Evening star., 1937-11-15
Is Survivors, of Sltnken Vessel
Tell of Battling Sharks and Sea
Seaman Had to Stand Ouer Radio Man
and Force Him With Knife to Send
so. S., He Declares IN Norfolk.

Six Of the crew were saved from q
waterlogged lifeboat by the Mallory
tanker Swiftsure five hours after the
freighter sank before dawn Saturday.
The men abandoned ship only after
they had waged . losing battle in the
darkness trying to pump their vessel
clear of the invading seas and had
sent frantic 8 o s messages cracking
forth, to be received by the Swift
sure, the Coast Guard and other
agencies.
Dacoglu said one man on the raft
with him lost his hold and slipped
into the sea two hours before the
Coast Guard cutter appeared.
Sharks were popping around most
of the time he said.
Dacoslu spoke through a Greek
interpreter, as did the captain.
Cook Pound Floating.
Members OF the Mendota's crew said
B1arne O. Mevoy, mustached ships
cook was found floating with $50
strapped to his leg
| Comdr. Coyle said Il never saw
anything like this disaster before.
! Four or five of the men are in pretty
bad shape"
the comman nder, 48 years old. has
been in the Coast Guard service since
1910 and has gone to the aid OF dis
tressed seamen many times before.
| He said none Of the Seamen were
found in lifeboas. but three boats
were found capsized near some of the
drifting sailors Most of these were
picked up in groups of three or four
ne said. over an area Of 4 square miles
Some had managed to pull three OF
four boards together to make a sor,
of raft.
Members of the freighter's crew
said the lifeboats either we're swept
away or made useless by the SHARP
listing of the ship.
Comdr. Coyle praised the hely
Of the naval and Coast Guard plane,
in the search for the seamen. Bob.
bilg up and down in the swells. h
said 1t probably would have taker
much longer to locate the men had il
not been for the planes flying over.
head and spotting them with smok,
bombs Seven planes, in addition t.
five Coast Guard cutters and a min,
layer. joined in the search for tn,
vessel.
Greek friends Of the dead seamel
said funeral services for them woult
be held here tomorrow.
Seaman Drank Sea Water.
Balaskas told the story of the deati
of one Of the seamen who he identifie,
rs -Athanasios Gontigas son of tn
governor of the District Of Patros.
I'VE were clinging to q cargo boom,
Balaskas told the interpreter. Con
tigas was next to me- He kept com
planning that he was very thirsty an,
at last started drinking the seawater
we all warning him not to do thai
We told him 1t would make him crazy
From time to time Saturday "
forced him not to drink.
Then night came We could no
see him but we found he was drinkin
the water. pleaded with him not i
drink any more. Finally he suddenl
seemed to 60 crazy. He grabbed hol
Of my throat and started trying t
choke me.
We managed finally to get hin
quiet again and he was just hangin
there on the boom. Sometimes h
prayed, sometimes he wept Finall
he suddenly turned loose and starte
drifting away. went after him bu
I couldn't hold him. was almos
exhausted myself and just manage
to get back to the boom. Gcntiga
disappeared and we did not see hin
any more"
The Mendoza commander did no
have an of1cial record Of Gontigaa
name when the rescue ship dockec
only Kiladitis and T,lskano bein'
named among the known dead.