The shocking case of the SS Ourang Medan

October being the season of hob-goblins, Spooks, Ghouls and nose-goblins, I will attempt to post one truly bizarre and almost unbelievable tale per week, until Halloween.

We will start with,

the shocking case of the SS Ourang Medan

In June of 1947 multiple ships traversing the straits of Malacca, which is located between Sumatra and Malaysia, claimed to have picked up a series of SOS distress signals. The unknown ship’s message was simple, and somewhat disturbing:

 •—  •—••  •—••    — — — ••—•  ••—• •• — •—• •• —• • •—• •••  —•—•  •—•• ••—

 ••—••  •—••    ••—•  ••—• •• —•—• •• —• • •—• •••  —•—•  •—•• ••—
 •—  •—••  •—••    — — —  ••—•  ••—• •• —•—• •• —• • •—• •••  —•—•  •—•• ••—




••
I
—••    ••    •
  D      I     E

“All officers including captain are dead, lying in chartroom and bridge. Possibly whole crew dead.”  This communication was followed by a burst of indecipherable Morse code, then a final, grim message: “I die.” 

The distress call was picked up by two American ships as well as British and Dutch listening posts. The U.S. ship, the Silver Star was closest to the location of the Ourang Medan, and was dispatched.

As the Silver Star caught sight of the Ourang Medan in the waters of the Malacca Strait, the crew noticed that there was no sign of life on the deck, because they were all dead,  Jim.

 Every last stinking one of them, including a dog, dead with their arms outstretched, (not the dog, they don't have arms) and a look of terror on their faces. Oh, they all died with their eyes open, even the dog.

The dead were scattered around  the bridge, wheelhouse and chartroom, with the rest of the crew below deck, in the boiler room. Why the crew decided to all huddle in the boiler room we will never know.

At this point, the Captain of the Silver Star decided to recall the boarding party and tow the ship back to port for investigation and salvage.

No sooner had they attached a tow-line, someone noticed smoke coming from number 4 cargo hold. The Captain said, "That's that." and ordered the tow-line cut.

Good thing too. Almost as soon as the tow-line was cut, the ship exploded with such force it was blown out of the water and sunk within seconds. If they had not cut the tow-line the doomed ship would have pulled the Silver Star down with it.

Details about the Ourang Medan (Which is Sumatran for Man from Medan, the largest port city in Sumatra) are sketchy but it seems likely they were smuggling potassium cyanide and nitroglycerine  for the Japanese to kill a bunch of Chinese.

But what ever they were up to, they took that, and other answers to a watery grave.