At the end of the communication passage, there was a sound of messy footsteps, and Captain Bedic, the captain of the Provence damage management team, hurriedly put on a gas mask, grabbed the fire hose, and led a group of subordinates into the fire without hesitation.

The electric watertight door near the fire site was locked, the contact door of the communication passage was slammed shut, the water pump was opened, and the watertight chamber was filled with water.

The damage management soldiers holding the water hose slowly advanced towards the center of the fire, and after ten minutes, the fire was gradually suppressed, and if there was no accident, the damage management team could clear the fire source within ten minutes.

But what good is it if they put out the fire? Now the Provence is completely out of combat, and they can only say that they have avoided the sinking of the Provence, but the British offensive continues.

The exhausted captain finally rested for a moment and took off his sticky gas mask. The face blackened by the smoke had just been exposed, and then it was dyed with the color of firelight, and the middle-aged damage management captain took off his wet shirt, squeezed out a puddle of water stains, and leaned against the contact door to gasp for air.

At this moment, the unkempt lieutenant of the Provence, Colonel Horning, unscrewed the lock of the liaison door, and after a hasty and hasty military salute, a bad news came out to them.

"Captain, on behalf of all the officers and men of the Provence, I thank you, but I must tell you now that we have decided to abandon ship. The Provence was shot on the second deck on the port side of the amidships, and the sea water had entered in large quantities, and the hull had tilted dramatically, and now there was no way to do it, so you should prepare as soon as possible. ”

A British 15-inch armor-piercing projectile with an unstable fuse pierced the entire deck and exploded outside the armor wall connecting the first and second decks, causing the Provence to completely capsize!

"Commander, the current situation is not good." Darlan's adjutant cautiously glanced at Darlan, who was frowning, and suggested on a whim: "Should we ask the Germans for help now, let them send the air force to the rescue!" ”

After all, France's own air force is not as lucky as the navy. The French Air Force had already been heavily damaged by the Germans in the German engagement.

And the few fighters they had left were eventually taken by the Germans without leaving any of them.

In other words, Darlan's fleet wanted to be supported by fighters, which the Vichy government could not count on. The only thing they could turn to was the German government.

"Germans? Counting on Reinhardt? He wishes that we and Britain would fight to the death so that we can reap the benefits, how could he come to help us! Darlan shook his head and indifferently rejected the adjutant's suggestion.

It is true that Darlan hated the British, but he would not be close to Germany either.

Originally, if Churchill had really done what he said and forgave the suffering of the French Navy, then Darlan might have gradually leaned psychologically towards the British.

But now, the persecution and sneak attack of the British Royal Navy have completely wiped out the gratitude and goodwill that Darlan had just ignited for the British.

By the end of the battle, the port of Oran was already in flames and smoke.

The sunken tanker spread a large amount of fuel oil, causing the sea to burn, and the scene was horrific.

Even the flagship "Brittany" in the port of Oran, France, was accurately sunk by the British in a duel of artillery battles with British troops.

Although the number of battleships was not superior, Sir Forbes, the commander of the British fleet, concentrated almost all the cruiser and destroyer guns on this huge battleship, and the results were remarkable.

Of course, the French officers and soldiers under Darlan also performed very well.

Although the artillery skills were not as good as those of the British army, the "Brittany" was still firing back at the moment when it was sunk by a torpedo, showing its indomitable and tenaciousness!

The 1,130 French officers and men on board sank into the sea with the ship, but the French who fell into the water refused to accept the rescue of the British, and in the face of the helping hand of the British lifeboat, many resolutely replied: "I would rather drown than accept the rescue of the betrayer!" ”

After the sinking of the "Brittany", the British ships diverted their guns and continued to shoot at the rest of the French ships. The whole process of connection was as smooth as the clouds and rivers of their peers, and the high degree of tacit cooperation maintained by the officers and men of the British Empire relying on excellent training has been vividly demonstrated in this naval battle!

"Order the fleet to break out." Darlan watched his beloved warships sink one after another, and finally made this harrowing decision in the command room in the port of Oran.

"Let the badly damaged warship rush to the beach at full speed, and avoid being sunk by running aground."

Although Darlan was not a master of naval warfare, he was a well-known technologist in the French Navy. In terms of technical execution, Darlan's experience is no worse than that of Sir Forbes.

For example, now, he ordered the badly damaged battleship to abandon the breakthrough and choose to run aground.

On the one hand, this does allow the warships not to sink to the bottom of the sea, no matter how badly damaged. At the same time, they can also act as a never-silent fortress on the beach, maintaining artillery counterattacks.

On the one hand, in the port of Oran, there were also anti-aircraft artillery positions of the harbor roadbed air defense team, which could assist in the fight against the carrier-based aircraft of the British.

The large-caliber field guns transferred by Belante can also play a role in coastal support to a certain extent.

"Let the battleship Slatersburg open the way and highlight the harbor with a battleship that is not badly damaged." Darlang continued to command, "In any case, let them converge with the support fleet I have transferred as much as possible. ”

Looking at the harbor, which was already full of smoke, Darlang gritted his teeth and ordered: "Those who stay, fight back with all your might!" Even if the rest of us are wiped out, cover for as many ships as possible! ”

"These treacherous British, sooner or later I, Darlang, will seek revenge on them for today!" After giving a series of orders, Darlang swore viciously.

So, under the cover of thick smoke and the rest of the turrets, the surviving French ships, led by the Slatsburg, sailed through the already wrecked port of Oran and headed for the deep sea at full speed.

In the process of breaking through, the Slatsburg with 2 destroyers constantly bombarded the water with its main guns, blindly swept the sea mines, and cleared the roads.

The British fleet, on the other hand, abandoned the pursuit because Sir Forbes decided to take it as soon as it was good, fearing unnecessary losses caused by stepping on the mines laid by him.

After that, the "Slatsburg" soon sailed slowly into the port of Toulon under the escort of five destroyers who had arrived from the northern port of Algiers to support, and to the cheers of many French naval officers and men. The battleship that escaped from the port of Oran with it was only 2 slightly damaged destroyers.

However, the tragedy of Port Oran continued, and after disposing of Darlan's main battleship, the British began to sweep through the remaining small warships in the harbor - several light cruisers, some destroyers, and submarines.

Already weak, coupled with the fact that he had sent away 3 warships that were still powerful, Darlan was now unable to find a way to fight the British army.

More and more French officers and soldiers fell overboard, struggling on the surface of the sea. Diesel fuel floating on the sea accidentally choked into the lungs when many people breathed until they died.

In the port of Oran, it was like hell for a while!