Beasts of Steel: How SS Donau Became a Floating Death Machine

Beasts of Steel: How SS Donau Became a Floating Death Machine

Cold cargo ship turned instrument of mass deportation: a vessel with 42,000 cubic feet of refrigerated holds carried 532 Jewish prisoners from Oslo on 26 November 1942 - only nine survived. How did a workhorse of Pacific trade become a floating death machine, and what exactly happened in those holds on the crossing to Stettin?

In this episode, we tell the story of the SS Donau from her launch in 1929 to her role in wartime deportations, covering her construction, commercial service, requisition by the Kriegsmarine, and the November 1942 deportation from Pier One in Oslo - who were the officers named on the record, and why were so few spared?

Person: Untersturmführer Klaus Grossmann Person: Oberleutnant Manig Date: 26 November 1942 Location: Pier One, Oslo Event: Deportation of 532 Jewish prisoners to Stettin

- Laid down at Vulcan shipyard, Hamburg, yard number 214, launched 25 March 1929. - Gross tonnage: 9,026 gross tons; length: 521 feet; refrigerated capacity: 42,000 cubic feet. - Entered service for Norddeutscher Lloyd after sea trials completed 6 June 1929, running Bremen to Los Angeles/San Francisco/Vancouver. - Requisitioned by the Kriegsmarine 21 September 1939 and fitted with anti-aircraft guns and depth charges. - Five hundred and thirty-two prisoners boarded at Pier One; nine survived the war.

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