Join Steven Mrozek, historian and former curator for the Dossin Great Lakes Museum, as he describes the final voyage and sinking of the SS Edmund Fitzgerald 45 years ago.
If it hadn't been for Gordon Lightfoot's great ballad, I would probably never have become familiar with the story of the Fitz. As great songwriters do_ Gordon immortalized the story and as with balladeers of old passed the knowledge of this tragedy down through the ages. We all owe him a great debt of gratitude for that. He was already a legendary artist in his own right and used his status to the benefit of us all. Yes_ I have been a fan of his since I was ten. I'm soon to 48.
Gordon Meridith Lightfoot is the finest singer/songwriter of all time, and we are all blessed with his presence upon this earth. And yes, he turned all the profits over to the families of those guys who lost their lives on the Big Fitz. Now that is what you'd call a really good man with a pure golden heart.
1, he's by far "the best song writer of all time" he's not k own outside of the US and 2, no he did not give all the mo ey from this song to the families, he made a one off donation. Stop spreading misinformation /lies.
"We are holding our own", always sounded to me like a Captain keeping a stiff upper lip. That he even admitted that he had damage and a list tells me how alarmed he really was. Captains aren't supposed to show emotion, especially with crew members present. I don't think he thought they were going to sink, but he was deeply concerned. As many people point out, the theory is that that series of waves that slammed into the Anderson is what took the Fitz out, and the crew didn't have any idea of the impending disaster until it struck. I have always hoped that the swiftness of the sinking, and the temperature of the water saved them from suffering. RIP to them all.
Yes, I agree w/you on the interpretation of the “we’re holding our own” comment by Captain McSorely. It always struck me as a man who didn’t want to admit they were in serious jeopardy but KNEW they were…he may have thought there wasn’t any point in alarming everyone about something that couldn’t be changed: they were on their own & there would be nobody to come to their aid in that wicked storm….& McSorley KNEW IT.
I agree, and as I read in another comment is that the Captain should have admitted defeat and should have run the ship aground on the Canadian side. And it probably would have kept them alive.
Incredible and informative. This video was very helpful; to teach all things Edmund Fitzgerald! I thought it was very knowledgeable. I consider myself a minor, very minor expert on the EF. As we are often told as young children, I learned several different things that were new to me! The hanging life jacket. Never heard of that. Also, about the windows blown out and why no bodies have ever been found in the wheelhouse! I enjoyed this video very much so. Thank you for sharing! I am obsessed with the Edmund Fitzgerald❣️ I’ve had this obsession for well over 42 years now!
This is a nice presentation, but this guy speaks with a lot of certainty about aspects of the sinking that are still up for debate. There are multiple theories about what happened to the ship.
Occham's razor: the waves going over the ship slowly filled its hold with water, causing it to eventually lose its buoyancy and it got dragged under very quickly at that point. Because the ship was so elongated the tension in the thin middle was too much and it broke apart as it sank.
It bottomed out, it was sailing at summer levels, 3 feet lower than winter settings, because of its design it only had 3 holds, therefore missing 2 bulkheads that most 5 hold ships had. It had welded joints where most ships were riveted. There's a reason why they won't let people dive on the Fitz, and that's liability.
There will always be debate how she went down. From. I live in superior, everyone has their own opinion. But their bodies are still in the cabins and in that ship we all know. Either way we’ll never forget💔
THANK YOU! I think it's selfish of the families to be like, "I lost my loved one and I don't care if there might be information from that accident that might save others. You can't have it because my loved one was killed." Like literally, that's what you're saying by denying EVERYONE access to the site. NTSB should have been on this immediately and subsequently as we developed new technology. SWIS
@@1USACitizen192 : I personally have nothing good to say about insurance companies.. at all.. Greedy Cheapskates who probably browbeat the familys . This ship broke alot of Records. it hauled lota Tons of taconite n' set a number of Records. When you're dealing with something like that and a severe Storm hits Lake Superior as it did that day in November it was just too much. I believe like one of the captains of the Arthur Andersen stated.. I believe he said "it took a nosedive". IMO wave configuration and wind. They were unable to even get out a message ! whatever happened it probably threw everyone about so violently they couldn't even use the radio in that final moment. 16 years of service. that's a hell of a lot of weight continually transversing The Lakes going through a lot of bad storms n' rough water n' Very high winds will wear out the best built ships. Obviously the crew was taken by surprise based on no radio call. Mother Nature can be pretty tough.
Who is going to retrieve an entire shipwreck from 300m deep? Who's going to pay for that? Besides, it's obvious how it sank. It's hold doors on the deck could not keep out water properly. Because large waves spilled right over the deck, water kept entering the hold and accumulated, causing the ship to get heavier and its deck got lower and lower, meaning even more waves could spill over the deck and leak into the hold. Eventually, so much water had filled the ship that it lost its buoyancy and got pulled underwater. For some reason the captain did not realize how low the ship was getting, probably because of the poor visibility in the storm. So when the buoyancy was finally overcome, the ship was already do low that the bridge pretty much instantly went underwater, so no time for the crew to evacuate.
Anderson is still going. Cooper saved his crew and ship. Then with his crews support, he went to look for survivors. The Anderson needs to be a museum. If Cooper was the Captain of the Fitz it would be on the lake today.
Looking at this cut away section i am amazed by the amount of metal being used to create the fitz...the only thing my architectural eye does not like is the low middle area and the tall tall wheel house an the high tall house at the rear those are two opposing forces wobbling against each other just under their own size an dimensions i would have changed that an brought the front an rear hull designs high further ti the center to aid in twist reistence...it has too much leverage with out these crazy weather trying to blow it about...
Think of this also, the Fitz didn’t have the subdivisions in the cargo hold the way the Anderson did only deployable screen curtains every so often down the length of the hold which probably also led to higher flexing and thereby more stress on the keel
See the ‘94 expedition. They did find a body just outside of the ship, in a life jacket. A couple of the survivor’s families prevented them from publishing it. Rick Mixter was on the expedition and lectures around MI on the Fitzgerald and other vessels.
@@carloschristanio4709 no there’s a former lake Captain in another video who is actually the nephew of the assistant engineer who went down with the Fitz and who has contacts with several of the guys who have done the expeditions and they told him from the estimates of the man’s height they researched it and are pretty certain he was one of the two helmsmen of the boat
I think i had to 20 years old before i realized this song that i loved an was so moved by....the man was singing a real story....u can hear it in the song it wasnt just music it told a complete story....but i did realized till i had got older
Be careful what you say, especially ALWAYS, FIRST and NEVER. The Fitzgerald was not the first modular ship built with prefabricated sections at 7:00 ever heard of a Liberty Ship? Guess not, but they were modular and built with prefab sections for WW2 in the 1940's
The bell removal was a bond between brothers if u watched the video...a younger brother went to war an the older brother went to the fitz an to honor honor the bell was brought by the younger brother which i think is a great show of respect...go watch it for urself it was very nice....
This was a great peace of info....not familiar with commercial shipping i learned a lot...thanks. all i knew is the song an its sound quite true...the weather was crazy as it has been on the great lakes from what i hear so...the weather is a force beyond comprehension...unmeasurable...we can match the force of its 2 factors wind an water....respect it we shall if we dont we live at risk...which sometimes is a way of life....
The two or three huge waves that hit the Anderson from the NNW would have came upon the Fitz's stern at about the time the Fitz disappeared according to Captain Bernie Cooper of the Anderson.
Water would violently implode through all the windows nearly simultaneously in my opinion. Maybe stronger through the forward facing windows due to the forward momentum of the boat. This leads me to speculate that any crew members in the wheelhouse would have been washed down the stairway to lower decks. Purely theory and speculation though.
Mustang, yes it probably happened as you suggest. However, the moment that bow went under the surface all 29 men were finished. Nothing could have saved those mariners that night, nothing.
@@davidpallin772 absolutely terrifying thought to consider what it was like when those windows violently imploded. There had to be a least a couple seconds before they imploded when they realized they were going down as the water came up the windows. Some scary shit.
There’s another video where a gentleman claims that the pressure change would’ve been so fast and violent that anyone on the bridge would’ve imploded as well I don’t see how possible that could’ve been particularly since a crewman was discovered just off the bow in the mid 90s, though the fact that no other bodies have been spotted, as far as I know the lower deck down from the pilot house is accessible, may be a testament to that theory
Everybody mentions the Gordon Lghtfoot song, but there is another work of art memorializing the Edmund Fitzgerald tragedy: “Ten November,” a play by Steven Dietz. If it is produced for the 50th anniversary, it is worth seeing.
An overloaded covered barge with wire separation instead of watertight compartments between cargo holds. At least the titanic had partial watertight compartments. Gave Titanic enough time to send distress calls before it flooded and sank. Sister ship of Fitzgerald was scrapped.
Was it the families or a push by officials to the families to leave well enough alone? To this day there may be liabilities - thus why no more shipwrecks since 1975 ? To assume, no bodies were ever recovered and believed to be entombed in the Fitz. Can you imagine being the family knowing this? God Bless Captain McSorely and the crew that were lost on that fateful evening. Gordon Lightfoot had a celtic melody but no words- after the wreck, he actually recorded this song in the dark out of respect for the Crewmen and their families. Great detailed video , thank you.
@@isabellecoutu6073 they did for the Andrea Gail in the movie The Perfect Storm I think the reason they didn’t with the Fitz is because no one can truly agree on what sank her
My wife's grandfather was a Merchant Marine on the lakes before WWII. He was also a seasoned sailor of the lakes growing up there working on ships and also for Chris Craft Boat Company in Michigan. Later he was a ships Master of " Any tonnage" till his retirement in the early 80's. I asked him about the Fitz and what may have caused it. He answered , " I strongly believe the Fitz bottomed out at Six Fathom Shoals, either straining welds of the steel plates or tearing them. That would be enough to cause the railing to come down " Hogging " the ship. Then she " Nose dived" to the bottom from a few rogue waves............." He added the " Big Fitz" was huge and was more than likely "overloaded " being her last run of the year causing the boat to ride lower in the water, the faulty hatch cover crap he said was just that. He added Capt. McSorley was a seasoned sailor and a respected Master on the lakes. He added that McSorley could have made a run for Whitefish Bay and could have made it , but because he was " driving blind" no radar he had so slow the boat so the Anderson could give him his heading. But could have the Fitz made Whitefish Bay, maybe its plausible if it hadn't lost its radar.......
I don’t see how she couldn’t have even if only briefly touched bottom amidships in the vicinity of Caribou Island, and the smoking gun evidence of it touching bottom disintegrated when the center section did as the boat sank
One of the things that was a important foot note is the iron ore on board the fitz was being delivered to the auto manufacturers enuf for 7500 cars...in 1975...i had a bunch of 1970 72 73 barracudas an challengers 5 total that probably all had metal in them carried on the fitz...good chance...
There’s a video where a gentleman in I believe Toledo has deckhand Bruce Hudson who went down with the Fitzgeralds 1973 or 1974 Dodge Challenger and has kept in mint condition as a tribute to him
Im a michgander all my life and im 40. Was told this story at a young age . Was always taught to respect michigans water. And seeing the gales of november is a dream of mine but it always happens during gun season. So i miss it one day ill go hunt up there and see the gales at the same time.
I went swimming in a lake in north jersey quite cool water an i was required by the camp counser to wear sneakers to not cut my feet on rocks an other stuff i immediatly realized how my legs now would not float i think the water was a beautifull 72 degrees us my converse sneaks my legs would not float u have said an other the near freezing water 35 degrees prevent us from floating...i never knew that....that the cold effected our boyancy.....thanks i know my sneakers had a major effect on that...i never realized we were so close to the line of not floating till that day in the 1970s
I have read where they have in fact discovered a crewman laying on the bottom by the wreck. I wish I knew which was true if they haven't found bodies or if they have
@@sjd7188 that's the exact same thing I heard. Then this documentary says there is no bodys. I know it's a gory subject but I wish they could get their facts in order
@@sjd7188 Yes, as matter of fact, they did find a body by the Big Fitz, however, if you had lost a relative on that ship, how would you feel about this? Would you not really want to know, after all, it will only open up even further hurt and pain to it all.
No footage of the discovery of the body has ever been released to the public. One guy owns the footage, and he’s never let it out. So very few folks have even seen the footage. I can say I agree with the gentleman’s decision.
With all the advances in LiDAR technology you would think there could be a non invasive expedition mounted to perform detailed scans of the wreck site without so much as having to get in the water
A vessel of that length and whose primary function was to pull up alongside and stay stationary while loading from the gravity fed chutes at the docks requires multiple anchoring points to stay steady and stationary
i went down the rabbit hole on Edmund Fitzgerald. An early dive was reported to have found a body near the wreck, with a lifejacket on.... so that is obviously weird.... (even if the flotation device would not float the unfortunate soul, he would be resting far from the debris field.... I saw a very short clip of what may have been a lost Mariner, and in that presentation, that was the clip, that led the Families of the crew, to shut down the area.... throw in a Michigander, looking for action, and a Cannuck with a mini-sub.... we have all the fixins for a soap opera......
Some corrections. The area at Six-Fathom shoal was surveyed and it was DEEPER than the charts indicated 36 ft vs 23 ft. and the location has been discounted as inaccurate. Mc Sorley never mentioned WHICH SIDE he was listing. No mention of the center placed drain possible contribution as it could not get the water out from the listing. And then the summation to " had to break under the water.." is pure conjecture. Likely the faulty covers, due for a refit after this voyage - and not being fully clamped due to complacency was more that a major factor. completely unmentioned, possibly due to sensitivites to the families. Crew of airplanes take blame when they screw upbut not ships? The anchor not from he wreck but an earlier loss is interesting and not noted elsewhere. So far the most factual vid I've watched is the Bay County Historical Society. One body was discovered (but not recovered is a question?Aand the Gordon Lightfoot song is not a factual reference for this shipwreck..) Crew possibly were blown back into the stairwell and down into the ship, instead of "I heard a theory they got blown out of the back windows ..." as for redundency - both radar units were lost. My theory is one of the two huge waves the A Andersen reported came up from behind and lifted the stern up and she nosedived into the bottom.
I don't think the presenter is as well researched as many Great Lakes maritime historians are. I don't doubt he is a historian, but I don't think maritime is specialty. Thanks for the hatch cover information. I recently learned the last inspection report said the hatch covers didn't fit tight, but I hadn't heard why. A poorly done refit makes sense. I also hear that boats leaving port in a hurry often didn't fasten down all hatch clamps at that time. So, if the crew didn't fasten them all it was accepted procedure. It the procedure was at fault, no the Fitz's crew. Yes, one body was located, and even filmed from a distance. It was not recovered. I haven't found any confirmation of other bodies being found near the wreck site, there are unconfirmed reports from about the time Canada shutdown access to the Fitz. From my research into the wreck, there were multiple factors that likely lead to the sinking. The one that come to mind are: Fitz was a favor of the ship watchers but she was poorly maintained. One or more of several things was wrong with the hatch covers so they were leaking. The 2 large waves reported by the Anderson were probably part of the 'three sisters' rogue wave phenomenon. It was a nasty storm even without rogue waves, and because the waves in these lakes are closer than one the ocean, that means major strain on a boat's structure. Lastly, it's a big freaking dangerous inland sea... if you're caught away from shore when a serious storm blows in there is no where to run, no safe harbor to get to in a hurry. Of the 8 boats the Coast Guard asked to help look for the Fitz, only 2 were willing to go back out into that storm. Both captains admitted in later interviews, if they had seen a survivor they wouldn't have been able to stop without risking their own vessels.
The drawings are not 'scale size' so to speak. The Fitz hitting bottom would have 200' ft. Of the stern out of water, that picture makes it look like it would've been fully under
Wow. At the time I viewed this video there were 301 thumbs up on this video. The same as Edmund Fitzgerald's hall number during construction. So I didn't give it a thumbs up out of respect.
They manevoured as best as they could hoping to get a break from the terrible weather that pursued them across tje lake only to have it intensify instead an of the time it went down the storm was at its most detructive phase...hoping for a clearing that didnt come the direction of the storm changed once an it wasnt to tjeir favor
Why did the captain of the SS Edmund Fitzgerald proceed his journey if bad weather on the way....half way? Could of used a harbour on the right stay at harbour til weather passed and leave the harbour after in the clear?
It might be fair to say the severity of the storm was unexpected and unprecedented. And, it wasn’t forecast. I don’t remember the weather part of the coast guard report but I’m going to go back and read it.
I deal with a lot of business people an they like to squeeze a contrating firm.....when a price is set for a deal to build or do a job wealthy folks like to try an set their own price say im gonna paint ur boat for 100000 grand a wealthy business man in shrewd fashion will say i can give u 80....an they wouldnt relent...so doing the job dont go beyond what u would do for ur normal price...large corporate an company owners like to flaunt their power by squeezing ur price....it happens a lot an they ll just go down the street till they find someone dumb enuf to say yes...to their price...so what happens they mite normally saycwr should really do this because i reccomend making this more durable an take some extra time to ensure a higher quality product and it will benefit u in the long run....seldom is that the case...its not cutting corners...but its just sticking to a price quote an big business does that all the time they squeeze a smaller outfit...its common prctice its not alway good but as my dad says its life....at the time the fitz was built technology of steel ships was still pretty new nothing like the technology we have today....with all types of metal alloys an unbelieveble welding tech....metal is my favorite....im not a big fan of wood....i really prefer to work with metal...seeing inside the fitz this cut away is very cool...im basically a hi po car collector/modifyer
Its still im sure because of the icy cold waters even knowing that its still hard to believe that crew was not found but it is what it is ....a frase i cant stand but is....thanks i kind agree with the man about the bell but i think it looks good that they polished it an gave it a spruce up....anyway
U know it just dawned on me how dangerous a job sailing a freighter thru this weather is u said with that extreme cold 35 degrees if u go over board you are going to the bottom...thats very hard to swallow if ur in a ship...ur not gonna float as u mite think...making this job all the more dangerous...
The scale of that diagram isn’t very good. The ship rests in 530 ft of water and was 729 feet long. It could have hit the bottom with the stern still sticking out of the water. That’s the scale!
Good point. The guys on the EF have taken those routes hundreds of times though. Even beyond that, I blame Mcsorley for the entire disaster. There was absolutely no reason, beyond money, for him to push the ship that hard, but he always did. They have no problem taking the credit for their "record" years, they have to accept responsibility for the fails also. IMHO, he was totally careless and failed his crew.
@@nonparticipant4671 Not necessarily. If Captain McSorley didn't take the job when the needed a ship's master, then they would have found another Captain to command the Big Fitz. The weather has a lot to do with this tragic disaster and whomever was in command would still have problems as the Big Fitz was suppose to be properly serviced, however she wasn't and there was reports that there were problems with weakenin steel and bending of that ship that caused a possible breakup on the surface, from then on she was a gonner especially while fighting those two volatile air masses decending on Lake Superior that night, going into the morning of the Big Fitz's demise.
dknowels60, actually it was indeed the reason that the EF sank. You need to watch the documentary the Storm that Sank the Edmond Fitzgerald here on CZcams. It goes into great length as the why that particular storm was so unusual that they compared it the the one in 1913. Granted the ship in my opinion would have sunk at some point due to construction issues and misuse/abuse through the years. However, that specific storm was epic. Stay safe.
The body that was photograghed was at the request of familys denied any exposure an brought fourth the no more diving law from detroit an in cooperation with canada that no more dives would be allowed giving it a requested burial designation....i think thats a fair call..to say...we know they are there...may they be in peace...
Something's not right here. Every person I've talked to who is a maritime Great Lakes historian, Lakes history enthusiast, or actually has worked or volunteered on the Lake vessels uses the term 'boat' when referring to a freshwater vessel. This even applies to the longest freighter. The only exception I've heard is 'lightship', and that's just for the term, the vessels are still boats. There is also the term 'ship watcher'. So.. the presenter insisting on using the term 'ship' to refer to the Fitz seems out of place. He doesn't seem to be well researched about the Fitz either.
I don’t agree with the Fitz hitting the shoals. There is no evidence to prove this and even with the stern sitting upside down it doesn’t show any type of scrap marks or damage. You cannot assume the bottom of the bow section (Which is under mud) has any scrap marks because then it would be speculation. The only pure evidence of what happened is the Fitzgerald was hit with a wave that she could not recover from. The Anderson was hit with the same wave damaging her as well. With the Fitzgerald taking on water and listing a wave that was big and powerful enough to damage the Anderson would have definitely sunk the Fitzgerald. It happened so fast that the crew most likely they were underwater until a few seconds later. After that wave hit the Fitzgerald never recovered.
Hull paint was, in fact, discovered all over the lake bottom by Coast Guard divers.... Moreover, all subsequent underwater investigation is prohibited 🚫 One truly would have to ask oneself why???
Sorry, however, there is a new documentary called something like Edmond Fitzgerald investigation, new information. The CZcamsr interviews the nephew of one of the victims, who's dad served in the EF. He was himself an employee of many ships. In fact I believe he was President of of a local Union for many years. That was one of the top two documentaries concerning the EF and only rivals Captain Cooper and perhaps the Coast Guard Captain the subsequently found the Fitz. I only wish the interview had been longer, anyways he addressed the topic you were inquiring about. Stay safe.
I agree.....Billions in new upgrades would become law so they wanted captain error as cause "Hitting the shoal"..With waves atop deck,listing and a sinking dip that the next wave pushed them on down... McSorley was no newbie...
Ironically the coast guard boats were really not suitable for these 20 foot seas they can barely do what they are supposed to the only safe boats arethe big freighter like the fitz and the anderson that could take giant waves because ofctheir size...the coast guard boat was 24hours away the other coast boat was being repaired an oil line had broke the helicopter was not really able to work becsuse of the violence of the storm....
And the biggest boat that the USCG had in the area the USCGC Mackinaw was laid up in dry dock, imagine that the biggest Coast Guard Cutter in the Great Lakes squadron was already laid up in dry dock for refit in the most violent weather month on the Lakes, when mariners in distress would need her the most, to me that’s just sheer incompetence
I dont think u said it here but he didnt want his name on it...but during a board meeting he got up an went tocthe bathroom an the board supposedly voted to name it the edmund fitz while he was out of the room....i could understand him not because it was leased out for 25 years tje latter meeting decision...who knows its sound like yeh moving on what else is on the agenda for todays meeting....
@@packingten Yes, one body was found by the bow of the ship itself with a life preserver on it. Canada put a bar on any or all exploration on the ship as the bow section is in Canadian waters and the Canadians feel that this is now a grave site, best to be left alone, to in which, I agree with the Canadians and the Canadian government, very, very much. And, if that body were to be brought up, it would do no good as once it gets out of the water and oxygen hits that body, it would designate and fall apart immediately. Leave it alone. Let these guys rest in peace, they died under brutal conditions and circumstances, however, they died doing what they loved doing, sailing on the Great Lakes, doing their jobs working on one of these ships, a job I wanted to do when I got out of school back in 1975, however never got the job.
I seen the Fitz on Wisc side when I was 11 in 1974. I remember walking home from school the 9th of Nov in 1975 it was just pouring rain in MPLS. Family friend George called and asked if I wanted to go to Duluth, Of course I said yes. We got up there at about 2am on the 10th. Stayed at the Harbor Holiday inn , the harbor side was all closed off due to the wind pushing lake Ice through a number of windows on that side. 8 am looked out the windowand could only see the roof of the 1970 Chrysler Newport 383 mag... all the snow was around the cars...thats what wind will do to 3 or 4 inches of snow
He told a good story,,but him being military accurate,,& for sure,,,when he is just guessing like us. ,, I have theories too!! Lmfao doesn't mean it's for sertain!!
They found a body in 95 when they sent down that Russian sub that went on the titanic wreck,,there's actual video the guy who ran the sub his kid found it when they let him have a turn in the sub!! Lmfao,,that actually happened. I don't care what this guy says
I must’ve missed hearing him say something to the contrary, I know Ric Mixter whose a expert scuba diver and Great Lakes historian who was on that ‘94 expedition said that actually it was the tug boat captain whose ship they used on the expedition told them he would cut them a deal on his fees if he and his son could go down in the sub to see the wreck and that’s when his boy spotted the body a little ways off the bow section
To me it’s plain as day how it broke. The rogue waves hit from behind sent the bow into the bottom. Then the break was where the ship was leaking. The rest guy wave broke it on into and the stern was still a little buoyant that’s what flipped it on over. Simple.
The captain said he had a fence rail down and had a list, obviously they hit some debris on the surface. More plausible then hitting a shoal, especially given there was no hull strike evidence on the hull.
Dont discount the 200 feet of the middle of the ship that was missing . Why did 200 feet of ship come apart like that. 20 foot waves going over the shoal like they did I dont know how they could have avoided slapping the bottom. They were listing after the shoals which meant there was more water entering the ship than they could expel. The captain knew it was a race to Whitefish bay and he may have madeitc had he not been pounded by the 3 sisters 35 feet high. The Anderson lost a beacan from its stack and it was sitting quite a bit higher thamn the fuitz. Being 729 feet long that means the bow was planted into the lake floor while the stern was still on top the water. I think the mid 200 feet blew apart when the bow hit the bottom at 35 mph. The stern could have rolled several times before it landed upside down and screws were still turning no doubt. The weight of the 35 foot wave was too much for a lower boat listing and the 15000 tons of taconite forced that bow half down pushing the air right out of the bow quarters. Most of the crew were in the stern and I bet it would be impossible to send out a distress call with the stern rolling.
If it hadn't been for Gordon Lightfoot's great ballad, I would probably never have become familiar with the story of the Fitz. As great songwriters do_ Gordon immortalized the story and as with balladeers of old passed the knowledge of this tragedy down through the ages. We all owe him a great debt of gratitude for that. He was already a legendary artist in his own right and used his status to the benefit of us all. Yes_ I have been a fan of his since I was ten. I'm soon to 48.
I believe Gordon Lightfoot helped the family's with monies from the song or Ballard
Gordon Meridith Lightfoot is the finest singer/songwriter of all time, and we are all blessed with his presence upon this earth. And yes, he turned all the profits over to the families of those guys who lost their lives on the Big Fitz. Now that is what you'd call a really good man with a pure golden heart.
It made me pull over to listen .and I cried. And still do.sorry.
1, he's by far "the best song writer of all time" he's not k own outside of the US and 2, no he did not give all the mo ey from this song to the families, he made a one off donation.
Stop spreading misinformation
/lies.
"We are holding our own", always sounded to me like a Captain keeping a stiff upper lip. That he even admitted that he had damage and a list tells me how alarmed he really was. Captains aren't supposed to show emotion, especially with crew members present. I don't think he thought they were going to sink, but he was deeply concerned. As many people point out, the theory is that that series of waves that slammed into the Anderson is what took the Fitz out, and the crew didn't have any idea of the impending disaster until it struck. I have always hoped that the swiftness of the sinking, and the temperature of the water saved them from suffering. RIP to them all.
Yes, I agree w/you on the interpretation of the “we’re holding our own” comment by Captain McSorely. It always struck me as a man who didn’t want to admit they were in serious jeopardy but KNEW they were…he may have thought there wasn’t any point in alarming everyone about something that couldn’t be changed: they were on their own & there would be nobody to come to their aid in that wicked storm….& McSorley KNEW IT.
It was clearly Trumps fault 👍👍👍😂🤣🤣
@@travelingman4983 obviously 😄 🤣
I agree, and as I read in another comment is that the Captain should have admitted defeat and should have run the ship aground on the Canadian side. And it probably would have kept them alive.
@@charlestidwell5361 Excellent point!👍
Incredible and informative. This video was very helpful; to teach all things Edmund Fitzgerald! I thought it was very knowledgeable. I consider myself a minor, very minor expert on the EF. As we are often told as young children, I learned several different things that were new to me! The hanging life jacket. Never heard of that. Also, about the windows blown out and why no bodies have ever been found in the wheelhouse! I enjoyed this video very much so. Thank you for sharing! I am obsessed with the Edmund Fitzgerald❣️ I’ve had this obsession for well over 42 years now!
This is a nice presentation, but this guy speaks with a lot of certainty about aspects of the sinking that are still up for debate. There are multiple theories about what happened to the ship.
Occham's razor: the waves going over the ship slowly filled its hold with water, causing it to eventually lose its buoyancy and it got dragged under very quickly at that point. Because the ship was so elongated the tension in the thin middle was too much and it broke apart as it sank.
It bottomed out, it was sailing at summer levels, 3 feet lower than winter settings, because of its design it only had 3 holds, therefore missing 2 bulkheads that most 5 hold ships had. It had welded joints where most ships were riveted. There's a reason why they won't let people dive on the Fitz, and that's liability.
i feel the same
There will always be debate how she went down. From. I live in superior, everyone has their own opinion. But their bodies are still in the cabins and in that ship we all know. Either way we’ll never forget💔
Great video. Thanks for posting
I would like to see the Maintence record of the Fitz, double bottoms get rusty very fast
If this were a plane wreck every piece would be disassembled and fully investigated.
THANK YOU! I think it's selfish of the families to be like, "I lost my loved one and I don't care if there might be information from that accident that might save others. You can't have it because my loved one was killed." Like literally, that's what you're saying by denying EVERYONE access to the site. NTSB should have been on this immediately and subsequently as we developed new technology. SWIS
@@tkmiller_author Unfortunately I think Industry and insurance covered this up.
The rules are little different for example The captain goes down with his ship or a ship is a watery graveyard....It's a old sailor thing....
@@1USACitizen192 : I personally have nothing good to say about insurance companies.. at all.. Greedy Cheapskates who probably browbeat the familys . This ship broke alot of Records. it hauled lota Tons of taconite n' set a number of Records. When you're dealing with something like that and a severe Storm hits Lake Superior as it did that day in November it was just too much. I believe like one of the captains of the Arthur Andersen stated.. I believe he said "it took a nosedive". IMO wave configuration and wind. They were unable to even get out a message ! whatever happened it probably threw everyone about so violently they couldn't even use the radio in that final moment. 16 years of service. that's a hell of a lot of weight continually transversing The Lakes going through a lot of bad storms n' rough water n' Very high winds will wear out the best built ships. Obviously the crew was taken by surprise based on no radio call. Mother Nature can be pretty tough.
Who is going to retrieve an entire shipwreck from 300m deep? Who's going to pay for that? Besides, it's obvious how it sank. It's hold doors on the deck could not keep out water properly. Because large waves spilled right over the deck, water kept entering the hold and accumulated, causing the ship to get heavier and its deck got lower and lower, meaning even more waves could spill over the deck and leak into the hold. Eventually, so much water had filled the ship that it lost its buoyancy and got pulled underwater. For some reason the captain did not realize how low the ship was getting, probably because of the poor visibility in the storm. So when the buoyancy was finally overcome, the ship was already do low that the bridge pretty much instantly went underwater, so no time for the crew to evacuate.
I got a chance last year to go and I was very humble to see the site
Anderson is still going. Cooper saved his crew and ship. Then with his crews support, he went to look for survivors. The Anderson needs to be a museum. If Cooper was the Captain of the Fitz it would be on the lake today.
How you figure?
Looking at this cut away section i am amazed by the amount of metal being used to create the fitz...the only thing my architectural eye does not like is the low middle area and the tall tall wheel house an the high tall house at the rear those are two opposing forces wobbling against each other just under their own size an dimensions i would have changed that an brought the front an rear hull designs high further ti the center to aid in twist reistence...it has too much leverage with out these crazy weather trying to blow it about...
Think of this also, the Fitz didn’t have the subdivisions in the cargo hold the way the Anderson did only deployable screen curtains every so often down the length of the hold which probably also led to higher flexing and thereby more stress on the keel
She was sitting far to heavy in the water for that time of year...Plain and simple.
A very informative and interesting video.
Thank you
You're welcome!
Such a great tragedy so many young lives lost not to mention the father's husband's and brother's and son's lost may they all rest in peace
See the ‘94 expedition. They did find a body just outside of the ship, in a life jacket. A couple of the survivor’s families prevented them from publishing it. Rick Mixter was on the expedition and lectures around MI on the Fitzgerald and other vessels.
So glad you enjoyed it!
Money is was the captain ejected from the wheel house when she hit bottom
@@cmplib DILF?
@@carloschristanio4709 no there’s a former lake Captain in another video who is actually the nephew of the assistant engineer who went down with the Fitz and who has contacts with several of the guys who have done the expeditions and they told him from the estimates of the man’s height they researched it and are pretty certain he was one of the two helmsmen of the boat
@Zach Howard someone from the wheelhouse then.
I think i had to 20 years old before i realized this song that i loved an was so moved by....the man was singing a real story....u can hear it in the song it wasnt just music it told a complete story....but i did realized till i had got older
Be careful what you say, especially ALWAYS, FIRST and NEVER. The Fitzgerald was not the first modular ship built with prefabricated sections at 7:00 ever heard of a Liberty Ship? Guess not, but they were modular and built with prefab sections for WW2 in the 1940's
Ah Gordon Lightfoot
The bell removal was a bond between brothers if u watched the video...a younger brother went to war an the older brother went to the fitz an to honor honor the bell was brought by the younger brother which i think is a great show of respect...go watch it for urself it was very nice....
This was a great peace of info....not familiar with commercial shipping i learned a lot...thanks. all i knew is the song an its sound quite true...the weather was crazy as it has been on the great lakes from what i hear so...the weather is a force beyond comprehension...unmeasurable...we can match the force of its 2 factors wind an water....respect it we shall if we dont we live at risk...which sometimes is a way of life....
The two or three huge waves that hit the Anderson from the NNW would have came upon the Fitz's stern at about the time the Fitz disappeared according to Captain Bernie Cooper of the Anderson.
Thank you ! 💯💯🌺🌺
Water would violently implode through all the windows nearly simultaneously in my opinion. Maybe stronger through the forward facing windows due to the forward momentum of the boat. This leads me to speculate that any crew members in the wheelhouse would have been washed down the stairway to lower decks. Purely theory and speculation though.
Mustang, yes it probably happened as you suggest. However, the moment that bow went under the surface all 29 men were finished. Nothing could have saved those mariners that night, nothing.
@@davidpallin772 absolutely terrifying thought to consider what it was like when those windows violently imploded. There had to be a least a couple seconds before they imploded when they realized they were going down as the water came up the windows. Some scary shit.
The final realization that this time, the bow isn’t coming back up…
There’s another video where a gentleman claims that the pressure change would’ve been so fast and violent that anyone on the bridge would’ve imploded as well I don’t see how possible that could’ve been particularly since a crewman was discovered just off the bow in the mid 90s, though the fact that no other bodies have been spotted, as far as I know the lower deck down from the pilot house is accessible, may be a testament to that theory
@@zachhoward9099they didn't implode
The pumps moved 7,000 gallons a minute
Everybody mentions the Gordon Lghtfoot song, but there is another work of art memorializing the Edmund Fitzgerald tragedy: “Ten November,” a play by Steven Dietz. If it is produced for the 50th anniversary, it is worth seeing.
An overloaded covered barge with wire separation instead of watertight compartments between cargo holds. At least the titanic had partial watertight compartments. Gave Titanic enough time to send distress calls before it flooded and sank. Sister ship of Fitzgerald was scrapped.
Was it the families or a push by officials to the families to leave well enough alone? To this day there may be liabilities - thus why no more shipwrecks since 1975 ? To assume, no bodies were ever recovered and believed to be entombed in the Fitz. Can you imagine being the family knowing this? God Bless Captain McSorely and the crew that were lost on that fateful evening. Gordon Lightfoot had a celtic melody but no words- after the wreck, he actually recorded this song in the dark out of respect for the Crewmen and their families. Great detailed video , thank you.
Why was this never made into a movie ?
They should make a movie with this story?
@@isabellecoutu6073 they did for the Andrea Gail in the movie The Perfect Storm I think the reason they didn’t with the Fitz is because no one can truly agree on what sank her
My wife's grandfather was a Merchant Marine on the lakes before WWII. He was also a seasoned sailor of the lakes growing up there working on ships and also for Chris Craft Boat Company in Michigan. Later he was a ships Master of " Any tonnage" till his retirement in the early 80's.
I asked him about the Fitz and what may have caused it. He answered , " I strongly believe the Fitz bottomed out at Six Fathom Shoals, either straining welds of the steel plates or tearing them. That would be enough to cause the railing to come down " Hogging " the ship. Then she " Nose dived" to the bottom from a few rogue waves............." He added the " Big Fitz" was huge and was more than likely "overloaded " being her last run of the year causing the boat to ride lower in the water, the faulty hatch cover crap he said was just that.
He added Capt. McSorley was a seasoned sailor and a respected Master on the lakes. He added that McSorley could have made a run for Whitefish Bay and could have made it , but because he was " driving blind" no radar he had so slow the boat so the Anderson could give him his heading. But could have the Fitz made Whitefish Bay, maybe its plausible if it hadn't lost its radar.......
Or, if he had taken the shortest route for Whitefish Bay at the outset, instead of keeping north to avoid the storm.
If you ask me. I believe in the Bottoming Out on the Six Fathom Shoals as well. It's the only theory that makes sense.
I totally agree with your wife’s grandfather…..after contemplating all of the evidence, I’ve come to the same conclusion.
I don’t see how she couldn’t have even if only briefly touched bottom amidships in the vicinity of Caribou Island, and the smoking gun evidence of it touching bottom disintegrated when the center section did as the boat sank
One of the things that was a important foot note is the iron ore on board the fitz was being delivered to the auto manufacturers enuf for 7500 cars...in 1975...i had a bunch of 1970 72 73 barracudas an challengers 5 total that probably all had metal in them carried on the fitz...good chance...
There’s a video where a gentleman in I believe Toledo has deckhand Bruce Hudson who went down with the Fitzgeralds 1973 or 1974 Dodge Challenger and has kept in mint condition as a tribute to him
Im a michgander all my life and im 40. Was told this story at a young age . Was always taught to respect michigans water. And seeing the gales of november is a dream of mine but it always happens during gun season. So i miss it one day ill go hunt up there and see the gales at the same time.
The Fitzgerald never said what side the boat was listing on. Listen to the radio transmission.
I went swimming in a lake in north jersey quite cool water an i was required by the camp counser to wear sneakers to not cut my feet on rocks an other stuff i immediatly realized how my legs now would not float i think the water was a beautifull 72 degrees us my converse sneaks my legs would not float u have said an other the near freezing water 35 degrees prevent us from floating...i never knew that....that the cold effected our boyancy.....thanks i know my sneakers had a major effect on that...i never realized we were so close to the line of not floating till that day in the 1970s
I have read where they have in fact discovered a crewman laying on the bottom by the wreck. I wish I knew which was true if they haven't found bodies or if they have
One crewmans body was found near the wreck i believe during a 1995 expedition. Little to no video of this has been released publicly
@@sjd7188 that's the exact same thing I heard. Then this documentary says there is no bodys. I know it's a gory subject but I wish they could get their facts in order
They found a body in the 1994 Fred Shannon expedition.
@@sjd7188 Yes, as matter of fact, they did find a body by the Big Fitz, however, if you had lost a relative on that ship, how would you feel about this? Would you not really want to know, after all, it will only open up even further hurt and pain to it all.
No footage of the discovery of the body has ever been released to the public. One guy owns the footage, and he’s never let it out. So very few folks have even seen the footage. I can say I agree with the gentleman’s decision.
One thing bugs me nobody talks about,why didn't the Anderson radio the Fitz and tell em they were too close to the six fathom shoals?
With all the advances in LiDAR technology you would think there could be a non invasive expedition mounted to perform detailed scans of the wreck site without so much as having to get in the water
It's been declared a grave site. I think expeditions to the wreck will remain suspended at least so long as people who knew the crew are still alive.
How come the SS Edmund Fitzgerald had 3 anchors?
A vessel of that length and whose primary function was to pull up alongside and stay stationary while loading from the gravity fed chutes at the docks requires multiple anchoring points to stay steady and stationary
i went down the rabbit hole on Edmund Fitzgerald. An early dive was reported to have found a body near the wreck, with a lifejacket on.... so that is obviously weird.... (even if the flotation device would not float the unfortunate soul, he would be resting far from the debris field.... I saw a very short clip of what may have been a lost Mariner, and in that presentation, that was the clip, that led the Families of the crew, to shut down the area.... throw in a Michigander, looking for action, and a Cannuck with a mini-sub.... we have all the fixins for a soap opera......
Some corrections. The area at Six-Fathom shoal was surveyed and it was DEEPER than the charts indicated 36 ft vs 23 ft. and the location has been discounted as inaccurate. Mc Sorley never mentioned WHICH SIDE he was listing. No mention of the center placed drain possible contribution as it could not get the water out from the listing. And then the summation to " had to break under the water.." is pure conjecture. Likely the faulty covers, due for a refit after this voyage - and not being fully clamped due to complacency was more that a major factor. completely unmentioned, possibly due to sensitivites to the families. Crew of airplanes take blame when they screw upbut not ships? The anchor not from he wreck but an earlier loss is interesting and not noted elsewhere. So far the most factual vid I've watched is the Bay County Historical Society. One body was discovered (but not recovered is a question?Aand the Gordon Lightfoot song is not a factual reference for this shipwreck..) Crew possibly were blown back into the stairwell and down into the ship, instead of "I heard a theory they got blown out of the back windows ..." as for redundency - both radar units were lost. My theory is one of the two huge waves the A Andersen reported came up from behind and lifted the stern up and she nosedived into the bottom.
I don't think the presenter is as well researched as many Great Lakes maritime historians are. I don't doubt he is a historian, but I don't think maritime is specialty.
Thanks for the hatch cover information. I recently learned the last inspection report said the hatch covers didn't fit tight, but I hadn't heard why. A poorly done refit makes sense.
I also hear that boats leaving port in a hurry often didn't fasten down all hatch clamps at that time. So, if the crew didn't fasten them all it was accepted procedure. It the procedure was at fault, no the Fitz's crew.
Yes, one body was located, and even filmed from a distance. It was not recovered. I haven't found any confirmation of other bodies being found near the wreck site, there are unconfirmed reports from about the time Canada shutdown access to the Fitz.
From my research into the wreck, there were multiple factors that likely lead to the sinking. The one that come to mind are: Fitz was a favor of the ship watchers but she was poorly maintained. One or more of several things was wrong with the hatch covers so they were leaking. The 2 large waves reported by the Anderson were probably part of the 'three sisters' rogue wave phenomenon. It was a nasty storm even without rogue waves, and because the waves in these lakes are closer than one the ocean, that means major strain on a boat's structure. Lastly, it's a big freaking dangerous inland sea... if you're caught away from shore when a serious storm blows in there is no where to run, no safe harbor to get to in a hurry. Of the 8 boats the Coast Guard asked to help look for the Fitz, only 2 were willing to go back out into that storm. Both captains admitted in later interviews, if they had seen a survivor they wouldn't have been able to stop without risking their own vessels.
The drawings are not 'scale size' so to speak. The Fitz hitting bottom would have 200' ft. Of the stern out of water, that picture makes it look like it would've been fully under
Good point. Thank you!!!
Wow. At the time I viewed this video there were 301 thumbs up on this video. The same as Edmund Fitzgerald's hall number during construction. So I didn't give it a thumbs up out of respect.
Around 5:00
(A pointer would have helped. A lot.)
Very reverent
They manevoured as best as they could hoping to get a break from the terrible weather that pursued them across tje lake only to have it intensify instead an of the time it went down the storm was at its most detructive phase...hoping for a clearing that didnt come the direction of the storm changed once an it wasnt to tjeir favor
Why did the captain of the SS Edmund Fitzgerald proceed his journey if bad weather on the way....half way? Could of used a harbour on the right stay at harbour til weather passed and leave the harbour after in the clear?
It might be fair to say the severity of the storm was unexpected and unprecedented. And, it wasn’t forecast. I don’t remember the weather part of the coast guard report but I’m going to go back and read it.
I deal with a lot of business people an they like to squeeze a contrating firm.....when a price is set for a deal to build or do a job wealthy folks like to try an set their own price say im gonna paint ur boat for 100000 grand a wealthy business man in shrewd fashion will say i can give u 80....an they wouldnt relent...so doing the job dont go beyond what u would do for ur normal price...large corporate an company owners like to flaunt their power by squeezing ur price....it happens a lot an they ll just go down the street till they find someone dumb enuf to say yes...to their price...so what happens they mite normally saycwr should really do this because i reccomend making this more durable an take some extra time to ensure a higher quality product and it will benefit u in the long run....seldom is that the case...its not cutting corners...but its just sticking to a price quote an big business does that all the time they squeeze a smaller outfit...its common prctice its not alway good but as my dad says its life....at the time the fitz was built technology of steel ships was still pretty new nothing like the technology we have today....with all types of metal alloys an unbelieveble welding tech....metal is my favorite....im not a big fan of wood....i really prefer to work with metal...seeing inside the fitz this cut away is very cool...im basically a hi po car collector/modifyer
Its still im sure because of the icy cold waters even knowing that its still hard to believe that crew was not found but it is what it is ....a frase i cant stand but is....thanks i kind agree with the man about the bell but i think it looks good that they polished it an gave it a spruce up....anyway
U know it just dawned on me how dangerous a job sailing a freighter thru this weather is u said with that extreme cold 35 degrees if u go over board you are going to the bottom...thats very hard to swallow if ur in a ship...ur not gonna float as u mite think...making this job all the more dangerous...
The scale of that diagram isn’t very good. The ship rests in 530 ft of water and was 729 feet long.
It could have hit the bottom with the stern still sticking out of the water. That’s the scale!
It may have briefly but the pure stress coupled with the taconite suddenly shifting probably caused the center to disintegrate very quickly
Cooper was the best captain on that day
cooper should have warned mcsorley he was too close to the schoals. i know those old school guys liked to keep closed lipped; but lives were at stake.
Good point. The guys on the EF have taken those routes hundreds of times though. Even beyond that, I blame Mcsorley for the entire disaster. There was absolutely no reason, beyond money, for him to push the ship that hard, but he always did. They have no problem taking the credit for their "record" years, they have to accept responsibility for the fails also. IMHO, he was totally careless and failed his crew.
@@nonparticipant4671 Not necessarily. If Captain McSorley didn't take the job when the needed a ship's master, then they would have found another Captain to command the Big Fitz. The weather has a lot to do with this tragic disaster and whomever was in command would still have problems as the Big Fitz was suppose to be properly serviced, however she wasn't and there was reports that there were problems with weakenin steel and bending of that ship that caused a possible breakup on the surface, from then on she was a gonner especially while fighting those two volatile air masses decending on Lake Superior that night, going into the morning of the Big Fitz's demise.
@@danbasta3677 weather has nothing to do with the disaste5r. there were a lot of ships out there that night. aqnd they did not sink
dknowels60, actually it was indeed the reason that the EF sank. You need to watch the documentary the Storm that Sank the Edmond Fitzgerald here on CZcams. It goes into great length as the why that particular storm was so unusual that they compared it the the one in 1913. Granted the ship in my opinion would have sunk at some point due to construction issues and misuse/abuse through the years. However, that specific storm was epic. Stay safe.
@@garylefevers wrong it was not the weather. again why was the fix the only ship that sank.
The body that was photograghed was at the request of familys denied any exposure an brought fourth the no more diving law from detroit an in cooperation with canada that no more dives would be allowed giving it a requested burial designation....i think thats a fair call..to say...we know they are there...may they be in peace...
Something's not right here.
Every person I've talked to who is a maritime Great Lakes historian, Lakes history enthusiast, or actually has worked or volunteered on the Lake vessels uses the term 'boat' when referring to a freshwater vessel. This even applies to the longest freighter. The only exception I've heard is 'lightship', and that's just for the term, the vessels are still boats. There is also the term 'ship watcher'. So.. the presenter insisting on using the term 'ship' to refer to the Fitz seems out of place.
He doesn't seem to be well researched about the Fitz either.
I don’t agree with the Fitz hitting the shoals. There is no evidence to prove this and even with the stern sitting upside down it doesn’t show any type of scrap marks or damage. You cannot assume the bottom of the bow section (Which is under mud) has any scrap marks because then it would be speculation. The only pure evidence of what happened is the Fitzgerald was hit with a wave that she could not recover from. The Anderson was hit with the same wave damaging her as well. With the Fitzgerald taking on water and listing a wave that was big and powerful enough to damage the Anderson would have definitely sunk the Fitzgerald. It happened so fast that the crew most likely they were underwater until a few seconds later. After that wave hit the Fitzgerald never recovered.
Hull paint was, in fact, discovered all over the lake bottom by Coast Guard divers....
Moreover, all subsequent underwater investigation is prohibited 🚫
One truly would have to ask oneself why???
@@dennisryan6370 Can you quote your source for this information?
Several documentaries cover both sides of the controversy.
Sorry, however, there is a new documentary called something like Edmond Fitzgerald investigation, new information. The CZcamsr interviews the nephew of one of the victims, who's dad served in the EF. He was himself an employee of many ships. In fact I believe he was President of of a local Union for many years. That was one of the top two documentaries concerning the EF and only rivals Captain Cooper and perhaps the Coast Guard Captain the subsequently found the Fitz. I only wish the interview had been longer, anyways he addressed the topic you were inquiring about. Stay safe.
I agree.....Billions in new upgrades would become law so they wanted captain error as cause "Hitting the shoal"..With waves atop deck,listing and a sinking dip that the next wave pushed them on down...
McSorley was no newbie...
R.I.P. to captain and the crew...of 29 men's loosing life on the great lakes...sry. for your loss to families and friends🕊️🕊️✌️❤️🇨🇦
Ironically the coast guard boats were really not suitable for these 20 foot seas they can barely do what they are supposed to the only safe boats arethe big freighter like the fitz and the anderson that could take giant waves because ofctheir size...the coast guard boat was 24hours away the other coast boat was being repaired an oil line had broke the helicopter was not really able to work becsuse of the violence of the storm....
And the biggest boat that the USCG had in the area the USCGC Mackinaw was laid up in dry dock, imagine that the biggest Coast Guard Cutter in the Great Lakes squadron was already laid up in dry dock for refit in the most violent weather month on the Lakes, when mariners in distress would need her the most, to me that’s just sheer incompetence
I dont think u said it here but he didnt want his name on it...but during a board meeting he got up an went tocthe bathroom an the board supposedly voted to name it the edmund fitz while he was out of the room....i could understand him not because it was leased out for 25 years tje latter meeting decision...who knows its sound like yeh moving on what else is on the agenda for todays meeting....
Bodies were found!
1 body was found. A man in coveralls&life jacket that didn't float??...
@@packingten Yes, one body was found by the bow of the ship itself with a life preserver on it. Canada put a bar on any or all exploration on the ship as the bow section is in Canadian waters and the Canadians feel that this is now a grave site, best to be left alone, to in which, I agree with the Canadians and the Canadian government, very, very much. And, if that body were to be brought up, it would do no good as once it gets out of the water and oxygen hits that body, it would designate and fall apart immediately. Leave it alone. Let these guys rest in peace, they died under brutal conditions and circumstances, however, they died doing what they loved doing, sailing on the Great Lakes, doing their jobs working on one of these ships, a job I wanted to do when I got out of school back in 1975, however never got the job.
packingten believed to be Ransom Cundy. He wore coveralls and was believed to be in the pilot house at the time.
@@danbasta3677 also the majority of those poor guys are trapped in the upside down stern
I remember seeing her one time my dad and myself I was 10 years old
You saw it with yourself? Weird
I seen the Fitz on Wisc side when I was 11 in 1974. I remember walking home from school the 9th of Nov in 1975 it was just pouring rain in MPLS. Family friend George called and asked if I wanted to go to Duluth, Of course I said yes. We got up there at about 2am on the 10th. Stayed at the Harbor Holiday inn , the harbor side was all closed off due to the wind pushing lake Ice through a number of windows on that side. 8 am looked out the windowand could only see the roof of the 1970 Chrysler Newport 383 mag... all the snow was around the cars...thats what wind will do to 3 or 4 inches of snow
He told a good story,,but him being military accurate,,& for sure,,,when he is just guessing like us. ,, I have theories too!! Lmfao doesn't mean it's for sertain!!
15000 gal mi
They found a body in 95 when they sent down that Russian sub that went on the titanic wreck,,there's actual video the guy who ran the sub his kid found it when they let him have a turn in the sub!! Lmfao,,that actually happened. I don't care what this guy says
I must’ve missed hearing him say something to the contrary, I know Ric Mixter whose a expert scuba diver and Great Lakes historian who was on that ‘94 expedition said that actually it was the tug boat captain whose ship they used on the expedition told them he would cut them a deal on his fees if he and his son could go down in the sub to see the wreck and that’s when his boy spotted the body a little ways off the bow section
To me it’s plain as day how it broke. The rogue waves hit from behind sent the bow into the bottom. Then the break was where the ship was leaking. The rest guy wave broke it on into and the stern was still a little buoyant that’s what flipped it on over. Simple.
The captain said he had a fence rail down and had a list, obviously they hit some debris on the surface. More plausible then hitting a shoal, especially given there was no hull strike evidence on the hull.
Dont discount the 200 feet of the middle of the ship that was missing . Why did 200 feet of ship come apart like that. 20 foot waves going over the shoal like they did I dont know how they could have avoided slapping the bottom. They were listing after the shoals which meant there was more water entering the ship than they could expel. The captain knew it was a race to Whitefish bay and he may have madeitc had he not been pounded by the 3 sisters 35 feet high. The Anderson lost a beacan from its stack and it was sitting quite a bit higher thamn the fuitz. Being 729 feet long that means the bow was planted into the lake floor while the stern was still on top the water. I think the mid 200 feet blew apart when the bow hit the bottom at 35 mph. The stern could have rolled several times before it landed upside down and screws were still turning no doubt. The weight of the 35 foot wave was too much for a lower boat listing and the 15000 tons of taconite forced that bow half down pushing the air right out of the bow quarters. Most of the crew were in the stern and I bet it would be impossible to send out a distress call with the stern rolling.
They did find one body laying on the lake floor next to the ship
The 9th was a pleasant sunny day. The 10 th 11th & 12 th were definitely not!