Photo. www.navioseportos.com.br
Built 1917
Tonnage 7,874/10,000 tons
Cargo : 9,680 tons of coal and coke.
Route. New York - Hampton Roads - Trinidad - Rio de Janeiro
Sunk 7 Mar 42 by U-155 on pos. 35º15"N 73º55"W
1 Dead
54 Survivors
After the torpedoing of the Brazilian ships BUARQUE and OLINDA, which sailed illuminated and with flags painted on the sides and raised in the stern, as the vessels of neutral nations did, it was decided, then, that all ships of the national fleet should travel to dark, painted gray and without identification flag. Sailing under these new mandates, ARABUTAN had departed from the Port of Santos on January 23, bound for the United States with a load of cotton. In addition to long-haul captain Aníbal Alfredo do Prado, there were 50 crew on board. On the return to Brazil, she was carrying a shipment of coal and coke, valued at 4,000 contos de réis, destined for Central do Brasil, as well as a survivor of BUARQUE, attacked in February, and three sailors from the ITAMARATI tanker, hitchhiking.
At 3:10 pm Central European Time on Saturday, March 7, 1942, about 81 miles from Cape Hatteras, North Carolina, the ship was targeted at the bow by a U-155-fired torpedo commanded by Captain Lieutenant Adolf Cornelius Piening. On impact, the crew rushed to the four lifeboats on board. The ship sank very fast, according to the testimonies of two of its crew, transcribed below:
"The sinking proceeded very quickly. The torpedo struck the bow and the ship rose some six feet out of the water. It managed, however, to regain its normal position, but only to begin to submerge. Immediately the captain gave the order to occupy the lifeboats. By the time we pulled back, the ship was gone. " Testimony of officer Augusto Gomes.