'An East Coast Port': Halifax in Wartime, 1939-1945

Tug was run down by the Norsk freighter in Bedford Basin 6 July 1943. Next day, Captain A.M. Hilton, Chief Examiner of Masters and Mates in Halifax, started an official investigation into the harbour disaster which claimed the lives of nineteen Halifax Shipyards Limited employees. The Halifax Chronicle, 8 July 1943, p. 16, reported "According to R.J.R. Nelson, Shipyards general manager, the tug Erg sank in about 200 feet of water almost in the centre of Bedford Basin, out of reach of any Halifax divers. ... In Ottawa yesterday Labor Minister Mitchell extended sympathy to the families of the 19 men who lost their lives in the disaster. 'These men carried on vital war work and have died in the service of their country' he said in a telegram to Mr. Nelson. 'Truly our working men and women are called upon to face dangers and make sacrifices on the home front."

Date: 19 July 1943

Reference: John F. Rogers Nova Scotia Archives 1995-370 number 12