TRAGEDY IN ST. GEORGE’S CHANNEL

BRITISH SUBMARINE LOST AFTER DAWN COLLISION

HEAVY LOSS OF LIFE FEARED AMID WELSH WATERS

In a grave announcement first reported by the South Wales Daily Post in July 1929, the Admiralty this morning confirmed a calamity off the Welsh coast: H.M. Submarine H47 has been lost following a violent collision with H.M. Submarine L12 in the early hours, the disaster unfolding some 22 miles north of the Smalls Lighthouse and 20 miles west of Fishguard, along the heavily travelled arteries of the Irish Sea.

The Post’s early bulletin spoke of “a serious naval mishap in the Channel,” and by midday the Admiralty’s own communiqué lent the full weight of official sorrow to the unfolding tragedy.

SURVIVORS AND THE FEARED DEATH ROLL

Of H47’s usual complement of 23 men, only Lieut.-Commander R. J. Gardner, her commanding officer, and Petty Officer Telegraphist Sydney Cleburne have been saved. The remainder are feared lost in the sudden descent of the vessel into waters of 45–50 fathoms.

From L12 — battered but afloat — Leading Signalman Charles Edward Bull is missing, while Able Seaman Arthur E. R. Sampson lies in critical condition. The Post’s afternoon edition warned readers that “the casualty list may yet lengthen.”

SALVAGE TO BE UNDERTAKEN WITH ALL DESPATCH

Naval authorities have ordered immediate preparations for a salvage attempt, though the depth and turbulence of the channel render the undertaking perilous. Families across South Wales, already alerted by the Post’s morning wires, gathered at telegraph offices seeking word of loved ones.

The collision occurred directly across the Fishguard–Rosslare and Fishguard–Waterford passenger routes — waters long familiar to coastal communities, now overshadowed by grief.

THE VESSELS INVOLVED

L12 — A SADDLE‑TANK SUBMARINE OF THE WAR PROGRAMME

The ill‑fated L12, completed in 1918 under the emergency war programme, belongs to the Admiralty’s costly saddle‑tank class. Measuring 220 feet and displacing 910 tons, she has served in reserve at Portsmouth under Lieut.-Commander P. K. Oram, with officers Lieut. E. R. Gibson, Lieut. Green (R.N.R.V.R.), and Wireless Engineer R. W. J. G. Jenkins attached.

Her sister ships have known misfortune: L24 lost in collision off Portland; L10 sunk in the Baltic; L9 destroyed by internal explosion. The L‑class has endured a sombre lineage.

H47 — BUILT FOR WAR, LOST IN PEACETIME

H47, constructed under the same wartime programme, is a smaller craft of 164 feet and 440 tons, armed with four torpedo tubes. She previously suffered an accident in dock at Devonport in August 1929, yet returned to service with the Sixth Submarine Flotilla under Lieut.-Commander Gardner, Lieutenant R. W. Moir, and Sub‑Lieut. K. G. Cronin (R.N.R.).

A COAST IN MOURNING

From Strumble Head to St. David’s, the coastline watches and waits. Fishermen speak in hushed tones of naval vessels combing the horizon; families gather at telegraph offices for updates; and the sea, indifferent yet eternal, rolls over the resting place of H47.

The Admiralty’s final word this afternoon carried the weight of national sorrow: “No further details have yet been received.”