Seaman John Forsdale said that when the torpedo hit, everyone was knocked off their feet and the deck erupted in flames. Three more torpedoes hit the Resor. The flames were spotted at the Shark River Life Boat Station twenty miles away and a picket boat dispatched to the site.
Two survivors were found, but the ship stayed afloat and burning 46 more hours because of trapped air.
The USS Sagamore towed the Resor thirty miles until it grounded east of Barnegot Lighthouse and a buoy placed over the wreck so other ships didn't hit it.
Later, the wreck was demolished and moved to deeper water.
It is reported that crowds gathered to watch the ship from the beaches at Asbury Park, New Jersey.
The Resor was the 24th ship and 15th tanker sunk during the U-boat campaign in early 1942 off the U.S. coast.
That Was Quite a Fire. --GreGen
The USS North Carolina (BB-55) My all-time favorite warship. As an elementary school student in North Carolina, I donated nickels and dimes to save this ship back in the early sixties.
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