Canadian Virtual War Memorial
Joseph Hazel
In memory of:
Assistant Steward Joseph Hazel
December 7, 1942
North Atlantic
Military Service
20
Merchant Navy
Canadian Merchant Navy
S.S. Ceramic (Southampton, England) (135474)
Additional Information
January 1, 1922
Halifax, Nova Scotia
On 26 November 1942, the Ceramic sailed with convoy ON-149 from Liverpool, England, to Sydney, Australia, via Durban, South Africa. On 2 December, the ships were dispersed due to a submarine attack. Sailing alone, the Ceramic was hit by a torpedo at the stroke of midnight on 7 December 1942, in very rough seas, launched from U-515 and sank rapidly, position 40°30'N/40°20'W. Help arrived on the 9th and only one survivor was rescued by HMS Enterprise (D42). A total of 656 people lost their lives, including 264 crew members, 14 gunners, 244 soldiers, naval passengers, including nurses from Queen Alexandra's Imperial Military Nursing Service, and 133 paying passengers.
Commemorated on Page 154 of the Merchant Navy Book of Remembrance. Request a copy of this page. Download high resolution copy of this page.
Burial Information
HALIFAX MEMORIAL
Nova Scotia, Canada
Panel 21.
The HALIFAX MEMORIAL in Nova Scotia's capital, erected in Point Pleasant Park, is one of the few tangible reminders of the men who died at sea. Twenty-four ships were lost by the Royal Canadian Navy in the Second World War and nearly 2,000 members of the RCN lost their lives. This Memorial was erected by the Commonwealth War Graves Commission and was unveiled in November 1967 with naval ceremony by H.P. MacKeen, Lieutenant-Governor of Nova Scotia, in the presence of R. Teillet, then Minister of Veterans Affairs. The monument is a great granite Cross of Sacrifice over 12 metres high, clearly visible to all ships approaching Halifax. The cross is mounted on a large podium bearing 23 bronze panels upon which are inscribed the names of over 3,000 Canadian men and women who were buried at sea. The dedicatory inscription, in French and English, reads as follows:
1918-1945
IN THE HONOUR OF
THE MEN AND WOMEN
OF THE NAVY
ARMY AND MERCHANT NAVY
OF CANADA
WHOSE NAMES
ARE INSCRIBED HERE
THEIR GRAVES ARE UNKNOWN
BUT THEIR MEMORY
SHALL ENDURE.
On June 19, 2003, the Government of Canada designated September 3rd of each year as a day to acknowledge the contribution of Merchant Navy Veterans.
Digital Collection
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