British ship to sight the East Asia Squadron at 16:20 and Otranto confirmed the spotting five minutes later. Cradock reformed the squadron into a line-ahead formation with Otranto in the rear and steered south to intercept the Germans. Due to the heavy weather and head sea, Otranto could make no more than . After taking fire from the light cruiser and the armoured cruiser , her commander, Captain Edwards, ordered Otranto out of line, away from the Germans, and headed west at her best speed as she had no value against the German cruisers. Glasgow was the only other British ship to survive the battle. Otranto was ordered to Montevideo to rendezvous with Rear Admiral Archibald Stoddart's squadron and arrived there on 10 November. She patrolled the Brazilian coast and east to Sierra Leone for the next month before arriving at Port Stanley in the Falkland Islands on 16 December to serve as the islands' guard ship. There she remained until 4 February 1915 when she returned to the UK where she arrived at Birkenhead on 10 March to begin a refit where her 4.7-inch guns were replaced an equal number of weapons. On 18 June, Otranto arrived at Punta Arenas, Chile to patrol the Pacific coast of South America. She remained on that duty for the next six months before departing on 18 December, via Easter Island, for Sydney, Australia for a refit at the Garden Island Dockyard. She arrived there on 14 January 1916 and departed on 5 March to return to her previous duty station. She arrived at Valparaiso, Chile, on 30 March and resumed her patrols. The ship received another refit at Esquimault, British Columbia, Canada, from October to December before leaving for the western coast of South America on 29 December. She arrived at Santa Elena, Ecuador, on 12 January 1917 and resumed her patrols. The ship arrived at Esquimalt for another refit on 2 October and arrived back at Santa Elena on 8 January 1918. Otranto arrived at Rio de Janeiro, Brazil, on 30 April and helped to salvage the cargo liner that had run aground on Ilhas das Maricás in the harbour on 6 May. On 16 May she escorted a convoy of 10 freighters to the UK where she arrived on 16 June. She then began a brief refit at HM Dockyard, Devonport. The ship arrived in New York City on 20