Spanish destroyer Furor Furor was a " Furor " - class destroyer of the Spanish Navy that fought at the Battle of Santiago de Cuba during the Spanish - American War . Technical characteristics . " Furor " was built in the United Kingdom by Thomson , ( which would rename itself Clydebank Engineering & Shipbuilding Co . the following year ) . Her keel was laid on 21 February 1896 , and she was completed on 21 November 1896 . She had three funnels . In the parlance of the day , she was a " torpedo boat destroyer " , designed to protect larger ships against torpedo boat attack , but also carrying torpedoes with which to attack larger ships herself . Operational history . As tensions between Spain and the United States grew in early 1898 , " Furor " was part of the Spanish Navy ' s 1st Squadron , commanded by Vice Admiral Pascual Cervera y Topete . The squadron was ordered to concentrate at São Vicente in Portugal ' s Cape Verde Islands . Accordingly , " Furor " , in company with Cervera ' s flagship , armored cruiser " Infanta Maria Teresa " , armored cruiser " Cristobal Colon " , and destroyers " Pluton " and " Terror " , departed Cadiz on 8 April 1898 and arrived at São Vicente on 14 April 1898 . The ships had experienced mechanical problems and burned an excessive amount of coal during the voyage . Soon , the squadron was reinforced by two more armored cruisers , " Vizcaya " and " Almirante Oquendo " . The Spanish - American War began while " Furor " was at São Vicente . Ordered by neutral Portugal in accordance with international law to leave São Vicente within 24 hours of the declaration of war , " Furor " and the rest of Cervera ' s squadron departed on 29 April 1898 , bound for San Juan , Puerto Rico . Because of continuing engine trouble and low coal supplies , " Furor " and her fellow destroyers were towed part of the way . Cervera ' s ships reached French - owned Martinique in the Lesser Antilles on 10 May 1898 . While the other ships loitered in international waters , " Furor " and " Terror " went into Fort - de - France to ask for coal . France was neutral and would not supply coal . Moreover , the American auxiliary cruiser USS " Harvard " had just left port , and French officials announced that in accordance with international law and France ' s neutrality , the destroyers , as belligerents , could not leave port until 48 hours after " Harvard " had left , i . e . , on 13 May 1898 . " Terror " had become immobilized with engine problems , so the destroyer flotilla commander , Captain Fernando Villaamil , took " Furor " out in the harbor on 12 May 1898 under the ruse of testing " her " engines , then successfully made a dash out into international waters 24 hours early . Leaving " Terror " behind , " Furor " and the rest of Cervera ' s squadron set out on 12 May 1898 for Dutch - owned Curaçao , where Cervera expected to meet a collier . Cervera arrived at Willemstad on 14 May , but the Netherlands also was neutral , and strictly enforced its neutrality by allowing only " Vizcaya " and " Infanta Maria Teresa " to enter port and permitting them to load only 600 tons of coal . On 15 May , Cervera ' s ships departed , no longer bound for San Juan , which by now was under a U . S . Navy blockade , but for as - yet unblockaded Santiago de Cuba on the southeastern coast of Cuba , arriving there on 19 May 1898 . Cervera hoped to refit his ships there before he could be trapped . His squadron was still in the harbor of Santiago de Cuba when an American squadron arrived on 27 May 1898 and began a blockade which would drag on for 37 days . During the blockade , " Furor " and the others endured occasional American naval bombardments of the harbor ; during one such bombardment on 6 June 1898 , she took a shell hit in her bunkerage , but suffered no serious damage . Some of her men joined others from the fleet in a Naval Brigade to fight against a U . S . Army overland drive toward Santiago de Cuba . By the beginning of July 1898 , that drive threatened to capture Santiago de Cuba , and Cervera decided that his squadron ' s only hope was to try to escape into the open sea by running the blockade . The decision was made on 1 July 1898 , with the break - out set for 3 July 1898 . The crew of " Furor " spent 2 July 1898 returning from Naval Brigade service and preparing for action . " Furor " was to be the fifth ship in line during the escape , following the four armored cruisers and with " Pluton " behind her ; while " Infanta Maria Teresa " sacrificed herself by attacking the fastest American ship , the armored cruiser USS " Brooklyn " , " Furor " and the others were to avoid action , put on all the speed they could , and run for the open sea . At about 0845 hours on 3 July 1898 , the Spanish ships got underway . The U . S . squadron sighted the Spanish ships in the channel at about 0935 , and the Battle of Santiago de Cuba began . While the four armored cruisers turned to starboard to run westward , " Furor " and " Pluton " turned inside them and made their run closer to the coast . The blockading American battleship s and armored cruisers opened fire on the two destroyers as they emerged from the channel , hitting both destroyers several times , but then turned their attention to pursuing the Spanish cruisers . The two damaged destroyers put on speed , pursued only by the armed yacht USS " Gloucester " , a ship less well armed than the destroyers , but larger , faster , and undamaged . " Gloucester " hit both destroyers repeatedly . In short order , casualties aboard " Furor " began to climb , and her stern flooded and became submerged ; all her boilers were destroyed and her engine damaged ; fires broke out out in several places , including a particularly bad one in the engine room , which lay over the shell room , causing a danger of explosion ; a hole was punched in her side ; and finally her steering failed . Too badly damaged to continue , " Pluton " ran herself aground at 1045 on the beach just west of Cabanas Bay . Now alone , " Furor " survived only five more minutes . Still firing her guns , but with half her crew killed or wounded and clearly doomed , " Furor " stuck her colors and began to lower her boats ; several American projectiles struck Spanish sailors struggling in the water before the Americans realized she had surrendered . Two American boats came alongside and began to take off survivors , but quickly pushed away again fearing an imminent magazine explosion , which promptly occurred . " Furor " sank about a mile offshore in deep water at 1050 . Captain Villaamil died aboard " Furor " , as did over half of her crew . Those of her crew who got ashore had to beware of Cuban insurgents , who began shooting Spanish sailors they found along the shore . Other survivors were recovered by U . S . sailors in small boats .