Lootsitoa jutud - Herman Sergo

Even before I could get up from the cabin floor, it was clear to me that it was a mine. It couldn't be anything else. When I recently went to Karlshamn to have the ship demagnetized, the only question was whether it was a regular one with horns...
Horned or not, of course, I made one up. The next moment I was on the bridge, where the helmsman was trying in vain to turn the ship on a straight course. But the steering gear was no longer listening. The ship began to list to port. A roar of steam rose from the boiler and engine room hatches. All the lights went out. The ship's whistle had cracked open and was blaring. The ship, which had received its death blow, cried out for help, long and incessantly.
I ordered the mate of the watch to open the cargo holds and determine the damage. After a few minutes, they reported that the leak was in the third and fourth holds. I went to look myself, and by the light of a flashlight I could see how water was pouring in through many gaps in the ship's planking. Apparently, the bottom of the ship had suffered even more damage, because it was bubbling and boiling right next to the tunnel, which was rapidly sinking under water.
No one could get to the engine room pumps because of the steam spewing from the boilers. It was also a good thing that the mechanics made it out alive. Sealing such a leak with plasters was out of the question.