The Sinking of the SS Edmund Fitzgerald 48 Years Ago — the Unsolved Mystery

SS Edmund Fitzgerald, an American Great Lakes ore carrier, sank 48 years ago today, on November 10, 1975, in a storm on Lake Superior. The crew of 29 was lost when the freighter, loaded with 26,000 tons of iron ore pellets, … Continue reading

The Sinking of the SS Edmund Fitzgerald, an Unsolved Mystery

SS Edmund Fitzgerald, an American Great Lakes ore carrier, sank 47 years ago today, on November 10, 1975, in a storm on Lake Superior. The crew of 29 was lost when the freighter, loaded with 26,000 tons of iron ore pellets, … Continue reading

NTSB Determines Inaccurate Stability Calculations Caused Capsizing of Golden Ray

The final report issued yesterday by the National Transportation Safety Board Office (NTSB) summarizes what happened on Sept. 8, 2019, when the roll-on/roll-off vehicle carrier Golden Ray capsized as it transited outbound through St. Simons Sound near Brunswick, Georgia. ​​Less … Continue reading

LA Times: Coast Guard Rejected Calls for Stricter Safety Rules Prior to Deadly Dive Boat Fire

The dive boat Conception was a death trap.  It was a wooden vessel with a single narrow and steep stairway from the lower berthing deck and a small emergency exit hatch. When a fire broke out on September 2, 34 … Continue reading

Voyage Data Recorder from El Faro Recovered from 15,000′

A National Transportation Safety Board (NTSB) press release announced today that the voyage data recorder (VDR) from El Faro, the US flagged cargo ship that sank during Hurricane Joaquin in October 2015 with the loss of all 33 aboard, was successfully recovered … Continue reading

Tug Caribbean Sea Never Responded to Duck Boat in Fatal Collision

On July 7th, we posted about a collision between a barge towed by the tug Caribbean Sea and a disabled “Duck boat” DUKW 34 at anchor in the Delaware River off Philadelphia.  Two of the 35 passengers on the duck … Continue reading