LIVING HISTORY
15
In his 1992 article, Lyons asserts that a third torpedo missed
the Republic and exploded on the reef, shaking him out of
bed. That was repeated by Josh Liller, historian at Loxahatchee
River Historical Society at Jupiter Lighthouse. “Pretty
much everyone of any age who lived between Stuart and
Jupiter at the time recalls being shaken out of bed from the attack,
the cause being attributed not to the ship exploding but
because a torpedo missed the ship and exploded against the
offshore reef, causing a small earthquake.”
But Poske’s log does not reflect that another torpedo was
fired. In fact, U-boats rarely spent three of the precious shells
on a ship, often relying on deck guns to open holes at the
waterline if two torpedoes didn’t sink the target.
CAUTIOUS COMMANDER
Poske was in fact rather restrained compared to other Uboat
commanders. He’d arrived near Jupiter Inlet on Feb. 19
but didn’t fire on a ship until he sighted the Republic two days
later. “I intend to spend the entire day submerged to observe
traffic and in so doing run to the south about the level of
Jupiter because there is deep water close under the coast and
traffic is forced into a narrow strip,” he wrote on Feb. 21. He
was clearly nervous about aircraft finding his U-boat in the
shallow water, as he described the conditions, water clarity,
phosphorescence, and shoreline extensively as he watched
potential targets sail past.
Other U-boat commanders were far more daring: Harro >>
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ED CARAM COLLECTION/NOAA
While the crew of U-576 appears in good spirits, wartime voyages lasting
120 days or more were not unusual.
UBOATARCHIVE.NET
Long-range German U-boats could stay at sea for months, seeking out
places like Jupiter Inlet to attack and paralyze coastal shipping.
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