Earl Wayne Childs was killed on this day in 1918. He was the first US submariner to lose his life in the First World War.
Lieutenant Earle Wayne Freed Childs from Philadelphia was 24 years old and was on board HMS H5, a Royal Navy submarine as an observer.
HMS H5 was sunk after being rammed by the by the British merchantman S.S. Rutherglen when mistaken for a German U-boat on 2 March 1918. Sadly, all on board perished.
A message was received on 7 March 1918 by Vice Admiral Sir Lewis Bayley, Admiral Commanding Western Approaches from Captain Martin Nasmith VC of SS Rutherglen
“SS Rutherglen has rammed a submarine at 20.30hrs. on the 2nd March within position Lat. 53 4’ N, Long. 4 40’ W. The submarine was crossing bow at considerable speed. After collision cries were heard and men seen in the water, also there was a strong smell of petrol vapour. Forepeak of “Rutherglen” is flooded”.
SS Rutherglen, under orders to not risk falling victim to submarines nearby, pressed on having rescued no one. Unbeknown to either Captain Nasmith or the Admiralty, the Rutherglen had struck H.5. This may well have been due to the fact that by the end of 1917, American and British forces were cooperating in their efforts to hunt down U boats in the Irish Sea.
In early 1918, ‘Operation GF’ was put in place in which eight British submarines collaborated with the USS Bushnell and seven AL class submarines around the coast of Ireland and in the Irish Sea. As part of the partnership, US naval officers undertook familiarisation trips on board the British submarines. Such was the secrecy of the whole operation that convoy escort ships and merchant ships were not told that there were British submarines operating in the area.
To read the full account of the sinking of HMS H5 click here: HM Submarine H5: The Submarine Cover-Up in Caernarfon Bay 2 March 1918