On Brookwood 1939-1945 Memorial is the name of 2015010 Sapper Herbert Cullum serving with 1010 Docks Operating Company who died 17/06/1943.
The son of Alice Ann Gill, of Ferryhill, Co. Durham.
Born on 26th April 1917, Herbert was the son of Robert Heron and Alice Ann Cullum who married later that summer. Robert returned to duty with the Royal Garrison Artillery just days after the wedding and was killed on 8th August 1917 at Passchendaele.
Alice and Hebert, at the time of Robert’s death, were living at 2 Dennison Terrace, Ferryhill Station with her parents. She later remarried, becoming Mrs Gill.
Herbie, who had been working as a tiler, enlisted with the Royal Engineers as Sapper 2015010 on 16th May 1940. He had been based in Tripoli for the North African Campaign from 13th October 1942 as part of 1010 Docks Operating Company, but with the surrender of the Axis forces they were to be transferred to the Mediterranean to operate dock facilities for the Sicilian Campaign.
On 16th June 1943 they boarded the SS Yuma, a former British passenger liner, now part of Convoy GTX2 in Tripoli, leaving the port carrying 134 officers and 994 British soldiers, including 994 Dock Operating Company and 1010 Dock Operating Company, and 22 officers and 643 ratings of the Free French Naval Forces. The British troops were going to Alexandria to be kitted out and were then to operate port facilities for the Sicilian campaign.
The next morning the convoy was northwest of the port of Derna, Libya, and many of the men were below decks having breakfast when the German submarine U-81 commanded by Oberleutnant zur See Johann-Otto Krieg fired two torpedoes which hit the Yoma, one in her engine room and the other in her number 4 hold, sinking her within five minutes.
484 people were killed: Captain Patterson, 29 crew members and 454 military personnel. Because of the danger from enemy submarines Convoy GTX 2 continued on its way, but a rescue operation was undertaken by two Royal Australian Navy corvettes, two Royal Navy minesweepers and a British-registered merchant ship, Fort Maurepas. Between them the five vessels rescued 130 crew members and 1,342 military personnel.
Herbert Cullum was one of the men lost.
Herbert Cullum is remembered at Ferryhill on F38.07 and on our List of Ships’ Crews.
