A Fisherman Spotted A Sunken World War II Warship Off The Coast Of Brazil That Was Hit By A Torpedo Over Eighty Years Ago
The Brazilian Navy has confirmed the location of the sunken warship Vital de Oliveira. The vessel transported troops during World War II and was sunk by a Nazi submarine on July 19, 1944, more than 80 years ago. The Brazilian Navy used sonar imaging techniques to identify the warship’s remains.
The Vital de Oliveira is sitting at the bottom of the South Atlantic Ocean, about 40 miles off the coast of Rio De Janeiro. The shipwreck was first discovered in 2011, but its identity was not verified until recently.
Archaeologists boarded a research vessel on January 16 and used multibeam and side-scan sonar to investigate the site.
They were able to confirm that the wreck was the Vital de Oliveira. Funnily enough, the research vessel they were on was named Vital de Oliveira in honor of the shipwreck.
Both vessels were named after Frigate Captain Manoel Antônio Vital de Oliveira, a soldier who was killed in combat during the Paraguayan War in 1867.
“Shipwrecks and other submerged structures are material records of Brazil’s maritime history,” said Caio Cezar Pereira Demilio, a captain-lieutenant with the Brazilian Navy.
“These pieces of evidence allow us to understand commercial routes, naval strategies, technological advances, and episodes like military clashes and maritime disasters.”
In 2011, a fisherman off the coast of Brazil reported that his net got stuck on the seafloor. A pair of divers showed up to help the fisherman, and that’s when they discovered the wreck.
They called in a deep-sea diver to check it out. The net had gotten caught on a cannon. The group notified the Brazilian Navy of the find.
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The vessel was built in 1910 as a civilian ship and was originally named the Itaúba. After joining the Brazilian Navy’s fleet, it carried Allied troops and supplies along the Brazilian coast during World War II.
On July 19, 1944, the German submarine U-861 launched a torpedo at the ship just before midnight. It struck the stern and caused the vessel to sink. Around 100 of the 270 crew members onboard were killed.
The Vital de Oliveira was the only Brazilian Navy ship that was taken down by the enemy during the war. Two other Brazilian Navy ships did sink, but those incidents were due to accidents.
The Camaquā was overturned during a storm in 1944, while the Bahia detonated during training in 1945.
During the conflict, about 34 Brazilian merchant ships were sunk by German submarines. According to the Library of Congress, Brazil and Mexico were the only Latin American countries that sent troops to fight in World War II.
The Brazilian Expeditionary Force, also known as the “Smoking Snakes,” consisted of more than 25,000 men. Their efforts were crucial in scoring the Allied victory in the Battle of Monte Castello in 1944.
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