World War-2 Wreckage of ship found: American submarine attacked in 1942

The wreckage of a ship that sank in the biggest maritime attack in Australia’s history has been recovered after 81 years. About 1,060 prisoners of World War-2 died in this. This ship was the SS Montevideo Maru of Japan, whose wreckage has been found in the South Chinese Sea. For the last 12 days, workers of a non- profit Silentworld Foundation were searching for it.

The wreckage of ship found deeper than Titanic will be kept for research

Australian Prime Minister Anthony Albanese gave this information by tweeting. He said- I hope that the families of those who died in this accident must have got some relief now. After the debris has been recovered, it has been decided not to tamper with it. The human remains present in it will also not be removed. The wreckage of this ship found deeper than Titanic will be kept for research. The shipwreck site lies at a depth of more than 4,000 meters, or about 13,000 feet — a spot deeper than where the Titanic, the world’s most famous shipwreck  came to rest south of Newfoundland.

Japan’s Montevideo Maru ship sank in 1942

The Japanese transport ship SS Montevideo Maru sank on 1 July 1942 near the Philippines. There were about 1060 war prisoners in this. Of these, 850 people were soldiers of Australia while 129 people were common citizens. Apart from this, 210 citizens of 14 countries were also present on the ship. The ship was carrying prisoners from Papua New Guinea to Hainan province of China.

Then an American submarine USS Sturgeon attacked it with 4 torpedoes. Actually, they did not know that the prisoners of World War were present in this ship. Lifeboats were immediately launched on the ship as soon as the attack occurred but it sank within 11 minutes after the ship capsized. The families of those on board were not informed of the death of their kin for many years. Where the wreckage went after the ship sank was still a mystery.

This picture is of 3 soldiers of Australia who were present on the ship. He died when the ship sank.

 

The prisoners died before the letter reached the family. Those who were on the ship were taken prisoner by the Japanese in January 1942. Some letters were received from these prisoners to their families. In April 1942, the Japanese authorities decided that these letters would be delivered to the prisoners’ families. After this, these letters were dropped at Moresby Port in Papua New Guinea after filling 4 bags through helicopter. These letters reached Australia in September 1942. However, by then these prisoners had died in the attack.

Scenario after getting the debris

The team that found the wreckage of the ship told that 2 such people were also working with them on this project whose family members had died in this accident. After getting the debris, on one side the team members were celebrating and on the other side, some people’s eyes were moist. The Prime Minister of Australia said – The extraordinary effort of the team behind this discovery is proof that our citizens believe in remembering and honoring those who serve the country.

“This brings to an end one of the most tragic chapters in Australia’s maritime history, ” said  Richard Marles, the country’s deputy prime minister and defense minister, on Saturday.

“The extraordinary effort behind this discovery speaks for the enduring truth of Australia’s solemn national promise to always remember and honor those who served our country,” he said.