On November 7th, the armada split into several groups preparatory to striking the objective the following morning. It was only then that Captain Duvall informed his men, speaking over the “PA” system, that the moment was at hand when the Mighty Mac was to take part in the Invasion of North Africa.
On November 8th, the two cans, Hambleton and Macomb, were designated as part of the screen for the carrier Sangamon, scheduled to launch planes for the assault. The duties were performed as ordered, and then on the evening of November 11th, they were relieved by two more destroyers in the squadron, the Corry and Hobson, and were directed to proceed to Fedala Bay for fueling assignment. Arriving late in spite of top speed all the way, the ships were ordered to anchor in the vicinity and dropped their respective hooks astern of the tanker Winooski, there fueling ship for the next morning.
As the crew settled down for the night after almost five days of modified general quarters and condition watches, the silence was suddenly split by three heavy explosions. By the light of the fires which immediately lighted the skies and the debris-laden sea, the men could make out three ships which had been hit, dead amidships. They were the destroyer Hambleton, the transport Hughes, and the tanker Winooski, two of the three anchored within spitting distance of the Macomb. The transport sank the next day, suffering heavy casualties. The destroyer had been split almost in two, the explosion blowing parts of the after fireroom through the sides and the diesel shack above. Every man sleeping in the shack had been a casualty. The tanker fared much better than the others, with not a man killed, missing, or even seriously wounded.
The Mac immediately got underway in pursuit of the killer, and managed to gain a sound contact, which was followed by a depth charge attack, without visible results. This patrol continued through the night of November 11. The following day the Macomb returned to Fedala Bay for fuel from the wounded tanker Winooski, and had barely cleared her side that evening, when four explosions gave evidence that the subs were at it again. Heavy toll was taken that night of the transports and supply ships which were unloading men and equipment. The Mac prepared to go to their assistance, but was ordered to take a convoy out of this “torpedo junction” to the safe harbor of Casablanca. And when, on October 15, the convoy entered that port, we drew a breath of relief, and thanked whatever gods we knew to have been so lucky in the midst of our first big show.
