Vestris left New York bound for the River Plate on 10 November 1928 with 325 passengers and crew.
On 11 November she ran into a severe storm that flooded her boat deck and swept away two of her lifeboats.
Part of her cargo and bunker coal shifted, causing the ship to list to starboard.
Through numerous leaks she took on water faster than her pumps could remove it.

On 12 November the ship's list worsened.
At 9:56 a.m. she sent an SOS message giving her position as latitude 37° 35' N. and longitude 71° 81'  [sic] W., which was incorrect by about 37 miles.
The SOS was repeated at 11:04 a.m..
Between 11 a.m. and noon, while the ship was off Norfolk, Virginia, the order was given to man lifeboats and the ship was abandoned.
Two hours later, at about 2 p.m., Vestris sank at lat.
37° 38' N, long.
70° 23' W. The rescue vessels arriving on the scene, late in the evening of 12 November and early in the morning of 13 November, were the steamships American Shipper, Myriam, and Berlin and battleship USS Wyoming.
Vestris left New York bound for the River Plate on 10 November 1928 with 325 passengers and crew. On 11 November she ran into a severe storm that flooded her boat deck and swept away two of her lifeboats. Part of her cargo and bunker coal shifted, causing the ship to list to starboard. Through numerous leaks she took on water faster than her pumps could remove it.
On 12 November the ship's list worsened. At 9:56 a.m. she sent an SOS message giving her position as latitude 37° 35' N. and longitude 71° 81'  [sic] W., which was incorrect by about 37 miles. The SOS was repeated at 11:04 a.m..
Between 11 a.m. and noon, while the ship was off Norfolk, Virginia, the order was given to man lifeboats and the ship was abandoned. Two hours later, at about 2 p.m., Vestris sank at lat. 37° 38' N, long. 70° 23' W. The rescue vessels arriving on the scene, late in the evening of 12 November and early in the morning of 13 November, were the steamships American Shipper, Myriam, and Berlin and battleship USS Wyoming.
SS Vestris