After the Confederate ship had managed to elude her pursuers, "Yantic" joined the North Atlantic Blockading Squadron off Wilmington, North Carolina. During the Union's first attempt to take Fort Fisher, N.C., on Christmas Eve 1864, the screw gunboat suffered her first casualties. At 15:00 that afternoon, during the bombardment phase of the action, the ship's 100-pounder rifled gun burst, mortally wounding the division officer, the gun captain, and four men. On his own initiative, Commander Harris — thinking his ship "badly shattered" and not knowing the extent of the damage — ordered his ship hauled out of line. After obtaining medical assistance from the steamer and reporting the assessed damage to the flagship , Harris took "Yantic" back into action, opening fire with his remaining effective guns, the 30-pounder rifle and a 9-inch Dahlgren gun.