1943 — June 12, U.S. Navy Submarine R-12 Sinks Accidentally, off Key West, FL — 42

— 42 Singer, S. D. Shipwrecks of Florida: A Comprehensive Listing (2nd Ed.), 1998, p. 256.
— 42 Naval History and Heritage Command. R-12 (SS 89). Accessed 3-5-2021.
— 42 US Dept. Navy. “Casualties: US Navy…Marine Corps Personnel Killed and Injured…”
—<25 Titusville Herald, PA. “Navy Reports Loss of Sub Off East Coast,” June 26, 1943, p. 1. Narrative Information Singer: “R-12 – U.S. Navy submarine, 530 tons, 186.1’ x 17.6’ x 13.8’, built in 1918, Lieutenant Commander E.E. Shelby. Sank June 12, 1943, at Lat 24-24-30, Long. 81-38-30, in 600 feet of water. Forty-two lives lost including four U.S. Navy officers, two Brazilian Navy officers and 36 U.S. Navy enlisted men. Only the personnel on the bridge survived: two officers, including the commanding officer, and three enlisted men. “The Book United States Submarines Losses World War II states: At the time of the accident R-12 was engages in normal operations off Key West, Florida, being underway to take up position for a torpedo practice approach. She was rigged for diving (except main induction was open and batteries were ventilating into the engine room) and riding the vents. The Commanding Officer was on the bridge in the act of turning the Officer of the Deck watch over to another officer when the collision alarm was sounded from below and the report that the forward battery compartment was flooding was passed to the bridge. Although the Commanding Officer gave immediate orders to blow main ballast and close the hatches, the ship sank in an estimated 15 seconds from the time the alarm was sounded until the bridge was completely under water. “The Court of Inquiry assumed that rapid flooding through a forward torpedo tube was the cause of the sinking.” (Singer 1998, 256-257) USN: “USS R-12 (SS-89) sank after flooding in battery compartment. 42 drowned. 12 Jun. 1943.” (US Dept. Navy. “Casualties: US Navy…Marine Corps Personnel Killed and Injured…”) Sources Naval History and Heritage Command. R-12 (SS 89). Accessed 3-5-2021 at: https://www.history.navy.mil/research/library/online-reading-room/title-list-alphabetically/u/united-states-submarine-losses/r-12-ss-89.html Singer, Steven D. Shipwrecks of Florida: A Comprehensive Listing (2nd Ed.). Sarasota, FL: Pineapple Press, Inc., 1998. Partially digitized by Google. Accessed 2-16-2021 at: http://books.google.com/books?id=6j6kjZQReqkC&printsec=frontcover&source=gbs_navlinks_s#v=onepage&q=&f=false Titusville Herald, PA. “Navy Reports Loss of Sub Off East Coast,” June 26, 1943, p. 1. Accessed at: http://www.newspaperarchive.com/FullPagePdfViewer.aspx?img=106026648 United States Navy, Naval Historical Center. “Frequently Asked Questions, Casualties: U.S. Navy and Marine Corps Personnel Killed and Wounded in Wars, Conflicts, Terrorist Acts, and Other Hostile Incidents.” Washington DC: Dept. of the Navy. Accessed 3-5-2021 at: http://www.ibiblio.org/hyperwar/AMH/AMH-USNchron.htm