USS West Ekonk ( ID - 3313 ) USS " West Ekonk " ( ID - 3313 ) was a cargo ship for the United States Navy during World War I . She was later known as SS " West Ekonk in civilian service under American registry , and as SS " Empire Wildebeeste under British registry . " West Ekonk " was launched for the in June 1918 as a part of the " West " ships , a series of steel - hulled cargo ships built on the West Coast of the United States for the World War I war effort . At one point " West Ekonk " had the distinction of being the ninth fastest - built ocean - going ship in the world . Pressed into cargo service for the US Navy , USS " West Ekonk " was commissioned into the and completed three round - trip voyages to Europe for the Navy . After decommissioning in mid 1919 , she was briefly in cargo service out of Baltimore and New York before being laid up in Norfolk , Virginia . " West Ekonk " was reactivated for cargo service out of Los Angeles in early 1924 . By 1926 , she was sailing out of New York and called at ports such as Liverpool and Hamburg . In 1933 , she was sold to the Lykes Brothers Steamship Company and operated for two of its subsidiary shipping lines through the mid - 1930s . In late 1940 she was sold to British interests to help fill the United Kingdom ' s urgent need for merchant ships . After sailing to the UK as " West Ekonk " , the ship was renamed " Empire Wildebeeste " and sailed in transatlantic convoys , making three round - trips between March 1941 and December 1942 . On the westbound leg at the beginning of her fourth round - trip , she straggled behind her convoy and was torpedoed and sunk by on 24 January 1942 . Nine men died in the attack ; the 22 survivors were rescued by American destroyer and landed at Bermuda . Design and construction . The " West " ships were cargo ship s of similar size and design built by several shipyards on the West Coast of the United States for the for emergency use during World War I . All were given names that began with the word " West " , like " West Ekonk " , one of some 24 " West " ships built by Skinner & Eddy of Seattle , Washington . " West Ekonk " ( Skinner & Eddy No . 25 ; No . 1178 ) was laid down on 16 April 1918 . She was launched on 22 June with an elapsed time of 57 working days — 67 calendar days — from keel laying to launch . " West Ekonk " was completed on 13 July , 73 working days after her keel laying , and in a list of the ten fastest - constructed ocean - going ships compiled in 1920 by Edward N . Hurley , the wartime chairman of the , " West Ekonk " was listed as the ninth fastest - constructed ship in the world . " West Ekonk " was the fourth ship built under a contract that called for Skinner & Eddy to deliver 14 ships at a cost of $ 1 , 672 , 000 each , but the cost of extras during her construction added $ 35 , 268 . Skinner & Eddy received a $ 69 , 200 bonus for " West Ekonk " s early completion , which brought the total cost of the ship to $ 1 , 776 , 468 . " West Ekonk " was , and was long ( between perpendiculars ) and abeam . " West Ekonk " had a steel hull and a deadweight tonnage of . The ship had a single steam turbine that drove her single screw propeller which moved the ship at an pace . World War I . After her 13 July 1918 completion , " West Ekonk " was handed over to the United States Navy for use in the and assigned the identification number 3313 . She was commissioned at Seattle , as USS " West Ekonk " ( ID - 3313 ) the same day with Lieutenant Commander Richard Willowden , , in command . " West Ekonk " sailed to Port Costa , California , and took on a load of wheat flour and sailed for New York , via the Panama Canal , on 24 July . After reaching New York on 27 August , " West Ekonk " joined a France - bound convoy , departing on 4 September . " West Ekonk " arrived at Brest , France , on 19 September , discharged her cargo , and headed back to New York on 30 September . She took on a load of freight consigned to the Italian government and set out for Genoa in early November . " West Ekonk " was en route to Italy when the Armistice that ended fighting was signed on 11 November . After completing her trip , she made another cargo run to Genoa , sailing from New York in late January 1919 and returning on 3 April 1919 . Six days later " West Ekonk " was decommissioned and returned to the . Interwar career . " West Ekonk " s activities immediately after her return to the in April are not known , but in mid - June " The Washington Post " reported that " West Ekonk " would be among the 26 ships allocated to sail out of Baltimore beginning later in the month . In early March 1920 , " The New York Times " reported on " West Ekonk " s arrival in New York from Liverpool , and in April and June reported on " West Ekonk " s departure to and arrival from Hamburg . After being laid up in a reserve fleet in Norfolk , Virginia , some time after mid 1920 , " West Ekonk " was one of two ships reactivated for service out of Los Angeles in early 1924 . By early 1926 , however , " West Ekonk " was sailing from Galveston , Texas , to Liverpool , sometimes carrying passengers in addition to freight . In December 1927 , " West Ekonk " s master and chief engineer each received a $ 50 bonus from the Conservation Committee of the Merchant Fleet Corporation when " West Ekonk " was named to an honor roll for efficient operation ; they were one of 50 duos so honored . On 23 December 1928 , " West Ekonk " was anchored in the River Thames at Gravesend , Kent , United Kingdom when she was struck by the British cargo ship and sustained damage to her port bow . In 1933 , " West Ekonk " was sold to Lykes Brothers Steamship Company and home - ported at Houston , Texas . " West Ekonk " sailed for the Dixie UK Line , a subsidiary operation of Lykes , for most of 1935 , sailing between Galveston and Liverpool . By December 1935 , " West Ekonk " had begun sailing for another subsidiary of Lykes Brothers , the Ripley Steamship Company , and continued sailing on the same Galveston – Liverpool route through September 1937 . " West Ekonk " s activities over the next three years are not recorded . World War II . In November 1940 , while the United States was still neutral , the , a successor to the , granted Lykes Brothers permission to sell " West Ekonk " and five other cargo ships to the British Ministry of War Transport ( MoWT ) . After " West Ekonk " took on a load of steel and scrap , the ship sailed to Halifax , where she joined convoy HX 99 in sailing for Liverpool on 26 December 1940 . On 30 December , the ship ' s compass went out but " West Ekonk " was able to remain in her station in the convoy , and safely arrived at Liverpool on 11 January 1941 , despite sailing through a gale with sleet storms on 4 January . In his notes for the convoy , P . E . Parker , the convoy ' s commodore , singled out H . MacKinnon , master of " West Ekonk " , for praise of his seamanship in keeping " West Ekonk " in the convoy without a working compass . After her arrival at Liverpool , " West Ekonk " was renamed " Empire Wildebeeste " — MoWT ships taking a name prefixed with " Empire " and joined westbound convoy OB 293 in sailing for the United States on 2 March 1941 . The convoy dispersed four days later , and though seven ships were sunk by four German submarines , " Empire Wildebeeste " safely docked at Baltimore on 24 March . After sailing to Hampton Roads , Virginia , on 1 April and on to Halifax on 6 April , " Empire Wildebeeste " was scheduled to sail as a part of HX 120 on 10 April , but apparently did not arrive in time . She instead sailed in convoy HX 121 which departed Halifax six days later . Convoy HX 121 was attacked by two U - boats on 28 April and four ships were hit , two ahead of " Empire Wildebeeste " and two to the starboard . Even though another ship was sunk on 1 May , " Empire Wildebeeste " successfully delivered her cargo of pig iron to Middlesbrough on 7 May . After making her way across the Atlantic independently , " Empire Wildebeeste " arrived at Norfolk , Virginia , on 25 June . After making intermediate stops in Baltimore and Hampton Roads , she sailed for Halifax with a load of scrap iron on 17 July , reaching her destination three days later . She departed in convoy HX 140 on 22 July and arrived at Belfast Lough on 5 August and Newport on 8 August . After arriving at Milford Haven on 25 August , she sailed from there two days later in convoy ON 10 for Halifax , where she arrived on 13 September . From there , " Empire Wildebeeste " sailed to Montreal and back to Halifax by 5 October . She departed Halifax that same day as a part of convoy HX 153 , but had unspecified problems that caused her to drop out and put in at St . John ' s , Newfoundland , on 11 October . After aborted attempts to sail east in convoys SC 50 and SC 52 , " Empire Wildebeeste " finally reached Loch Ewe on 25 November as a part of convoy SC 54 and Methil on 30 November . After " Empire Wildebeeste " made a trip to Hull and back by 23 December , she sailed to Loch Ewe five days later and then departed from Liverpool on 2 January 1942 as a part of convoy ON 53 . " Empire Wildebeeste " strayed behind even before the convoy dispersed on 19 January , and was left to sail on to Baltimore independently . At 06 : 53 on 24 January , " Empire Wildebeeste " was struck by a torpedo launched from under the command of " Kapitänleutnant " Hermann Rasch . " Empire Wildebeeste " went down at position ; eight crewmen and one naval gunner were killed during the attack and sinking . American destroyer was dispatched from Bermuda to pick up the master , 18 crewmen , and three gunners , and landed them in Bermuda .