Question

The SS James B. Stephens was an American liberty ship in World War II. In 1943, the ship was traveling in Suez when it was torpedoed by the German submarine U-160 about 150 miles northeast of Durban.
One torpedo struck, igniting the fuel oil in storage, and the ship began to sink by the front end. A second torpedo struck and broke the ship in two. Both sections remained afloat, but the ship was on fire. The crew began to abandon ship. The explosion of the second torpedo overturned the motor lifeboat. The other lifeboats were able to pick up all of the men in the water except for one man who was not wearing a life jacket and could not swim. He drowned before he could be rescued.
An Allied warship sank the back section of the James B. Stephens with gunfire. A British warship attempted to take the front section in tow to Durban, but it sank while under tow in heavy seas. Of a total crew of 63, 62 were rescued. A crewman, Edward F. Racine, was awarded the Distinguished Service Medal for righting the overturned motor lifeboat.
9
Essays and news stories are often organized by cause and effect. According to this passage, what caused the crew to abandon the ship?
A.
sinking
B.
weather
C.
torpedoes
D.
gunfire

Answer 1

C. torpedoes

The passage says torpedoes struck (one igniting fuel and causing sinking, a second breaking the ship and setting it on fire), and then "the crew began to abandon ship," so the torpedo attacks caused the abandonment.