My Favorite Shipwreck

[Red Bess]

Tonight marks the 96th anniversary of the sinking of the RMS Titanic. Before my obsession with pirates, I was a Titanic trivia junkie. I don't remember as much as I used to (I could practically recite the passenger list) but it's still an area of interest for me. And I always mark the occasion of the sinking by watching the A & E documentary "Titanic: Death of a Dream".

Anyone else in the Pub have an interest in this historic event?

[Graydog]

Yes, fascinating subject. A tragic loss of life that in so many different ways did not need to happen. It seems like a perfect storm of bad decisions coming together.

On a lighter note, the Titanic is much like my checkbook it sinks on tax day.

-Greydog

[Coastie04]

I've always been fascinated with naval architecture, and the Titanic is a great study of it. Additionally, there were many maritime regulations still in effect that are a direct result of the sinking. The most notorious is, of course, having enough life boats/rafts for every person on board. This was part of the first SOLAS (Safety of Life at Sea) requirements, which also included continuously manned radio watches, other mandatory safety equipments, and certain emergency proceedures. These requirements have been updated (due to new technology and better practices being developed) and are still in use today. These practices have surely saved many more people than died on the Titanic, and a glaring example of this is the sinking of cruise ship Sea Diamond off Greece about a year ago after it ran aground. Only two people died, while about 1600 were rescued.

Coastie

[William Brand]

If the Tsunami Kate were real, she would be my favorite shipwreck, but this one is kind of cool...

[William Brand]

And for reasons I can't explain, I find this one unsettling...

[Coastie04]

The wreck of the Princess Sophia is a tragic one as well. All 350+ peoplw onboard perished (an exact number is not known since it was one of the last boat of the season out of Skagway for miners and such and it is likely that they overfilled the ship) after being stuck on the reef for nearly 40 hours. There were other vessels in the area that offered to evacuate the passengers, but the Captain refused their offers. Then the weather got worse, evacuation was impossible, and the ship pounded itself on the reef and finally sank during the night. Below is what was left of the ship during the recovery of the bodies.

Obviously, the mast sticking up on the right side of the photo is the Princess Sophia.

Since the ship sank on October 25, 1918, there was really very little news about the sinking, since about two weeks later, an armistice was signed in Europe ending the fighting in WWI.

Coastie

[lady snow]

probably filling the lifeboatrs to capacity wouyld have helped too, on the titanic. i'm sorry, but the wreck is one of ther things that keeps me away from cruises. have a fear - that if i can't see l;and, i wouldn't be able tro swim to it if something happened. i knoiw - irrational, but that's just me.

i lpove your wreck there william - it too funny!

[Merrydeath]

I love the stories of who lived and what they did after.

I thought it an interesting idea that if you go see the Titanic exhibit, you get to take a name from the passenger list but you dont know til the end if your person lived or died..

and one of my favorite shipwrecks, the Chicago Eastland. It had trouble from the start about listing to the side. It was over full and then just tipped over. 850 people died next to the docks.

[Coastie04]

At least something has been learned about operating vessels in ice. The Explorer sank last year in Antarctica without loss of life.

I'm only surprised that a "fist sized hole" caused by ice sank the boat. It didn't have a double hull, which could have saved the boat. Also, watertight bulkheads should have contained the flooding enough for the ship to limp or be towed back to port. But, at least there were no casualties.

Coastie

[Silkie McDonough]

Look here you all! I shal be sailing on the Christiana river come Thursday or Friday. I do not need you all talking bout sinkin vessels and the loss of lives for my first sail!

[Matusalem]

Silkie wrote

Look here you all! I shal be sailing on the Christiana river come Thursday or Friday. I do not need you all talking bout sinkin vessels and the loss of lives for my first sail!

Christiana river, heh...you have far less to worry about than capsizing in the middle atlantic from a rogue wave. ...which happened to a brother of a high school classmate of mine in 1984. He was aboard the bark Marques on an educational field trip. bark Marques

Tom LeBel, knew you for a short time ,may ye rest in peace.

But seriously, though...the Delaware bay ain't nothing like the Atlantic.

I hope I didn't scare you too much.

[Silkie McDonough]

Nah, I was being silly. Now, when I go for my voyage ...once I decide when that will be ...I shall avoid this thread and stick close to the box of Dramamine.

[Matusalem]

Nah, I was being silly. Now, when I go for my voyage ...once I decide when that will be ...I shall avoid this thread and stick close to the box of Dramamine.

Silkie, try those bracelets with the plastic nubs, they're supposed to reduce seasickness.

Sigh...I tried to find some info on my classmate's brother on the net, and I found this on the Providence Journal Archives Britain to probe Marques Sinking, R.I.Youth Died

This is the photo of the ship

I look back and remember my HS graduation and the memorial tribute during the graduation ceremony. it was very hard for my classmate & family, even 11 months after . I remember him (not the brother wo died in said accident) very well from the drama troupe (I was a stage hand and he had acted in several plays)

[Coastie04]

That was a sad sinking, but not one that was unpredictable. The stability of that ship, along with the hatch design, securing the gun ports/freeing ports (allowing water to flow off the deck) closed, not having watertight bulkheads, and adding to the rigging over the years made it a stability and flooding hazard. The boat was originally a schooner, and through the years the masts were lengthened, more square sails (along with the accompanying rigging, yards, etc) were added, and the ship became more top-heavy, thus less stable and more prone to higher degrees of heel. Add to the this the fact that the main hatch was of a cargo design that was originally meant to be kept battoned down throughout the course of an entire voyage. They were often partially opened on the Marques, even during fairly rough seas. Additionally, the gunports, which were used as freeing ports were secured to prevent damage from the doors swinging open on the lee side (which would allow the water to run off the deck). Although it's a tragic loss, both the ship and the lives lost, it was not unforseeable. Much like the Pride of Baltimore, it was known by many to be an 'unsafe' boat. According to Stan Hugil, a famous shantyman and Cape Horn sailor after refusing an invitation to sail on the Marques, "I wouldn't get aboard her even at the dock." Apparently, that comment was followed by a colorful opinion of the main hatch, the freeboard, the deck house, and the rig. Unfortunately, many sail trainees don't have the experience or knowledge required to recognize unsafe conditions. I know I didn't have a clue when I started sailing on the Adventuress or Lady Washington in my younger years. Although what I now know reinforces my faith in those two vessels, I definitely take a closer look at safety before sailing on an unknown boat. The classic 'it won't happen to me' is wrong when sailing, especially on traditional boats. They can be very dangerous, though at the same time, I encourage anyone who is able to sign on to a tall ship. It was a great life changing experience for me. The only word of caution I'd give is to always think about safety and 'what you would do if...', and learn as much about the safety systems onboard.

Coastie

[Hester]

The British Columbia provincial ferry The Queen of the North sank last year, apparently due to idiocy on the part of the crew:

The ship was left on autopilot, a crucial turn was missed because apparently no one was actually steering the thing, and it ploughed into an island at full speed.

There have been suggestions that the 2 crew members who were supposed to be on duty on the bridge at the time were actually boinking each other instead:

http://www.canada.com/cityguides/winnipeg/...32cbd7e4f&k=720

http://www.cbc.ca/canada/british-columbia/...6/bc-ferry.html

Two passengers were never accounted for and presumed drowned.

I've actually been a passenger on this ferry in the past! Yikes!

[Coastie04]

Here's an interesting link about notorious ship accidents going as far back as the 1588 sinking of the Spanish Armada by weather, navigation error, and Drake.

Below is a during and after picture of the Superferry 14, which burned with the loss of about 100 lives (though over 750 were saved) in 2004.

Coastie

[Coastie04]

Also, anyone remember this one a few years back? It almost broke my heart seeing these pictures. The worst picture I can't seem to find anymore, but it had waves breaking over the whole boat and I figured she'd be a total loss. Luckily, she's back sailing again.

Coastie