HMS Esk ( H15 ) HMS " Esk " was an E - class destroyer built for the Royal Navy in the early 1930s . She was designed to be easily converted into a fast minelayer by removing some guns and her torpedo tube s . Although assigned to the Home Fleet upon completion , the ship was attached to the Mediterranean Fleet in 1935 – 36 , during the Abyssinia Crisis . During the Spanish Civil War of 1936 – 1939 , she spent considerable time in Spanish waters , enforcing the arms blockade imposed by Britain and France on both sides of the conflict . " Esk " was converted to a minelayer when World War II began in September 1939 , and spent most of her time laying mines . During the Norwegian Campaign of April – June 1940 , the ship laid mines in Norwegian territorial waters before the Germans invaded , but was recalled to home waters to resume her minelaying duties in early May . During one such sortie , " Esk " was sunk during the Texel Disaster on the night of 31 August 1940 , when she ran into a newly laid German minefield . Description . " Esk " displaced at standard load and at deep load . The ship had an overall length of , a beam of and a draught of . She was powered by Parsons geared steam turbines , driving two shafts , which developed a total of and gave a maximum speed of . Steam for the turbines was provided by three Admiralty 3 - drum water - tube boilers . " Esk " carried a maximum of of fuel oil that gave her a range of at . The ship ' s complement was 145 officers and men . The ship mounted four 45 - calibre 4 . 7 - inch ( 120 mm ) Mark IX guns in single mounts . For anti - aircraft ( AA ) defence , " Esk " had two quadruple Mark I mounts for the 0 . 5 inch Vickers Mark III machine gun . She was fitted with two above - water quadruple torpedo tube mounts for torpedoes . To compensate for the weight of her 60 Mark XIV mines , their rails and the mechanical chain - conveyor system , two of " Esk " s 4 . 7 - inch guns , their ammunition , both sets of torpedo tubes , her whalers and their davits had to be removed . She was given small sponsons at the stern to ensure smooth delivery of her mines . Service . The ship was ordered 1 November 1932 , from Swan Hunter & Wigham Richardson at Wallsend under the 1931 Naval Programme , for use as a destroyer that could quickly be converted for use as a minelayer when required . She was laid down on 24 March 1933 , and launched on 19 March 1934 . The ship was commissioned on 28 September 1934 , at a total cost of £247 , 279 , excluding government - furnished equipment like the armament . The ship accompanied the Home Fleet during its West Indies cruise between January and March 1935 . " Esk " was attached to the Mediterranean Fleet from September 1935 to March 1936 , during the Abyssinian Crisis . The ship patrolled Spanish waters during the Spanish Civil War , enforcing the edicts of the Non - Intervention Committee until March 1939 , when she returned to the United Kingdom . During the Munich Crisis , " Esk " and her sister ship were temporarily attached to the 9th Destroyer Flotilla at the Nore , and practiced minelaying on 3 October 1938 . " Esk " was reduced to reserve on 24 June 1939 , and was not recommissioned until 2 August . She attended the Reserve Fleet Review on the 15th , and then began conversion as a minelayer beginning on 28 August . The conversion was completed on 7 September 1939 , and the ship was assigned to the 20th Destroyer Flotilla the next day . " Esk " laid mines in the Heligoland Bight with her sister " Express " on the night of 9 / 10 September . She escorted the battleship from Scapa Flow to Portsmouth from 23 – 26 September , and then conducted minelaying operations from Milford Haven and Portsmouth through December . On 17 – 18 December , " Esk " , " Express " , and laid 240 mines off the mouth of the Ems . She was refitted at Portsmouth from 29 December to 26 January 1940 . After the completion of her refit , " Esk " escorted the auxiliary minelayers and for the next six months , as they laid mines in the East Coast Barrier , as well as making occasional minelaying sorties of her own . On 3 March , " Esk " , " Express " , and laid mines near Horns Reef in the Heligoland Bight , that sank the about 13 March . The ship was assigned to the Home Fleet at Scapa Flow at the beginning of April , and was allocated to " Force WV " with the ships of the 20th Flotilla for Operation Wilfred , an operation to lay mines in the Vestfjord to prevent the transport of Swedish iron ore from Narvik to Germany . On 5 April , " Force WV " sailed from Scapa Flow , escorted by the destroyers , , and of the 2nd Destroyer Flotilla . The ships of the 20th Destroyer Flotilla laid 234 mines in Vestfjord on the morning of 8 April , and later rendezvoused with the battlecruiser . On the 15th , she returned to Scapa Flow , escorting the battleship . On 10 May , " Esk " , " Express " , " Intrepid " and " Princess Victoria " laid 236 mines off Bergen , North Holland , and on 15 May , she joined with " Express " and " Ivanhoe " to lay 164 mines off the Hook of Holland . Three German minesweepers , , , and , were sunk by this minefield on 26 July . The ship joined the evacuation of Allied troops from Dunkirk on 29 May . " Esk " evacuated 3904 troops between 29 May and 3 June , including over 1 , 000 French troops rescued from the , which was sinking after German air attacks . After repairs to the minor damage suffered by the ship during the evacuation , she resumed her previous duties . On 31 August 1940 , she sailed with " Intrepid " , " Icarus " , " Ivanhoe " and " Express " to lay a minefield off the Dutch coast , north of Texel . " Express " hit a mine in a newly - laid German field that night and had her bow blown off . " Esk " closed to assist her and almost immediately struck another mine . Some 15 minutes later , there was another explosion amidships which caused " Esk " to break in two , and she quickly sank in position . " Ivanhoe " rescued some survivors , but 127 of the ship ' s company were killed .