Posted on 11/10/2016 8:38:43 PM PST by LukeL
41 years ago today the Edmund Fitzgerald sank in Lake Superior with all 29 hands on board in one of the most violent storms in Great Lakes history.
I saw an article with commentary from captains from other Great Lakes ships. They described the disaster as an act of criminal negligence. One captain deliberately followed a slower, longer route close to the Canadian side of the lake instead of directly across the lake because he accurately predicted the wind patterns. He knew that sailing a route that left his ship exposed to long open stretches of water to the north and northwest could be disastrous.
The Wreck of the Edmund Fitzgerald. Few songs paint such a vivid picture in the mind and take you there emotionally. Haunting, indeed.
1. The deck hatches over the cargo hold of the ship were not properly secured, or may have been damaged in the storm.
2. As a result, the ship began taking on water almost from the time they left port.
3. The water itself probably wouldn't have caused a catastrophe, but it began to act as a "lubricant" on the taconite pellets in the cargo hold.
4. As the wind got stronger and the waves got bigger, the cargo began to shift in the hold. This was probably what caused the list in the ship when the captain made his last radio transmission.
5. One particularly large wave came upon the ship from the north/northwest (the wind direction), lifting the stern up as it approached from the rear.
6. The combination of the rising stern of the ship and the "lubricated" taconite pellets caused a sudden forward shift in the cargo, instantly pitching the bow down beneath the surface. The weight of the cargo drove the ship straight down to the bottom of the lake like a crashing airplane.
There's some question about whether the ship broke in half from its impact on the floor of the lake, or if the rear half separated in that brief moment after the wave had passed underneath it and the stern was elevated in the air without any support underneath it.
Everytime that song is on the radio I stop to listen and think of those lost that day. I find it to be a haunting song, it’s a eulogy to those men. Being from Wisconsin probably makes me care more than some might. Maybe they play it on radio here more than other states.
That date also happens to be my grandfather’s birthday, and the date that a hurricane low tore down a building on my farm about 15 years ago. The low pressure system that plagued us for over 24 hours caused sustained winds near 60mph or more.
We are used to gust fronts and tornadoes that cause quick damage. The >>> it is a great song and anyone that has been a captain on the ocean in boat or ship knows that the ocean and the wind are to be feared first and respected.
The day before she went down I was hitch-hiking from the Upper Peninsula south to Detroit. The two days before had been beautiful, sunny, and unseasonably warm. I was backpacking and camped in a tent near a small lake Friday and Saturday. Sunday morning the clouds moved in and it started to blow and spit rain. I caught a ride and crossed the Mackinaw Bridge about 1400 and it was swaying a little. Two hours later the bridge was closed because it was swaying A LOT. As I traveled south the rains came. I arrived in Detroit about 2000 and called my Dad from a pay phone to come and get me. By then it was storming pretty good. The next morning came the news that the Edmond Fitzgerald was missing. Everyone know the rest.
May God have mercy on the souls of the poor sailors who lost their lives that day.
I think it’s a great song too and tells the terrible story of their demise in hauntingly great detail. It grabs me every time I hear it.
I’ve had a great respect for the power of the wind since I was ten years old and our entire farm was leveled by a tornado. I pay attention to the weather, especially tornadoes and possible gust fronts. You never forget when you come up from your basement and the whole farm (save the house) is flattened and the animals are dead or injured.
How deep is the lake where the EF is located?
I think it’s just over 500 feet deep there.
E.F. wasn’t the first Great Lakes ore boat to break in two in a storm. Those ships were designed solely to pass through locks and seaworthiness was secondary to cargo capacity. That a rogue wave did her in was a shock to everyone.
The lakes are not deep
Short frequency steep seas when stirred up
Very bad for narrow beam low center of gravity ship
I myself sailed some monsters in open ocean 100s of miles from shore in unsteady overloaded craft
I had it on my Walkman....old days
I found it inspiring
That and hells bells
I worked on ore boats on the lakes for about five years.
And yes the Lakers are called ore boats not ships.
The Fitz’s was fully loaded with iron ore pellets. It is very possible she sank in just a few seconds. There certainly was no time to launch the lifeboats or life rafts. The ore boats do not have water tight compartments to speak of.
There are other theories as well, although your is slightly more likely than the other two. Over the years I have chatted with Coast Guard officers who are knowledgeable about the sinking.
1. The ship caught a wave on the bow and a wave on the stern
and the bottom fell out.
2. The Coast Guard resounded the depths of water near the sinking. There is the possibility that the Fitz’s bottom actually scraped lake bottom.
3. My own personal belief is no matter what theory is correct, the Fitz was cut in half and lengthened; her hull
was not as strong after that.
I was at a presentation of a guy who dove the wreck and he agrees with your analysis. The hatches weren’t fully dogged down.
I have a copy of this haunting painting of the Fitz in the final moments hanging in my living room.
http://www.jclary.com/edmundfitzgerald.html
Lake Superior has a maximum depth of 1,300+ feet. That seems pretty deep for an inland body of water, doesn’t it?
Good post. The possibilities are intriguing.
Thanks. That’s a great painting.
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