HMHS Sequana (CTA)

HMHS Sequana was a tender operated by the Azure Transatlantic Company. She was put into service in 1907. Built by the O'Neill shipyards built to transfer passengers and mail to and from RMS Sinann. She was requisitioned in August 1914 and fitted out for use as a British hospital ship during the First World War. On the 15th February, 1918, she was hit and sunk by a torpedo from the German U-boat U-55.

History
Sequana was commissioned in 1906 to tender for their new ocean liner RMS Sinann, which was too large to dock in Cherbourg Harbour. She ferried passengers, their baggage, mail and ship's supplies to and from large ocean liners moored offshore. Finished before Sinann was officially ready, the ship spent a year acting as a private yacht for the rich, sailing around the United Kingdom and hosting elaborate parties. Sequana lacked a Marconi Telegram due to its nature as a small ship.

Passenger accommodation consisted of lower- and upper-deck passenger lounges and open deck areas on the bridge and flying bridge decks. The vessel was divided into first, second and third-class passenger areas, with first-class passengers enjoying the fore areas of the ship. A small area in the aft end of the lower deck was assigned for third class passengers.

Internally, Sequana was fitted out to a similar standard as the Sinann, making it look more impressive then many tenders. When World War I broke out, Sequana was requisitioned by the Royal Navy, with Sinann later joining her. Sequana was assigned as a support hospital ship, aimed to ferry critical patients to shore faster, or to take excess patients. In this role, the ship was repainted in a white and yellow look.

Sinking
On the 15th February, 1918, Sequana was returning to Britain from Crete with 80 wounded officers aboard. Neutral inspectors from Spain had boarded the ship in Gibraltar to confirm that she had no military function. At 16:33 PM, the ship was struck by a torpedo, ripping into the ship's aft cargo hold and boiler room, damaging both boilers and immobilizing the ship. Captain McKinley organised the evacuation, ordering the lowering of the ship's lifeboats. Whilst the evacuation was ongoing, he went to the bow, taking out a megaphone, signalling that they were a hospital ship and needed immediate help, whilst the ship's signalling crew flashed Morse code using a floodlight. The emergency bulkhead in the engine room, designed to prevent the ship from being helpless if struck in a vital spot, failed due to debris from the damage lodging in the door. As water began to overflow each compartment, HMS Redoubt appeared in the distance, signalling their intent to come assist the slowly flooding vessel. At 16:42, U-55 resurfaced and launched another torpedo at Sequana, before diving once more. Hitting the water tank in the bow, the large splash of water sent Captain McKinley over the side as the ship rocked heavily, listing to starboard. The second explosion began to drag the ship down quicker, as Chief Officer Daniels ordered the crew to abandon ship. The lifeboats began to ferry crew, nurses and patients to and from Redoubt, whilst Redoubt fired at the water around where U-55 had last been spotted to no avail.

Water began to overwhelm the bow at 16:47, quickly dragging down the ship as people scrambled to the lifeboats, jumping into the cold water to reach them as the ship's list improved, the opening of bulkheads by the crew in an attempt to buy time actually righting the ship up more. The water pressure on the ships funnel caused it to crumple inwards, before collapsing, smashing into the bridge. The ship gave a mighty roar as it struck the seabed - the 70 meter long ship had sunk in waters only 53 meters deep. This largely crushed the bow compartments, but allowed the ship to slowly settle down, allowing a smoother evacuation. By 5 PM, the ship had slipped under the waves. 20 people died in the sinking, including the Captain, Stokers and Engineers who'd been in the Boiler room when the first torpedo hit, and two patients from head injuries caused by the incline. HMS Redoubt returned the Sequana's passengers to shore at 6 PM.

Aftermath
The sinking of the ship caused outrage in Britain. The German high command denied sinking the ship, instead blaming the explosion on a loose British mine. However, German naval command had declared unrestricted submarine warfare in a desperate effort to win the war. The naval command secretly ordered U-boat captains to sink any Allied ship, including hospital ships, even though it violated Hague Convention X. After the war, U-55's Commander Wilhelm Werner was hunted by Allied command in an effort to charge him for war crimes, including the sinking of Rewa, Sequana and Carpathia, but he disappeared, thus avoiding a trial. He resurfaced as a SS member in WWII, and died when the Red Army invaded Silesia. Daniels and the Captain of Redoubt both received the Victoria Cross for the lives saved.

Sequana was never replaced. The consideration was there, but having lost 3 ships with less money then their competitors, money was funneled into re-fitting the Sinann and the construction of the Airmedia-Class ships. Due to this, Sinann no longer stopped in Cherbourg, and actually became popular as an express UK-USA route until the expansion of Cherbourg Port in the 1930s. Daniels retired in 1935 and died of Pneumonia in 1943.

Wreck
The wreck was discovered in 1952 by Jason Sonoran. It lays on a steep slope, with the highest point resting at 53 meters, the lowest at 123 meters. As such, parts of the wreck are safely able to be dived in, whilst others are dangerous to inexperienced divers. As such, the wreck is only for experienced divers, and there are strict regulations on who can dive there, as it is a war grave. The area around the ship is littered with Debris, and the upper decks are pocked with depth charge explosions, likely done in WWII. The bow is almost completely severed from the wreck. Parts of both the bow and stern have fallen off entirely. The funnel lays forward past the bow in a very damaged state. The ships depth also means it has rusted quickly, and conservationists are unsure how long it will last.