1942. Afrerwards, sh e was dispatch ed out of the convoy by the British Admiraltyand proceeded independently to New York, but was sunk en route with all h ands. N els Helgesen was 54 years old and h ad been a mas ter for twe n ty-fi ve years. In 1989 Captain Helgesen was inducted into the National Maritime H all of Fam e at Kings Point, New Yo rk. Captain Ernes t Lundstrom , born in Sweden in 1901 , served with the AGWI subsidiary C uba Mail Line (W ard Line) for his entire career, including service as mas ter of the famous Oriente (s ister ship of the ill-fated Mo rro Castle). Because Captain Helgesen preferred the Coamo, Captain Lundstro m was then assigned to the Borinquen . Captain Lundstro m commanded the ship as a US Arm y troop shi p for the entire war and in all theaters, taking part in the African landin g and D -Day No rmandy landings. H e never
took a day off durin g the entire war. SS Borinquen returned to passenger service in 1947, and Captain Lundstro m continued to command the ship unti l she was sold in 1949. Consequently, he was appointed the Marine Superintendent for the C uba Mail Line until the co mpany and AGWI went out of business in 1955 . Finally, h e returned to sea for a number of co mpanies as a m as ter of chartered cargo ships carrying military cargoes, tramping throughout the wo rld . When he fin ally retired, he had been in command for twen ty-fi ve years. After World War II, the Porto Rico Line resumed servi ce, but the only prewar ship to be returned from military duty was the Borinquen. They purchased new ships, wartime-built C- l s and C-2s. The company and its asse ts we re sold for good in M arch 1949, an early ending for these extraordinary ships and a renowned American-flag steamship co mpany. J,
Captain H enry H elgesen went to sea in 1943 as a US Merchant M arine Academy cadet midshipman and received his commission in the Coast Gua rd in 1956 H e is a veteran of three wars-World war 11 and the Korean and Vietnam wars-retiring in 1982. H is father, Cap tain Nels H elgesen, served as master of a number of Porto Rico Line ships. H e was captain aboard SS Coam o when she was lost with all hands in 1942.
(a bove right and below) To celebrate National M aritime Day, 22 May 1940, crewmembers from ships in port in San Juan participated in a series of boat races, with the Coamo crew emerging victorious. Ships sending race crews were: Coamo, Marjory, American Press, and the Kofres i. The boat crews from Coamo and their friendly comp etitors from the other vessels posed fo r this photo on the deck of SS Coamo, where Captain H elgesen hosted a luncheon for all participants after the races. Captain Nels H elgesen is in the suit and tie, third from the left; 2nd Officer f ames D illing is holding onto the life ring, center; immediately to his right is Chief Officer Otto Berggren. A lso manning the oars were: E. Greenlaw, Chief Engineer, HD. Blazer, Chief Purser; Manual Vitte; and Ed D e Voe. 1
]ames D illing became the Chief Officer and on the next trip and was killed, along with Captain H elgesen, when SS Coamo was struck by a torpedo fired from the German submarine U-604. The ship sank with all hands, 2 December 1942.
(l-r) Captain McGuire USCG, the Officer in Charge, Marine Inspection (OCMI) N ew York; Captain Ernest Lundstrom; Captain H enry H elgesen (author), then the 2nd mate of SS Borinquen.
SEA HISTORY 130, SPRING 2 0 I 0
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