| But now we come to the strangest story of all. What is unusual about this next case is that there were multiple witnesses over a period of two years. It involves a sequence of events surrounding a haunted U-Boat that even today are difficult to explain.
It was 1916 and attention turned from land to sea where it was hoped more battle points could be gained. The U Boat in question is UB 65. It was a vessel that had at least one well documented ghost and was also the scene for numerous unexplained tragedies.
As the fury of war raged on the atmosphere on-board the U-Boat was fearful and melancholy, with many of the crew reluctant to even set sail. The situation would not have been helped by the name given to the boat by the ship builders themselves of 'the Iron coffin'.
You have to bear in mind one thing. U-Boat crews were regarded the world over as being among some of the the toughest men of all. They were both feared and respected by all mariners. They were not in the habit of telling tales nor for being jittery or cowardly. Something very strange had clearly happened if such men were regarding the U-Boat as jinxed.
From the very beginning things began to go wrong. During her construction a worker was crushed when overhead chains suddenly broke free and pinned the man down in agony for over an hour while others tried frantically to free him. He died just at the very moment the weight was finally lifted from his body. When the chains were later examined they were found to be in perfect working order and it remained a mystery as to why or even how they had managed to break free.
Two months later three more men died after they were assigned to test the engine room’s dry cell batteries, during which they were suddenly overcome by chloride fumes. An investigation failed to determine a reason why the batteries had leaked, for when later examined, they were also found to be in perfect working order.
By now, everyone was apprehensive about working on the vessel and no one could blame them, but then quite suddenly the accidents stopped and things went quiet as the U-Boat reached completion.
With an end of the mysterious run of accidents and her construction finally at an end, U-Boat 65 was allowed to set sail for her first set of sea trials. However, the moment she left the safety of the port she ran into a sudden and unexpected storm that resulted in the death of a sailor who was washed overboard and drowned before he could be rescued. But this was a time of war and the sea trials had to go on for the U-Boats were needed by Germany.
The Captain ordered the tests to continue; after all, he had his orders and could do little else. A dive test was set in motion and almost immediately the ballast tanks sprang a leak and flooded the entire engine room.
This in turn flooded the dry cell batteries that released the same deadly gasses that had previously killed the three men who had died in the same area of the ship back at dry dock. It took the crew 12 hours to bring the U-Boat back to the surface during which no other man was lost. However, the ship was forced to limp back to Germany for repairs.
U-Boat 65 was in dry dock for seven days. Once again she was made ready for sea and it was decided that she was to be on the first line of patrol. But as a battery of torpedoes was being placed aboard the submarine, one of the warheads exploded for no reason. The second officer was killed and seven others seriously wounded.
Yet again a board of enquiry was established but could find no reason why the warhead had exploded. As the enquiry was being heard, the crew attended the funeral of the second officer, who was buried with full military honours. The ship was made ready to put to sea again and the crew allowed some additional leave in the hope that it would allay any fears and worries.
Yet moments before the U-Boat was about to put to sail a member of the crew swore he had seen the now deceased second officer. The Captain refused to even listen to the man believing that he had been drinking, however, moments later a second crewman reported seeing the officer in another part of the vessel before vanishing before his very eyes.
The U-Boat was now in active service and there no time to adhere to such rumours, neither was a U-Boat a place for panic, yet that is exactly what began to happen when the officer was seen a third time by more than one person, looking at the instrument panel as he had often done during the sea trials.
The Captain did his best to regard the reports as poppycock, but then in January 1918 he finally saw the officer for himself. The U-Boat was on the prowl off Portland Bill. The weather was unforgiving and the Captain ordered the vessel to the surface.
A lookout was scanning the sea for enemy ships and the Captain had turned to look to his port side when he saw the image of the second officer standing on the deck. His first thought was that a member of the crew had decided on a risky and foolish venture. But then he realised that all the hatches were still tightly battened down and had not been opened for anyone since he had climbed through himself. He knew no other person had been in front of him or at his rear at the time.
Now, standing ahead of him was the very officer he had seen buried with full military honours. He climbed back down the ladder, turned and saw the second officer now standing inside the U-Boat behind him. Seconds later the image vanished. But the Captain was rightly concerned for the safety of his men and returned to port requesting a full investigation into what was going on for the sake of his crew. The investigation was conducted behind closed doors with each and every man interviewed by a panel made up of the highest-ranking naval officers in the German Fleet at that time.
A decision was made to split up the crew in the hope it ended rumours of a ghost ship in the German Navy. However, U-Boat 65 was still afloat and had to be dealt with. A new crew and a new Captain seemed to solve the issue and there was no further sightings of ghosts of any kind for the next two missions. But in May of 1918, the apparition suddenly re-appeared and the second officer was seen no less than three times, one report was from a sailor who saw the man walk through a wall of solid iron as he passed through from the Bulk Head and into the engine room.
A torpedo handler claimed the dead officer visited him every night for seven nights. He became so terrified that he jumped to his death into the sea.
Then in July 1918, U-Boat 65 was spotted by a US sub. She was sitting on the surface of the water and making no attempt to move at all. The US Submariners could not understand why no attempt to dive and get away and could not believe their good luck at finding such a sitting target. They armed their torpedoes and were preparing to fire when the U-Boat 65 suddenly exploded killing every man on board the vessel.
The US Navy swore it did not fire a single shot at the U-Boat and no one had given the order to open fire. To this day the reason for the explosion has never been resolved. It is a mystery why such a ship was should have been so hateful towards her crew as well as to those who were constructing her. U-Boats were never regarded as something to be admired by those on the receiving end of their fury, however, there are few mariners who would have turned away and dismissed the words of the seamen who sailed aboard U-Boat 65 with ease.
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