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Helligvaer
Kaia

18/02/2001

A friend of mine and I are working with the story of HMS India and the German U22. And only a few weeks ago we came in touch with three others in UK and Canada who are trying to put the pieces in the jigsaw together.

So you have definitely come to the right man regarding the tragedy. I live on the island nearest to the position where HMS India was sunk!!! The name of the island-group is Helligvaer. It’s located 30km from the mainland, and the nearest city Bodö. 48 of the survivors from HMS India landed on this island in two lifeboats Sunday evening on August 8th 1915. It was a beautiful warm summer-day, and the ocean was like a mirror. How do I know that? Well, my wife’s grandmother is still alive, and she remember the tragedy as it was yesterday because she was an eye-witness to what happened right after she heard the explosion.  I recently had a longer talk with her about this.

My friend has been working with the history of U22 and HMS India longer than I have. He has visited British, German and Norwegian archives in his research. He has for instance got a copy from the German archive of the map that U22 used for this operation; and the position of where HMS India was when she was hit is written on the map!!

Maybe I should present myself a little bit more: I’m 45 years old and I’m teacher at the local school on this island. We are about 110 inhabitants out here now, but there were a lot more in 1915. My wife is born here, but I come from Fredrikstad, southeast of Oslo, where 12 men from HMS India are buried. Strange coincidence by way. I’ve been living here since 1981. I have great interest in the local history, and so has my friend that work together with me with the history of HMS India. My friend lives in the city Bodö on the mainland, and I’m going to meet him tomorrow regarding our work with HMS India and U22. I have also another great interest: I’m an amateur-radio operator and I communicate by radio all over the World. You may see more of that at my WEB-site: http://home.online.no/~sindtorp

My complete postal address from anywhere in the World is only:

Sindre Torp
NO-8095 Helligvär
Norway

My friend’s name and address is

Knut Störe
Prof. Schyttes gate 13
NO-8005 Bodö
Norway

Knut has been working with HMS India and the German U22 for several years now, and he has collected a lot of material from archives in England, Germany and Norway. He has been a combat pilot in the Royal Norwegian Air Force, and after that he was the leader/manager at the Norwegian Air Force Museum in Bodö until he recently retired.

Knut was here 3 weeks ago, and we have had a fantastic exciting day together on Wednesday January 31st. Let me tell you: We located and photographed quite a lot of mahogany wood pieces from HMS India, some quite big. We have taken pictures of the oar from one of the lifeboats from HMS India. Knut has earlier taken some pictures of a chair from HMS India that is located here. And finally a local fisherman took us out to the exact position that is written in the logbook and on the map from U22 where HMS was sunk. None of us had ever been out there. It was a clear beautiful winter day and almost no wind. The position logged by U22 was: 67 degrees 29 minutes North, and 13 degrees 31 minutes East. The distance from Helligvaer is about 16-18 kilometres. We took several pictures.

I’ve attached two pictures from Helligvär that give you an impression on how the island and the nature is around here.

Believe me, it gave me a strange feeling with respect to have been at the position where U22 sunk HMS India in 1915.

I have also been at the graveyard in Fredrikstad last summer where there are twelve monuments over the men from HMS India. Three has name on them, and the rest are for unknown casualties. It is so beautiful there, and all the graves are very well taken care of with flowers on each. I’m very happy to see and to tell you now that the whole graveyard and each war grave are so well taken care of. I thought that you might like to now this. 

Well, we have a lot to communicate about. It would be great to hear from you soon again. I’m leaving tomorrow at 18:00, and I’m back home again on Wednesday. It would be perfect to hear from you before I go to the mainland tomorrow evening, since I’m then going to meet my friend Knut and talk about HMS India!!

You may have the name and e-mail addresses to the others in UK and Canada that I’m in contact with about HMS India. I have received several pictures from the camp in Joerstadmoen near Lillehammer. Let me know if these persons are of interest for you.

I’m planning to make a WEB-site myself about both the U22 and HMS India. They are of equal historical interest from my point of view.

Sindre Torp