Inquiry into the sinking of the H.M.S. Thunder Child
Commission
Inquiry into the sinking of the H.M.S. Thunder Child
First-hand witness present for interview
5,600 tons
*298ft. Length *
20 knots
6 (six) 6"/40 (15.2cm) mark I cannons, 6 submerged mark II torpedo tubes.
Completed 1894
1. At what time did the Thunder Child cruise from port?
The Thunder Child had set out a day before her sinking at roughly eighteen-hundred hours on the * of *, 1984.
2. What armaments was she equipped with? How much ammunition was she carrying?
She was fitted with six 6"/40 (15.2cm) Mk. 1 cannons, positioned at the port and starboard side of the ship accordingly with twelve full boxes of rounds. She was also armed with the ram at the bow with six torpedo tubes installed at the bow, being submerged underwater with 18 Mk. 2 torpedoes in total.
3. How many crew were aboard in total, and were there any crew not present?
Many crew were not present, most-likely killed or unable to reach the port as ordered. In total there were close-to 120 aboard during the battle between the... pod walkers.
4. Were any systems inoperable due to crew shortages? And were the crew assigned different or irregular duties?
Yes, there were a lack of engineers mainly, though we also were missing a few loaders and petty officers, so the captain appointed the oilers and wipers to engineers tasks, as they were priority at the time. Petty officers were also appointed to be loaders or work with the navigators. Finally I think there were a few missing seaman to operate deck gear, but we apparently didn't need it at the time anyway.
5. Were there any separate engagements before the engagement that sunk the Thunder Child?
There were sightings of pod walkers around the beach to the west of the port, but we hadn't yet armed her fully and finished standard precaution checks, so no, we only set out once we knew the steamers were setting out too, trying to escape with dozens of refugees aboard.
6. Were any checks skipped or not completed?
Yes, the guns were not fully-checked as we had done a recent, thorough check on them and there were no discrepancies present, so due to the situation we were in they were not fully checked over.
7. What combatants were involved in that particular engagement? Were there any other involvements?
There were the civilian ships like I mentioned, though they were just trying to escape. The HMS Thunder Child of course, and 3 of the tripods.
8. Describe to me the full engagement, up until the martians fired the heat-ray at the Thunder Child.
Well, as the civilian ships began to sail out, we noticed that out to sea and to the landward horizon, the tripods must have spotted them, and so they tried to block it's path of escape. The captain ordered us to man our stations and prepare for battle, and ordered the helmsman to bring the ship around and head straight to the martians at full speed, twenty knots. We were sat there for a moment before we pulled away and turned, heading straight at them while the civilian ships slowed and let us push through. The gunners made final checks on their weaponry and we sealed all hatches. Once we were in range, the mark one cannons began booming in sequence, focusing fire on the tripod nearest to us which was directly ahead. The cannons obliterated the tripod after a few rounds, and the object collapsed and burst into flame before it hit the ocean. Afterwards, the rest suddenly released a volley of black smoke, like a squid would do for defense, which temporarily stopped us from navigating properly, but we pushed through it unharmed. Now through the smoke we were close to one tripod to our starboard, so the captain ordered the helmsman to go 20 degrees starboard. The torpedoes shot a volley of two mark 2 torpedoes but they missed the legs. After reporting the miss, the captain ordered her to full speed, which broke the thin legs into pieces and brought a second tripod crashing down into the sea. That left only one tripod walker.
9. So the cannons had an expected effect against the tripods?
Yes, whatever those tripods were made of, it didn't seem to reflect explosive rounds. We heard that ballistic rounds did practically nothing, although we weren't sure about slugs, but explosive projectiles seemed to knock them down with ease.
10. Were there any noticeable effects on the black smoke? Did it interfere with instruments at all? Did any seep into the Thunder Child and affect the crew?
No, all our instruments were not affected in the slightest from what we saw, and noticed no discrepancies. It also didn't get in or affect any of the crew, though someone commented that it turned the sea a foul colour after the battle, even saying it killed some fish nearby, so it could-well have been a lethal chemical mixture.
11. Why did the torpedoes miss? Even at slim targets the torpedoes are incredibly accurate, certainly within the range you described to me as well.
The tripod we aimed it at moved it's leg as we shot. We don't know if it had somehow known we were firing or if it was just moving, but the leg moved slowly - it was more luck than anything that they avoided the impact.
12. Tell me what happened when she was hit by the heat-ray and how you survived.
Well, it was like a surgical cut, sliced almost right through the ship with a thick hole. You could see daylight from the torpedo bay. If it had a longer beam it probably would have split the ship in half, but it just went in a straight line, half way up the ship. Small explosions went off in the engine room I think, followed by a huge panic - mainly for if it fired again, but even now we knew the ship was going down. Some tried to actually repairing the ship, but they clearly didn't know the extent of the damages. The guns either stopped functioning, had no one to function them or were just left as the captain told everyone to abandon ship. Most didn't make it out as they were cut off and the pressure of the ship... brought them down with it. Luckily for me I was on port-side and made it to the top with a life jacket. There was nothing anyone could do but escape, it was mayhem, you could hear the ship groaning and splitting apart while any loose object rocked around and was flung about. Any fires were probably put out when she was submerged, and I just swam to shore as quick as I could. Quite a few were killed from the heat-ray itself, I only found one other person ashore when I got there, the first mate.