Rio Bianco – Sunken Ships of the Outer Banks

Rio Blanco

The Sinking of the Rio Blanco

In investigating the sinking of Rio Blanco, it was difficult finding detailed information. Information from uboat.net revealed the following information:

The Rio Blanco was carrying 6440 tons of iron ore as it made its way from St. Thomas, Virgin Islands where it departed on March 16, 1942, and headed for Hampton Roads in the UK. At 4:22 PM on April 1, 1942, the ship was hit by a torpedo at amidships from the German U-boat, U-160. Nine crew members were lost in the sinking and nine other crew members and one gunner died of exposure in the lifeboats. The Captain, Aiden Blackett, seven crewmen, and one gunner were rescued by the HMS Hertfordshire (FY 176) on April 15, 1942, and taken to Norfolk, Virginia. Eleven crew members and one gunner were rescued by HMCS Niagara (I 57) on April 14, 1942, and taken to Halifax, Nova Scotia on April 16, 1942.

The Ship's Specifics:

Built: 1922	Sunk: April 1, 1942
Type of Vessel: Steam Merchant	Owner: Thompson Steamshipping & Dry Docks Co. Ltd., Blyth
Builder: Blyth Shipbuilding & Dry Docks Co. Ltd., Blyth	Power: Steam
Port of registry: London, Englan	Dimensions: 376′ long x 53′ wide x 26′ deep
Previous Names:

The Location of the Sinking:

Here is the location of the sinking: 35° 16’N, 74° 18’W

Lost Crew Members:

Total Lost: 19, Survivors: 21

Last	First	Date of Death	Position	Home	Age
Andrew	Jack	April 1, 1942	Fireman	Freetown, Sierra Leone	27
*Black	Donald Andrew	April 12, 1942	Second Officer	Isle of Iona	33
*Bowden	John Noel	April 12, 1942	First Radio Officer	Malta	29
*Brown	James	April 5, 1942	Fireman and Trimmer	Freetown, Sierra Leone	38
Brown	John	April 1, 1942	Fireman and Trimmer	Freetown, Sierra Leone	40
*Caulker	Squire	April 12, 1942	Fireman and Trimmer	Freetown, Sierra Leone	32
Dunsmuir	Henry Templeton	April 1, 1942	Fourth Engineer Officer	Kilmarnock, Ayrshire	27
Herd	George Ronald	April 1, 1942	Cabin Boy	Perth	16
*Hutton	Patrick	April 12, 1942	Mess Room Boy	Greenock, Renfrewshire	20
*McCorquodale	John	April 12, 1942	Chief Officer	Glasgow	45
*Onoja	J.A.	April 9, 1942	Fireman and Trimmer
Pooley	George Albert	April 1, 1942	Third Engineer Officer	North Shields, Northumberland	40
Punch	William	April 1, 1942	Fireman and Trimmer	Freetown, Sierra Leone	31
*Rarity	John	April 12, 1942	Able Seaman (DEMS gunner)	Kilmarnock, Ayrshire	36
Thompson	Wilfred Edgar	April 1, 1942	Chief Steward	South Shields, Co. Durham	39
Tich	John	April 1, 1942	Fireman and Trimmer	Freetown, Sierra Leone	40
Watkins	John Barrington	April 1, 1942	Apprentice	Wylde Green, Sutton Coldfield, Warwickshire	18
*Williams	Henry	April 9, 1942	Fireman and Trimmer	Freetown, Sierra Leone	28
*Williams	John	April 9, 1942	Fireman and Trimmer	Freetown, Sierra Leone	39

* Died of exposure in a lifeboat after the sinking of Rio Blanco by German U-boat U-160.

Surviving Crew Members:

A listing of the surviving crew.

Last	First	Position	DOB	Home	Age
Blackett	Aiden	Master/Captain	1910		32
Browne	Sam	Greaser	1891	West Africa	51
Campbell	Alexander	Able Seaman	1914		28
Coates	James	Cook	1908		34
Graham	Donald Gordon	Able Seaman	1922	Port Glasgow	20
MacLeod	Donald Angus	Able Seaman	1906	Isle of Skye	36
Murtagh	James	Able Seaman	Feb. 22, 1918	Airdrie, Lanarkshire	24
Roberts	Leslie Perry	Third Officer
Robinson	Joko	Donkeyman	1919	West Africa	23
Saunders	Edward	Fireman and Trimmer	1903	West Africa	39
Sims	Wilfred	DEMS gunner	1912		30
Smythe	Thomas William Charles	Chief Engineer Officer	Feb. 12, 1888		54
Thompson	John	Boatswain	1920		22
Underhill	Clarence	DEMS gunner