 The still neutral American heavy cruiser "Tuscaloosa" was also in the area, and silently observed the two ships.Rather than surrender the ship, her crew scuttled her, and she burned and sank.Her passengers and crew, 576 crewmembers, including boys, stevedores and nurses, were taken aboard "Tuscaloosa" as rescued seamen, not as prisoners of war as they would have been had the British picked them up.