| History | |
|---|---|
 United Kingdom | |
| Name | El Grillo |
| Operator | The Bowring Steamship Co., Liverpool |
| Builder | Armstrong W. G. & Whitworth Co. Ltd.,Newcastle[1] |
| Yard number | 974 |
| Launched | 2 November 1921 |
| Completed | January 1922 |
| Fate | Sunk after German air raid, 10 February 1944 |
| General characteristics | |
| Type | Merchant vessel |
| Tonnage | 7,264 GRT |
| Length | 134.3 m (440 ft 7 in) |
| Beam | 17.5 m (57 ft 5 in) |
| Propulsion | steam engines |
| Speed | 10knots (19 km/h; 12 mph) |
| Complement | 49 |
| Armament |
|
SSEl Grillo was a Britishoil tanker sunk without casualties by a German air attack atSeyðisfjörður,Iceland on 10 February 1944.[3][4]
Iceland, which remained neutralduring World War II, had beenoccupied by Britain in May 1940 and, in April 1941, by the United States.[5]
"El Grillo" is Spanish for "TheCricket".[6]
Thesteam shipEl Grillo was built in 1922 atArmstrong W. G. & Whitworth Co. Ltd.,Newcastle-Upon-Tyne and operated byThe Bowring Steamship Co., based atLiverpool.[4][2]
On 10 February 1944, the ship was at anchor at Seyðisfjörður, carrying a cargo of bunker oil. The ship was armed, being a Defensively Equipped Merchant Vessel, and carried anti-aircraft guns and depth charges.[3]
While at anchor, the ship was attacked by three GermanFocke-Wulf Fw 200 "Condor"s from the I./KG 40, stationed inoccupied Norway, and heavily damaged.[7] The captain ofEl Grillo decided to scuttle the ship to prevent it and other ships at Seyðisfjörður from becoming more of a target.[8]
The wreck ofEl Grillo remains at the bottom of thefjord at Seyðisfjörður, in a depth between 22 and 45 metres, lying more or less completely upright. It is one of the most popular diving spots in Iceland.[9]
The wreck continued to leak oil up until the 2000s, when a Norwegian contractor was hired to dispose of the estimated 2,000 tonnes of oil remaining in the ship, which was carried out in 2002.[10] At the same time, unexploded ordnance was also to be removed from the ship. TheIcelandic Coast Guard, however, assumed that many of the more accessible shells had already been removed by scuba divers.[3]
In spite of attempts to render the wreck non-hazardous for wildlife, oil continues to leak from it, most recently observed in August 2021.[11]
Eyþór Þórisson, a restaurant owner in Seyðisfjörður, began brewing a beer after his own recipe in the mid-2000s which he named after the sunken tankerEl Grillo. The front label of the bottle features a picture of the sinking ship while the back side label tells the story of the sinking of the tanker.[9]
65°09′N13°36′W / 65.15°N 13.60°W /65.15; -13.60
Shipwrecks and maritime incidents in February 1944 | |
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| Shipwrecks |
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| Other incidents |
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