Five ships disappeared without a trace, 78 men died

Although the ships in 1952 were larger, more strongly built and equipped with larger engines than the ships in the 1917 disaster, they were unable to withstand the forces of nature when the hurricane broke out. They had also received radiotelephones by now. Still, there is much we do not know about what happened. None of those who sank reported any difficulties of any kind. This time too, there are survivors on other ships in the same area, which can give us a clue to the drama that unfolded in the ice.

When the storm came on the afternoon of Wednesday, April 2, "Pels", "Buskø" and the other ships that sank were far south and west of the field. They were just north of Iceland. The exact position is not known. But researcher Per Øynes, who was with "Brandal", has calculated that their position was 68 degrees 30 minutes north latitude, 19 degrees west longitude. That is a full four degrees of latitude further south than the position of "Brandal", "Flemsøy" and the other ships northeast of Jan Mayen.

The wind swept along the ice edge and gave "Brandal" a chance to seek cover behind an ice floe, blowing south from the ice edge. This spread the big ice out. The ice wore out. When the wind picked up, the snow drifts came and visibility was poor. As a routine, the ships probably sought life by going against the wind, into the distributed ice. If they had enough engine power.

The Nordland ships "Selfisk" and "Ungsel" were in the same area as "Pels" and "Buskø" during the storm. So were "Søndmøringen", "Fangstmand", "Arild" and several other ships. All were saved, but only just. "Fangstmand" was heading west when the barometer fell. The ship turned and headed east at full speed, ruddering hard to port. Ola Jarle Bigseth says that they walked along a strip all night when the wind was at its worst. If they had lost the strip, they would not have been able to get back up the way the hurricane was going.

"Selfisk" was in the ice when the weather was at its worst. They went into the wind and observed how the ice was constantly being torn up. Therefore, the ice did not provide proper cover. And the seas took hold. A breaking sea hit the front of the owner's house and parts of the row. In the drift, the ice was shot down strongly.

When "Selfisk" arrived in Tromsø, skipper Kåre Pedersen said that he spoke to the gunner on "Vårglimt" on April 2. At that time, they were doing well on board. In the vicinity of "Vårglimt" were also the four other ships that sank. Skipper Pedersen said that perhaps those on board "Vårglimt" had thought it was the fast ice they were sheltering from, but that it was actually a large ice floe that was gradually crumbling due to the storm and sea, leaving the ship without cover. And since all five ships were lying in the stern, skipper Pedersen thought that they were either broken off by the stretchers or crushed by the ice.

The Nordland ship "Arild" was fishing for blueback in company with the five ships that were soon to sink. The weather was good and the crew was quite happy if there was no big catch. But on April 2nd the barometer fell sharply and the wind increased. Skipper Wilhelmsen later said that they were in a solid ice floe in company with "Brattind" and "Vårglimt". A couple of the other ships were close by. All the ships were in good condition; Wilhelmsen knew that. But at half past three in the morning the skipper was warned. A strong storm was blowing, probably a hurricane. The ice floe was up and the ships were tossing violently on the wild sea.

"Arild" had a strong engine and pushed up against the wind in search of a new anchorage. But found only the edge of the ice. The hurricane had torn all the headlands loose. Wilhelmsen managed to turn the ship around and decided to bail out of the wind. And after a dramatic journey south - where they lost one man, among other things - "Arild" came closest to wrecking in Iceland on the evening of April 8.

Wilhelmsen later pointed out that the other ships were probably not able to go upwind like "Arild" did. They had less engine power. The crew of "Arild" saw that "Vårglimt" was pressed up against a large ice floe. They also got a glimpse of "Brattind" in the sea eel. The schooner had a strong tack. And soon after, a hatchling came flying through the air. Meir did not see the men on board "Arild" until the other ships.

The Tjørvåg ship "Søndmøringen" was only six hours away from "Buskø" and the other ships when the wind picked up in earnest; on its way east. Asbjørn T. Aagaard, who was with them as a trapper, later published his diary from the voyage. It is a story about a drama that we can hardly imagine. "Søndmøringen" had taken on board 1500 animals; a fine start to the season. But then the seal disappeared. The animals were gone.

On April 2nd the weather changed. A storm raged from the northeast, and the thermometer showed minus 30 degrees. The ship found a strip of ice that gave life, and the crew scraped the hatches and lashed everything loose. On the night of April 4th they noticed that the wind was decreasing. In the morning they drove the ship into the ice.

The open sea did not tempt them, but even far inside the ice the swell was enormous. They had never seen such a big swell before, and they had every right to try to steer clear of the huge ice floes that came sailing in rough seas. Visibility was poor. At times they could see no further than the bow. The icing was strong. And the crew worked hard to knock the ice off the ship to prevent it from tipping over.

Towards the end of the day on April 5, the cape that gave life to the "Søndmøringen" began to lose its anchor in the stern. The situation was critical. The ship could not escape the weather. Then the heavy seas on the open sea would catch them. They had no engine power to go against the weather. They had to find a new way. In the east they glimpsed the light of ice. They could only hope that there was a cape there. And they had to do something while there was still daylight.

But as the "Søndmøringen" rounded what was left of the ice floe, they were met by a 25-meter-high breaking sea with a reef on top. The sea hit the ship with violent force, pulverizing the boats on the galley deck, shattering the windows in the wheelhouse and filling the ship with sea. There were no more seas, and after what felt like an eternity, the "Søndmøringen" slowly began to rise from the sea.

The ice light they saw turned out to be an ice-dead one. Soon they were given new life. For the first time in many days, the steward was able to cook them a hot meal. But they still couldn't sleep. They had to go on deck and break ice.

A strong storm was blowing from the northeast, and the cover began to crumble. There was better visibility now and far inside the ice they could see a ridge that they wanted to try to bow into. At full speed, the "Søndmøringen" went inland. The ship lost its ice cover and sprang a leak. But the pumps kept the ship afloat and they reached it. And there inside the loose ice were 15 other ships. It is said that the cold was down to minus 40.

On April 8th the worst was over. But the cold persisted. Now the people on board the "Søndmøringen" could start thinking about the other ships that they had not heard from for several days. The last they heard from the "Pels" was that she was avoiding the weather at sea. And the hurricane was probably stronger where the "Pels" was; six hours further west.

Far northeast of Jan Mayen, "Flemsøy" lay in company with many other ships; among others "Kvitungen", "Polaric", "Signalhorn", "Brandal" and "Polarsel". "Flemsøy" had a very powerful radio transmitter. Skipper Karl J. Brandal was worried because it had been a long time since he had been in contact with "Pels" and "Buskø". From the harbor at the edge of the ice, he called them up, again and again, but without receiving an answer.

"- Hello "Pels", hello "Buskø", hello "Brattind", hello "Ringsel", hello "Vårglimt", "Flemsøy" calls. - I'm worried about the dock. Please answer me on the radio as much as you can. If the antenna has been blown away, then use the telegraph key and set the radio to full power, and I will listen for three long repeats at intervals of a quarter of a minute. Over". But not a sound came from the loudspeaker. Even the background noise was gone. People sat and listened over great distances. But the missing ships did not answer.

Many have speculated as to why none of the five ships called for help over the radio during the storm. The experienced radiotelegrapher Arne Grønningseter, who accompanied Paul Lillenes to Kvitsjøen a couple of seasons in the early 30s, wrote about this in Sunnmøre Arbeidaravis on Wednesday 4 June 1952:

– My experience in Arctic conditions was that in certain situations with ice and snow drifts, normal radio communication was impossible due to noise with the antennas that were used and are still in use. I believe that this is the explanation for why not a single distress call was heard from the radios of the five ships that had escaped.

The search operation began on Wednesday, April 9. Then two American planes took off from the Keflavik base in Iceland. They searched a more specific area; without result. The search continued with planes, seal hunting ships and navy boats. Nothing was found. Along the beaches of East Greenland, sled patrols searched for wreckage. Crews searched the reefs in Iceland. The results were negative. And there was no other conclusion to be drawn than that the five ships and the men on board were gone forever.