War - Ww1 - The Torpedoing Of The Barunga Poem by Paul Warren

The Barunga left Plymouth, England on 14 July,1918
With 900 Australian soldier invalids for home to be seen
But there was lurkinga U-boat in the Bay of Biscay
And a torpedo hit her blowing the first two bulkheads away

The engine room stayed sound for a time so the passengers
Had time to abandon the ship with no panic working together
And the captain saw the U-boat half submerged circling around
Then the three destroyers returned dropping depth charges down

One digger had been playing cards for pennies in the cabin
And when it was his turn on the deck he flung them with a grin
The incapacitated diggers were assisted to the boats
With no-one lost whilst the U-boat crew stood away to gloat

The destroyers finally chased the U-boat away
Whilst the passengers were gathered from the sea gray
Including the shell shocked diggers who wore the worst of it
In the loss of Barunga with no fatalities in the Great War trip.

© Paul Warren Poetry