30 Years Since Edmund Fitgerald

It was November of '75 when the SS Edmund Fitzgerald went down without a
word, taking 29 sailors to the bottom of Lake Superior. To those of us who
grew up on the Great Lakes, it was a terrible thing (even for those of us
who had nothing to do with the maritime industry), and the sinking launched
one of the largest air/sea rescue searches in history.

I was 17 at the time, and the horror of the loss even managed to penetrate
my teenage angst and self-centered existence at the time. It was horrendous
November weather (not unlike what we've just been through here), with
extraordinary winds and horrible, crashing waves -- and we were in Racine,
at the southern end of Lake Michigan! Those poor guys were on Lake Superior,
a much more treacherous body of water.

To those who have ever witnessed a winter storm on the Great Lakes, it's a
humbling sight from shore -- I can't imagine what it must be like at sea.
And to those flyers who launched into that weather, searching in vain for
that missing ship, you can only tip your hat to their courage.
--
Jay Honeck
Iowa City, IA
Pathfinder N56993
www.AlexisParkInn.com
"Your Aviation Destination"

"Jay Honeck" wrote in message
news:3mlff.548575$x96.78928@attbi_s72...

It was November of '75 when the SS Edmund Fitzgerald went down without a
word, taking 29 sailors to the bottom of Lake Superior.

And inspired one of the greatest "make me late for work songs" ever.
Whenever Gordon Lightfoot's "The Wreck of the Edmund Fitzgerald" comes on
the radio I have to listen to it all, even if it causes me to be late for
work.

I'll think of that the next time I hear of a mid-air. I'll think,
Steven must have been late for work.

Jay Honeck wrote:

To those who have ever witnessed a winter storm on the Great Lakes, it's a
humbling sight from shore -- I can't imagine what it must be like at sea.

Being only 11 at the time of this accident, I was unaware of the details or
of the mood immediately following the sinking of the Edmund Fitzgerald.
One day about five years ago, while listening to the Gordon Lightfoot song,
I realized that I wanted to know more so I performed some web research of
this sinking.

There are many excellent web sites dedicated to the ship, her people, and
the details surrounding the sinking. Particularly fascinating to me was
the weather that caused the accident. At least one website has the
prognostic charts of the storm during its various stages.

During the last couple of weeks I have been watching in fascination as at
least two deep low pressure systems moved across the Great Lake region in
roughly the same track as the storm of that fateful night.

And to those flyers who launched into that weather, searching in vain for
that missing ship, you can only tip your hat to their courage.

Amen to that.

--
Peter
























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Thanks for the post Jay. I hadn't thought about the anniversary until
I read your post. When I did, memories came flooding back. I was
living in Duluth, MN at the time. I often saw the Edmund Fitzgerald in
port - including seeing her at the docks in Superior the day before she
sank She was an impressive ship that you couldn't help but notice.
The wind coming across Lake Superior flunnled into the town that night
making it way too nasty a night to go out. So, my wife and I were home
when the TV started reporting that the ship was missing and possibly
lost. We stayed up late into the night, caught up in the drama of the
event. It was a night that I remember every time I hear the song.

Didn't they only recently discovered what acutally caused her to go
down? It guess they think that she had a couple hatches not secured and
gained water but that wouldn't have sunk her along. The documentry I
recently saw seemed to think it was bad luck of catching a wave on her
bow and stern at the same time while the middle of the ship was in a
"gully". In otherwords, the middle of the ship was out of water while
the front and back were lifted by giant waves. As a result, she snapped
in two from port to starboard right in the middle. Certainly the
increased weight in the middle due to the flooding hatches contributed
to the snap.

-Robert

I saw the same show and it made me believe that's what happened. That was
the closest plausible explanation that they could come up with as to why the
ship lays in two pieces, broken in the middle. I think that was also the
show that ended with a memorial to the crew and their families then they
ended all diving on the wreckage in their memory.

Jim

"Robert M. Gary" wrote in message
oups.com...
Didn't they only recently discovered what acutally caused her to go
down? It guess they think that she had a couple hatches not secured and
gained water but that wouldn't have sunk her along. The documentry I
recently saw seemed to think it was bad luck of catching a wave on her
bow and stern at the same time while the middle of the ship was in a
"gully". In otherwords, the middle of the ship was out of water while
the front and back were lifted by giant waves. As a result, she snapped
in two from port to starboard right in the middle. Certainly the
increased weight in the middle due to the flooding hatches contributed
to the snap.

-Robert

"Robert M. Gary" wrote in message
oups.com...
Didn't they only recently discovered what acutally caused her to go
down? It guess they think that she had a couple hatches not secured and
gained water but that wouldn't have sunk her along. The documentry I
recently saw seemed to think it was bad luck of catching a wave on her
bow and stern at the same time while the middle of the ship was in a
"gully". In otherwords, the middle of the ship was out of water while
the front and back were lifted by giant waves. As a result, she snapped
in two from port to starboard right in the middle. Certainly the
increased weight in the middle due to the flooding hatches contributed
to the snap.

-Robert

They know she filled by the bow and ended up diving to the bottom. The
weight of the water in the bow (not amidships) and green water over the bow
combined to send her on a dive to the bottom. She hit bottom bow down with
enough speed on that she broke in half. She is only in 300 some feet of
water, the trip to the bottom took only seconds. What caused her to fill is
unknown. Two theories are lost hatches and hull failure. Both theories
have problems. Hitting a shoal has been disproved. Had she broken up on
the surface at least part would have stayed afloat for awhile, in actuality
it was all over in seconds.

Wasn't there another situation recently just outside Whitefish Bay?

by "Robert M. Gary" rmg1@[EMAIL PROTECTED] Nov 18, 2005 at 09:22 AM


Didn't they only recently discovered what acutally caused her to go
down? It guess they think that she had a couple hatches not secured and
gained water but that wouldn't have sunk her along. The documentry I
recently saw seemed to think it was bad luck of catching a wave on her
bow and stern at the same time while the middle of the ship was in a
"gully". In otherwords, the middle of the ship was out of water while
the front and back were lifted by giant waves. As a result, she snapped
in two from port to starboard right in the middle. Certainly the
increased weight in the middle due to the flooding hatches contributed
to the snap.

-Robert

There was an excellent documentary on the tradgedy. I watched it on PBS a
few years back. As I recall, the lead theory is that the ship was caught
between two megawaves, which elevated the bow and stern, leaving the
center unsupported. She cracked in two and rapidly submerged, thus
explaining the lack of a mayday. Unsecured hatches may have contributed
to the flooding. But, it is still a mystery.

The sea, like the sky, can be very fickle: friendly and forgiving at one
moment, and then a wicked beast the next. Difficult to decide what was
more frightening: being in the right seat of the Cessna when it got hazy
over Long Island with my VFR friend or suddenly in the soup with 8-10 foot
waves breaking over the bow while trying to find the inlet to Block Island
Harbor -- with radar gone to s___t with all the turbulence and bilge pumps
automatically clicking on and off. GPS came to my rescue both times.

"Skylune" wrote in message
lkaboutaviation.com...
by "Robert M. Gary" rmg1@[EMAIL PROTECTED] Nov 18, 2005 at 09:22 AM


Didn't they only recently discovered what acutally caused her to go
down? It guess they think that she had a couple hatches not secured and
gained water but that wouldn't have sunk her along. The documentry I
recently saw seemed to think it was bad luck of catching a wave on her
bow and stern at the same time while the middle of the ship was in a
"gully". In otherwords, the middle of the ship was out of water while
the front and back were lifted by giant waves. As a result, she snapped
in two from port to starboard right in the middle. Certainly the
increased weight in the middle due to the flooding hatches contributed
to the snap.

-Robert

There was an excellent documentary on the tradgedy. I watched it on PBS a
few years back. As I recall, the lead theory is that the ship was caught
between two megawaves, which elevated the bow and stern, leaving the
center unsupported. She cracked in two and rapidly submerged, thus
explaining the lack of a mayday. Unsecured hatches may have contributed
to the flooding. But, it is still a mystery.

The sea, like the sky, can be very fickle: friendly and forgiving at one
moment, and then a wicked beast the next. Difficult to decide what was
more frightening: being in the right seat of the Cessna when it got hazy
over Long Island with my VFR friend or suddenly in the soup with 8-10 foot
waves breaking over the bow while trying to find the inlet to Block Island
Harbor -- with radar gone to s___t with all the turbulence and bilge pumps
automatically clicking on and off. GPS came to my rescue both times.

8 to 10 feet? Hardeharhar. A mere ripple upon which to play my friend.