USS MOUNT HOOD (AE-11)

'USS ''Mount Hood'' (AE-11)' was a cargo ship built under Maritime Commission contract as ''Marco Polo'', MC hull 1356, by the North Carolina Shipbuilding Co., Wilmington, N.C.; renamed ''Mount Hood'', 10 November 1943; launched 28 November 1943; sponsored by Mrs. A. J. Reynolds; acquired by the Navy on loan-charter basis, 28 January 1944; converted by the Norfolk Shipbuilding & Dry Dock Co., Norfolk, Va., and the Navy Yard, Norfolk, Va.; and commissioned 1 July 1944, Comdr. Harold A. Turner in command.
Following an abbreviated fitting out and shakedown period in the Chesapeake Bay area, ammunition ship ''Mount Hood'' reported for duty to ComServFor, Atlantic Fleet, 5 August 1944. Assigned to carry her vital cargos to the Pacific, she put into Norfolk, where her holds were loaded. On 21 August, as a unit of TG 29.6, she departed for the Panama Canal, transited that system of locks and lakes on the 27th, and continued on, independently, toward what would be her ultimate destination, Manus in the Admiralty Islands. Proceeding via Finschafen, New Guinea, she arrived in Seeadler Harbor, 22 September, and, as a unit under ComSoWesPac, commenced dispensing ammunition and explosives to ships preparing for the Philippine offensive.
At 08:30, 10 November 1944, a party consisting of the communications officer, Lt. L. A. Wallace, and 17 men left the ship and headed for shore. At 08:55, while walking on the beach, they saw a flash from the harbor, followed by two quick explosions. Scrambling into their boat, they headed back to the ship, only to turn around again shortly thereafter as "There was nothing but debris all around..."

''Mount Hood'', anchored in about 19 fathoms (35 m) of water, had exploded with an estimated 3,800 tons of ordnance materiel on board.The initial explosion caused flame and smoke to shoot up from amidships to more than masthead height. Within seconds, the bulk of her cargo was set off with a more intense explosion. Mushrooming smoke rose to 7,000 feet (2133 metres), obscuring the ship and the surrounding area for a radius of approximately 500 yards (500 m). ''Mount Hood's'' former position was revealed by a trench in the ocean floor 300 feet (90 m) long, 50 feet (15 m) wide, and 30 to 40 feet (10 to 12 m) deep. The largest pieces of metal found measured no bigger than 16 by 10 feet (5 by 3 m).
The concussion and metal fragments hurled from the ship also caused casualties and damage to ships and small craft within 2,000 yards (1828 m). Casualties mounted to 45 known dead, 327 missing and 371 injured, including the crew of ''Mount Hood'', of which only those ashore survived. The damage to other vessels required more than 100,000 manhours to repair, while 22 small boats and landing craft were sunk, destroyed, or damaged beyond repair.
A board convened to examine evidence relating to the disaster was unable to ascertain the exact cause. ''Mount Hood'', after only a little over 4 months service, was struck from the Naval Register 11 December 1944.

Contents

See also

External links

See also

★ USS ''Mount Hood'' (AE-29)

External links

★ AE Sailors Association

★ Selected documents relating to the loss of USS Mount Hood

★ photos from history.navy.mil