Military Cemetary near Kilchoman near Machi Bay.

On 6 Oct 1918 the HMS Otranto was involved in a collision with the HMS Kashmir and sank in Machir Bay on the west coast of Islay. I was climbing a nearby HuMP.

The Otranto was originally built as a passenger liner in 1909 but was requisitioned as an auxiliary cruiser and troop ship during the war. In October 1918 it was part of a convoy transporting US soldiers to Glasgow and Liverpool. On 6 Oct 1918 the Otranto was involved in a collision with the HMS Kashmir, another passenger liner converted to a troop ship during a heavy storm. The Otranto was badly damaged and once the engines stopped unable to navigate. With over 1000 soldiers on board it was drifting towards the cliffs of Machir Bay while SOS signals were given on order of Captain Davidson. They were picked up by the destroyer HMS Mounsey whose commander Lt Craven decided to go for a daring rescue: Due to the weather conditions the only possible option to save anyone was to go alongside the bigger ship and transfer the crew and soldiers to the destroyer. Through skillful handling the Mounsey managed to take off several hundred soldiers and crewman in several attempts while using the lifeboats of the Otranto as fenders. Still 431 people died in the disaster and only 16 managed to swim to the shore once the Otranto sank after the Mounsey had to leave for Belfast. 75 of the victims are buried in the cemetary at Kilchoman, of which 43 are unidentified. They include the cook and the captain, who has his own much larger gravestone.
Many thanks to Carl Satter who sent me a lot of information about the HMS Otranto from his research, the material has been very helpful to prepare this page.