This was the headline in an article in Lofotposten on 23 April. February 1945, in a newspaper where most of it was about the last phase of the war. Read the article in its entirety below:
According to what the police in Svolvær informs Lofotposten, a sad accident occurred at Svolvær harbor last night. One of the sailors on the steamship “Tromsø” was yesterday evening to row on board the ship that was anchored up in Marinepollen.
As he did not have a boat himself, he had borrowed a small dinghy, and in this he tried to row across the harbor and into the ship. However, due to the prevailing weather conditions, he was unable to do this, and drifted in and out of the bay.
From the ship, the man’s desperate struggle to get on board had been observed, and they had to watch as he drifted off without being able to do anything to help him.
The searchlight was put on and it was believed that the man would be able to get ashore on Multebærholmen just outside the harbour.
This had been settled, for there lived people who wanted to give the sailor shelter for the night until he could be picked up in the morning.
Tomorrow already in the gray dawn, crews from “Tromsø” were out searching the people on Multebærholmen, but they found no one here.
A search was immediately launched and the sailor was found frozen to death on a small islet located close to Multebærholmen.
Even though the islet is close to where people live, it has been useless for the sailor to shout for help as all sound has been drowned out by the roar of the wind.
The deceased, who is from Vangshavn in Senja, is named Laurits Hansen. He was born in 1896 and is survived by his wife.
Photo: Old Postcard | Source: Lofotposten 23. February 1945
