The Wreck of DKM Bismarck − A Marine Forensics Analysis 1 The ...

The Wreck of DKM Bismarck − A Marine Forensics Analysis
This depiction of the subdivision numbering scheme on Bismarck will help in visualizing and locating
the damage described in this paper.
ANOTHER DAMAGING HIT AMIDSHIPS ON THE PORT SIDE
Prince of Wales achieved another important hit, abeam of the forward superstructure. A
356-mm shell with an underwater trajectory penetrated the port side hull plating below the
termination of the armor belt and passed into the side protection system. The shell exploded near
the main transverse bulkhead between Compartments XIII and XIV, detonating with great force
against the 45-mm torpedo bulkhead outboard of Electrical Power Station No. 4. This detonation
also affected the watertight boundaries between that space and the adjacent port No. 2 Boiler
Room, as well as the inboard auxiliary boiler room inboard in Compartment XIV. Shell splinters
also passed into double bottom tanks and wing fuel bunkers in Compartment XIV, causing the
eventual flooding of those tanks and contaminating the feed water in the double bottom of
Compartment XIV. The damaged wing tank in Compartment XIV also began leaking oil into the
sea, as salt water gradually replaced those tanks’ contents. It is believed that the shell and
structural fragments did not reach the double bottom below Boiler Room No. 2.
British observers on the Prince of Wales saw a burst of black smoke come from the
Bismarck’s funnel at this time. Some German survivors recalled a slight shock response from
this hit.
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