The President Sergent was a 5344ton Steam Tanker. It was originally built in France and operated by French Petroleum Companies. On the 8th July 1940 it was seizes in Bermuda by Britain and was transfered to the Ministry of War Transport and operated by Anglo-Saxon Petroleum Co. Ltd, London.
On the 18th November 1942 a german U-624 fired torpedoes at the convoy ONS-144 south-southeast of Cape Farewell and reported the sinking of two merchants and one corvette and another merchant damaged. In fact, the President Sergent (the ship of the convoy commodore) and Parismina were sunk and the Yaka damaged, while HNoMS Montbretia was missed by a torped.
20 crew members were lost. The master (Patrick Gerald Gordon Dove), the commodore (Cmdr J.K. Brook, RD, CBE, DSO, RNR), six naval staff members, 24 crew members and seven gunners were picked up by the British rescue ship Perth (Master Keith Williamson, OBE) and landed at Halifax on 25 November.
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My father was on this ship when it was sunk and luckily, he was one of those rescued and taken to Halifax. He continued to serve in the Merchant Navy throughout WW2 and went on to support the D-Day landings.
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