Collisions and torpedo damage broke up the night action

American cruiser fire disabled Sendai and jammed her rudder as the Japanese formation began to break up. Myoko's collision with Hatsukaze tore away the destroyer's bow, while several six-inch shells struck Haguro but few detonated. Japanese torpedoes missed the American cruisers, although the cruisers' own firing contributed to mistaken reports of hits. Spence and Thatcher collided but continued fighting. Foote lost her stern to a torpedo, killing nineteen men and wounding seventeen. Her disabled hull became another navigation hazard, and the intermingling of ships made even radar contacts difficult to identify.