her wartime service that could have been far worse. It was Mother Nature that almost succeeded where the U-Boats failed.
Just over a month after the incident with Curacoa, the Queen Mary was once again sailing from the U.S. to the U.K with over 11,000 American soldiers on board. During this trip, the vessel sailed into a gale and encountered 60-70 foot waves. This was nothing new; it was the sort of weather she had encountered back before her troop-carrying days. But as she continued on, the bridge crew saw a massive wave heading their way on their port side. There was no time to react as the 90-foot wall of water slammed into the port side with such force, it caused the Queen Mary to list up to 52 degrees to its starboard. For context, those who were on the top deck soon found themselves face to face with the ocean surface—that’s how bad the list was.
The Aftermath
But somehow, Queen Mary was not only able to right herself, but she also completed her voyage to England. Many of the troops on board were injured as they were thrown about, but luckily, no one was killed in the incident. Had the Queen Mary capsized, it was guaranteed that none of those on board would have survived the sinking.
Other Military Encounters with Rogue Waves
Interestingly enough, Queen Mary was not the only military vessel to encounter a rogue wave. During World War I, the British battleship HMS Albemarle suffered serious damage after being struck by what many believe to be rogue waves. In 1916, the armored cruiser USS Memphis was sunk in Santo Domingo Harbor after being struck by a trio of 70-foot waves.
In 1963, the French light cruiser Jeanne d’Arc encountered a rogue wave while on a training cruise.
~NC
