which had been delivered in December 1943.
forward section sank, no order was given to abandon ship.
proved that the ship was sunk by a torpedo fired by the Japanese submarine I-180.
Ironically, the Navy had declared the area “submarine free” before the sinking.
the explosion. The survivors were picked up about 9 hours after the stern section sank.
William Secunda was the oldest son and third of Joseph Secunda and Mary Secunda’s.
The claim that the area was declared “submarine free” is from a secondary source book that does not list the primary source that they based that claim on. The official routing instructions given to the JOHN STRAUB on its final voyage stated ““ENEMY ACTIVITY IS POSSIBLE . ENEMY SUBMARINE CONTACTS MAY BE EXPECTED.” It is true that some restrictions were lessened; only tankers and troop ships required escorts in April 1944 in the eastern Aleutians. But, no admiral, or even an ensign, would be fool enough to publicly say the area was free of the enemy.