The steamship Luana was built in 1892 as the Majorca for the company HAPAG. It was sold in 1924 in Belgium, its new name was the Leopold De Wael and its home port was Antwerp. From 1931 its owner was Armament Alexander, S.A, who sold the ship in Italy, its new name was the Luana, owner Bartolomeo Loffredo, Naples. From 1936 the owner was Giovanni Longobardo, and in 1938 Raffaele Romano, both also from Naples.
In the post WWII period Luana returned to its regular job - coastal cargo transport. With a shipment of bauxite that it had loaded onboard the previous day in Manfredonia, it sailed on 3rd March 1947 towards Venice. At some 20 miles southeast of the Cape of Premantura, due to a navigational error it wandered into one of a number of still uncleared minefields and hit a mine. In the terrible explosion which almost tore off the bow, the Luana in just a few minutes disappeared from the surface. In the disaster 12 members of the crew were killed.
