The Partridge participated in TF 128 which was a vital part of the Mulberry operation. When the ship was sunk it was towing a whale unit as part of this Task Force as indicated in action report. I found an good article outlining the mission and preparations of this operation here. It’s written by Hartle Howe, CMDR, USNR and it gives a good overview as well as some details that I wasn’t aware of including the fact that the whale units were called Loebnitz devices.
Read the full article here. (Link)