Postby cdsc123 » Wed Jan 22, 2014 5:41 pm
Quoted from "FROM TROMBAY TO CHANGI, THE STORY OF ARAKAN COASTAL FORCES, WRITTEN AND PUBLISHED BY OFFICERS WHO PARTICIPATED"
AT 09:30 THE MLS DEPLOYED TO STARBOARD AND PORT TO ENGAGE ANY TARGET THAT PRESENTED ITSELF, AND THE LANDING CRAFT ROARED ONTO THE BEACHES TO DISGORGE TROOPS WHO SPREAD OUT IN ALL DIRECTIONS.
THE 37TH FLOTILLA WERE ON THEIR FIRST OPERATION, HAVING COME DOWN DIRECTLY FROM CHITTAGONG. SOME OF THE 55TH AND 37TH FLOTILLA MADE A SWEEP OF THE INNER HARBOUR, WHILE ML 440, ML 474 AND ML 476 ANCHORED IN COMPANY WITH ML 891 OFF THE BEACH TO AWAIT FURTHER ORDERS.
AT 11:00 AN LCA WITH 32 MEN ON BOARD, WHILE APPROACHING THE BEACH IN THE VICINITY OF THE MLS SUDDENLY BLEW UP AND DISAPPEARED IN CLOUDS OF SMOKE. THE TIDE HAD GONE DOWN AND THE LANDING HAD TAKEN PLACE OVER A MINEFIELD. THE MLS PICKED UP SEVEN SURVIVORS, AND ML 474, ML 476 AND ML 891 TOOK THEM TO HMS RAPID AND LAY ALONGSIDE. ML 891 CAME OUT ASTERN AND JUST AS SHE CLEARED THE DESTROYER, A COLOSSAL EXPLOSION TOOK PLACE AND ML 891 DISAPPEARED IN A VIVID CLOUD OF FLAMING SMOKE. SURVIVORS CLINGING TO THE KEEL OF THE UPTURNED ML WERE TAKEN OFF BY A MOTOR BOAT FROM HMS RAPID, THE MOTOR BOAT BEING SAFE BECAUSE OF ITS SHALLOW DRAFT. FOURTEEN OF THE MLS CREW OF SEVENTEEN WERE PICKED UP UNWOUNDED OR WITH MINOR WOUNDS.
LDG. MOTOR MECHANIC S.E. ADAMS AND A STOKER WERE KILLED, JOHNNY WESTON WAS SERIOUSLY WOUNDED.
There follows an announcement made in The Daily Telegraph on 21.01.85 which reads;
IN MEMORIAM
H.M.M.L. 891
IN PROUD AND FOND MEMORY OF THE SHIPS COMPANY OF ML 891, SUNK AT RAMREE LANDING, JAN 21 1945- JOHN G WESTON, DSC., 7 MARINE PARADE, APPLEDORE, N. DEVON.