[2] After falling behind a convoy during the Second World War of which she was a part, the ship ran aground on the Hammond's Knoll sandbank and began to break up during a gale.

She was badly holed and some of the holds were filling with debris and so, after ten days of being stuck fast, drastic measures were taken to save the ship.

The cargo contained a variety of export goods including farm tractors and other agricultural implements, umbrellas, pocket watches, whisky, Andrews Liver Salts, dresses and kitchenware.

[2] This eight included Captain Grimstone and his three deck officers, the mate John Elliot, William Hickson the gun layer, two other gunners and the ship steward.

Convoy EC90 was made up of 20 ocean-going freighters, two or three coastal steamers and two Royal Navy destroyers, one of which was the ageing HMS Vesper.

She was now a least a one-half mile (0.80 km) behind the bulk of the convoy and HMS Vesper was enquiring for the reasons for the poor speed of the ship.

The speculation from the more experienced crew members was that the English Trader's coal-fired boilers, which were forced draught fed, required the booster fans to be precisely set.

The captain was told by the commodore aboard the Vesper that if she could not regain her position in the convoy by nightfall she should make for harbour at one of the east coast ports.

By nightfall the English Trader was some five miles (8.0 km) from the convoy and at times laboured to achieve four knots (7.4 km/h; 4.6 mph), making her vulnerable to attack by enemy U-boats and aircraft.

[2] The gunner aboard English Trader opened up at the approaching aircraft, which released two bombs, which narrowly missed the ship.

HMS Vesper, which had broken off from the main convoy to help,[2] opened fire on the aircraft, possibly damaging it as it broke off its attack and was not seen again.

Between 1 am and 1.30 am on Sunday 26 October, she was struggling against a strong ebbing tide, which in turn forced her dangerously close to the sandbanks of Hammond Knoll.

She was crewed by twelve men including the triple RNLI Gold Medal holding coxswain Henry Blogg.

The five men were hauled back on to the lifeboat but the signalman, Edward "Boy Primo" W Allen after being in the water for 25 minutes fell unconscious and died a short time later.

After these attempts and with darkness setting in, Coxswain Charles Johnson and his crew also reluctantly returned to Great Yarmouth after receiving orders from the Royal Navy.