he means of transport were three ships: Goya, Steuben, and Wilhelm Gustloff; all of which were sunk by Russian torpedoes. If one is to consider the background to WWII, one might realize why many have disregarded the 20,000 lives that were lost. Since the victims (largely civilian Germans) were perceived as the enemy during WWII, it was probably easier for society to neglect the loss. In retrospect, the death toll is a disturbing statistic and one that easily surpasses that of the Titanic, an event in history that is the subject of far more reports and documents.