KAMOTSUSEN!


(NORDBO (later TEIBO MARU) at Vancouver, courtesy of City of Vancouver Archives)

Freighter TEIBO MARU:
Tabular Record of Movement

© 2010-2020 Bob Hackett and Peter Cundall.

Revision 2

1923:
Copenhagen, Denmark. Laid down at Burmeister & Wain as a 4,472-ton cargo ship for Dampskibs-Selskabet (United Steamship Co.), Norden, Denmark.

1923:
Launched and named NORDBO.

November 1923:
Completed and managed by P. Brown, Jr & Co. of Copenhagen.

1923-1940:
In M. Jebsen’s service.

9 April 1940: German Operation Weserubung Süd (Weser Exercise South):
At 0500, the Germans invade Denmark. Resistance to the overwhelming power of the German Wehrmacht by the tiny Danish military seems pointless. The Danish government agrees to a German ultimatum. King Christian orders a cease fire to begin at 0720.

18 April 1940:
NORDBO arrives at Kobe.

March 1942:
The Japanese seize NORDBO. Prior to the seizure, the engine room crew, under instruction of Chief Engineer Simonsen screw the valves of the B & W engines tight in a concealed act of sabotage. As a result the ship's engines never performed reliably while under Japanese control.

1942:
Controlled by Teikoku Senpaku (Imperial Steamship Co.), wholly owned by the Japanese government. Renamed TEIBO MARU. Assigned signal letters JLIT.

19 September 1942:
Departs Mako for St Jacques in convoy No. 336 consisting of TEIBO, NIKKYU, HAKKO, HAKUROKU (HAKUSHIKA) MARUs and four unidentified merchant ships escorted by old destroyer KARUKAYA. Soon after leaving port, the convoy separates into two parts.

24 September 1942:
At about 1400, TEIBO MARU develops engine problems and falls behind.

25 September 1942:
At 1206. lookouts aboard LtCdr Richard V. Gregory’s USS SARGO (SS-188) sight a two masted freighter, with a center island and single stack. The target is riding high in ballast. Gregory notes an AA gun on the fo'castle and two DC racks aft. At 1303, Gregory fires three torpedoes and gets two hits; one in No. 3 port side hold and one under the bridge, but the ship does not sink. Gregory fires three more torpedoes, but they either miss or are duds.

90 km SE of Cap Padaran, Indochina. At 1520, USS SARGO battle surfaces. Her 3-inch deck gun crew fires 43 rounds at the target and gets 35 hits. Gregory's .50-cal and .30-cal MGs keep the target's AA gun from returning fire. At 1538, TEIBO MARU sinks at 10-31N, 109-31E.

26-27 September 1942:
Kaibokan SHIMUSHU rescues 40 survivors.

Authors' Notes:
Thanks go to Gilbert Casse of France. Thanks also to Peter Simonsen, son of Chief Engineer Simonsen for information about the sabotage of the ship's engines.

- Bob Hackett and Peter Cundall.

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