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HMCS Skeena (D59)

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Name
  
Skeena

Ordered
  
6 March 1928

Commissioned
  
10 June 1931

Launched
  
10 October 1930

Draft
  
3 m

Namesake
  
Laid down
  
14 October 1929

Construction started
  
14 October 1929

Length
  
98 m

Beam
  
9.98 m

HMCS Skeena (D59) httpsuploadwikimediaorgwikipediacommonsthu

Honours andawards
  
Atlantic 1939-44Normandy 1944Biscay 1944

Builder
  
John I. Thornycroft & Company

HMCS Skeena was a River-class destroyer that served in the Royal Canadian Navy from 1931-1944.

Contents

She was similar to the Royal Navy's A-class and wore initially the pennant D59, changed in 1940 to I59.

She was built by John I. Thornycroft & Company at Woolston, Hampshire and commissioned into the RCN on 10 June 1931 at Portsmouth, England. Skeena and her sister HMCS Saguenay were the first ships specifically built for the Royal Canadian Navy. She arrived in Halifax on 3 July 1931.

Second World War

Skeena rescued 65 survivors of the British merchant ship Manipur, sunk by U-57 off Cape Wrath on 17 July 1940. On 2 September 1940 she rescued 19 survivors of the British merchant ship Thornlea, sunk by U-46 in the North Atlantic. On 23 November 1940 she rescued 6 survivors of the Norwegian merchant ship Bruce, damaged by U-100 and 9 survivors of the Norwegian merchant ship Salonica, sunk by U-100 nearby.

Skeena was assigned to North Atlantic convoy Escort Group C-3 escorting convoys ON 93, HX 191, ONS 104, SC 90, ON 115, HX 202, ON 121, SC 98, ON 131, HX 210, ON 141, SC 109, ONS 152 prior to refit in January 1943. On 31 July 1942, Skeena recorded her first victory with HMCS Wetaskiwin when they depth charged and sank U-588 while escorting ON 115 at 49°59′N 36°36′W.

Grounding

Skeena was lost in a storm on the night of 24 October 1944. She was anchored off Reykjavík, Iceland and dragged her anchor and grounded in 50-foot (15 m) waves off Viðey Island with the loss of 15 crewmembers.

Her hulk was paid off and sold to Iceland interests in June 1945; she was then raised and broken up. Her propeller was salvaged and used in a memorial near the Viðey Island ferry terminal.

References

HMCS Skeena (D59) Wikipedia


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