Cape Broyle native Andy O’Brien has been engaging in some interesting work this summer related to the German attack on Bell Island during World War II.
The Sailor 1st Class with the Canadian Navy has been operating a rigid hull inflatable boat as part of the project to recover and remove ordinance from the bottom of Conception Bay near the island.
From September to November 1942 four defensively armed merchant ships – the SS Lord Strathcona, SS Saganaga, SS Rose Castle, and PLM 27, were sunk while anchored south of Bell Island, Newfoundland. This was during the height of the Battle of the Atlantic when German submarines were laying waste to Allied convoys ferrying troops, armaments and other supplies being shipped from North America to England. The ships that were torpedoed off Bell Island have since remained on the bottom with their ordinance in their respective magazines, and are a popular dive site for recreational divers.
O’Brien is a clearance diver and member of the Fleet Diving Unit Pacific based at Canadian Forces Base Esquimalt B.C. O’Brien graduated from Baltimore High School where he ran cross-country. He has been a member of the Canadian Armed Forces since 2000, and has deployed overseas and has travelled to over 40 countries. He currently lives in Sooke, BC where he lives with his wife and daughter. According to Lieutenant Richard, McKenty, a Public Affairs Officer with the Canadian Forces, O’Brien is very happy to be part of this historic operation and very much appreciates the opportunity to visit with family and friends.
