History

The outbreak of World War II brought new problems to the shipping industry.

TORM lost 13 ships during the war. Among them were the “Tekla”, sunk in the North Sea with nine crewmembers aboard, and the “Gunhild”, sunk during the British air attack on Bremen.

By the end of the war in 1945, TORM had lost eight of the fleet’s long distance ships and half of the home fleet’s 10 ships. Tragically, the loss was not only material – 41 employees died, including seven employees who sailed with other allied ships.

Nevertheless, TORM made a relatively quick recovery. By 1947, line traffic from the USA to Europe, South America and the Middle East was opened. Later that year, the “Herdis” was announced the winner of a cross-Atlantic race from Basra, Iraq to New York carrying a cargo of dates. The company established a relief fund in 1948.

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