Nova Scotia/Nunavut Command of The Royal Canadian Legion www.ns.legion.ca 101 continued ... The SS Athenia was the first British ship to be sunk by Germany during World War II. Amongst the 16 Canadians who perished in that sinking, was Muriel Nutting Fraser of Halifax. Muriel Nutting Fraser was amongst the many who perished and became the first Nova Scotian to die in WW II due to enemy action. Muriel was born in Summerside PEI in 1884 and moved to Halifax when she was a child. She was the daughter of the late James A. and Edith Creed Neal Fraser, of 8 Carleton Street. In 1939, Muriel was 54 years old and employed as a secretary by a shipping company on Cockspur Street, Charing Cross, London. On the evening of 1 September, Muriel boarded the SS Athenia, in Glasgow, as a passenger bound home to Canada. On 2 September, the Athenia made a port call in Liverpool and departed for Montreal that evening. The Athenia carried 1,103 passengers and 315 crew. Of the passengers 469 were Canadian citizens, 311 were Americans, 172 were British or Irish and 150 were European refugees, including many children. By dawn of 3 September, they had cleared the Donegal coast and were headed out towards the northAtlantic. Just after 1100 hrs the radio operator received a message stating that Prime Minister Neville Chamberlain had announced that Britain was at war with Germany. The news was passed to the passengers, and the crew conducted a lifeboat drill at 1300 hrs. Provisions and flares were placed in all 26 lifeboats in case of an emergency. At 1930 hrs the ship was struck by a torpedo launched from submarine U-30 of the Kriegsmarine. The Athenia stayed afloat for many hours which gave time for evacuation and all 26 lifeboats were launched into the sea successfully. The 1st Nova Scotia casualty of WW II 3 September 1939 Submitted: Gary Silliker CD S.S. Athenia slips below the waves.
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