Shipwrecks - Time Capsules of Human Civilization

Do I Save the Passengers or Save the Ship?

The captain of the Andrea Doria, Piero Calamai, had a huge decision to make. Should he save the ship by driving it into the Nantucket Shoals or should he save the passengers by staying out in the "Times Square" of shipping and rescue his passengers. If he drove the ship off to the Shoals he would not be able to lower the lifeboats and potential rescue crafts would of been too far away to assist should abandon ship be required. Remember, the list of the boat was at least 20 degrees making the rudder ineffective. If he stayed in the Times Square area, many ships would be in the area and there would be a high percentage of passengers saved; however, the ship would be doomed. Captain Calamai did the heroic thing and saved the passengers over the ship. He was the last Italian Officer to leave the ship and was pretty much resolved to go down with the ship (Second Officer Guido Badano convinced him to leave the ship). Initially Calamai did wait and hold out for a tow but realized by the time he left that any efforts were in vain. His valiant attempts to save the passengers and ship will be formally recognized by the Andrea Doria Survivors Reunion.

The Andrea Doria's Untold Psychological Scars

A new book about the Andrea Doria will be put out by Andrea Doria survivor Pierette Domenica Simpson this month entitled Alive on the Andrea Doria. This book is advertised as the first Doria book written by a survivor about the tragedy.  Actually, two survivors have written about their Andrea Doria accounts in two very obscure books that deal with psychological trauma of surviving this tragedy and how they deal with their lives. The first book was written by Canadian Doria survivor Eugene Gladstone and was printed in the mid-1960's entitled In the Wake of the Andrea Doria and the second book was printed in the late 1960's by Doria survivor Barbara Boggs Benzinger entitled The Prison of my Mind. In both books, the authors try to deal with their lives following the psychological impact of this tragedy. I can tell you that there were only 46 deaths on the Andrea Doria but uncounted hundreds of survivors that experienced post-traumatic stress syndrome following this tragedy.

Eugene Gladstone's book was originally a 'diary' that his doctor suggested he put together following his psychological trauma on board the Andrea Doria.  It delves into his coming to terms with his entire life and what it means to him to be alive. He has taken this diary and made it a remarkable book about the dealings of mental disorder.

Barbara Boggs Benzinger's book "The Prison on my Mind" is a fascinating read. The book was written from her coming to terms with her own mental illness that she became aware of following the trauma caused by the Andrea Doria tragedy. The book branches out into her own phobias and how she tried to overcome her demons. Although you might not learn much more about the tragedy itself, you will finally gain an understanding of the hidden scars that the Andrea Doria tragedy produced in many survivors. No book about the Andrea Doria has captured this element and I have found that it was one of the most devastating emotion that many survivors carry even to this day.

Busy, Busy, Busy..... New Shipwreck Information Gathered

It has been quite a busy time for me over the past month.  I have logged over 25,000 miles, been to 5 different countries on three continents, given 5 Shipwreck presentations on three different ocean liners and presented a scientific research paper on Titanic.  All of this travel has enabled me to provide my blog readers with firsthand research materials for shipwreck study - so it was extremely productive. Even though the amount of blogs has decreased this month, the quality of materials gained through my travels will allow me present you with new, unique and relevant information on the latest developments on shipwreck exploration in the immediate future.

Much of my work has been focused on the Andrea Doria of which I have made many dives and have done over 25 years of research. The 50th anniversary of the Andrea Doria's collision and sinking is being remembered by many throughout the globe and I have been inundated with media requests. Three of this month's presentations have been about the Andrea Doria and were viewed by over 800 people. In addition, I have been working on the Andrea Doria Survivor's Reunion, two Andrea Doria documentaries, a consultant on PBS (Public Broadcasting Systems) Andrea Doria website  and started publicity on a new Andrea Doria book entitled Alive on the Andrea Doria by Doria survivor Pierette Simpson. Yesterday, a newspaper review by the Daily Collegian of my presentation to a scientific crowd at the Pennsylvania State University's Marine Science Program was published. Although the article did not contain the science behind the collision and sinking of the Andrea Doria, I had a great time interacting with students, professors, administrators and guests at this event. In July, I will be leading the Official Andrea Doria Diving Expedition to the wreck site and will be doing some high definition filming of the current morphological changes to the ship.

The final presentation of this week was to an organization of Lockheed Martin retirees about the tragic sinking of the Empress of Ireland at their group's luncheon. They were treated to a brief historical account of the tragedy and a forty-minute, high-quality digital virtual dive to the shipwreck. The Empress is considered a very dangerous dive due to its cold water temperatures, limited dark visibility and ripping currents. It was great to talk to this group about the Empress as this ship is the most tragic ship accident that most people have never heard about.  Later this summer, I will be leading a diving expedition to the Empress and look forward to broadcasting LIVE from the dive site as I did last year.

I will be continuing the series on my expedition to Turkey on the next blog. I look forward to chatting with you about this adventure to ancient nautical times. Look forward to a new Titanic story from a Titanic passengers' family with a unique twist that we will exclusively broadcast later this month. There is so much to write about!

Andrea Doria Presentation in Florida

For my Florida viewers, I will be back in the Sunshine State giving a high-quality digital video presentation on the life and times of the Italian luxury liner Andrea Doria. The presentation is supported by the Mote Marine Research Laboratories and sponsored by Mote Trustee Robert Williams and his wonderful wife Jill on Monday March 20th at their Sarasota Florida facility.

Further information can be found at their web site and the following link:
http://www.mote.org/index.php?src=events&srctype=profile&id=514&category=Events

A brief abstract of the presentation follows:

Andrea Doria: Dive to Adventure and Danger

The night was deep with fog, as the luxurious Italian steamship, Andrea Doria, one of the last of the truly elegant transatlantic ocean liners, was making for New York and safety. The Doria was completing a run from Genoa, and carrying 1706 passengers and crew. Ominously, out of the gloom and hazy mist, the Swedish-American liner Stockholm, appeared before the starboard side of the helpless Andrea Doria. Before evasive maneuvers could be fully undertaken, the Stockholm impaled its reinforced ice-breaking bow into the defenseless Doria. The impact on the 29,000-ton Italian liner mortally wounded her and she sank eleven hours later. The events that occurred following this disaster would become of epic proportions.

This program presents a multifaceted view of the Andrea Doria tracing her history from the initial planning stages to the most recent diving salvage expeditions in 260 feet of cold North Atlantic waters. Utilizing the latest multimedia digital technology, you will virtually board the Andrea Doria in its home port of Genoa, take a walking tour of all the elegant social and boarding accommodations, meet the officers of both the Doria and Stockholm, experience the collision of both ships near Nantucket Shoals, be rescued by a Doria lifeboat and brought aboard the Ile de France to safety. Furthermore, you will have the opportunity of experiencing a virtual dive to the Doria and viewing her watery remains.

Nantucket Lightship during the Heydays of the Queen Mary and Andrea Doria

The Nantucket Lightship station marked the southern extremity of the extensive shoals that make out south and east from Nantucket Island.  It served as a primary leading mark for both coast-wise and trans-Atlantic traffic.  It was located variously at distances from 20 to 50 miles from the nearest land throughout its history.  It was repositioned several times to provide a greater safety margin from shoal areas, and to conform to changed in the international traffic lanes.  Nantucket Shoals was one of the most exposed lightship stations in the world and it was the last of the U.S. lightship stations to be discontinued.

LV 112 / WAL 534 served as the Nantucket Lightship from 1945 - 1958 and was in place during the Andrea Doria-Stockholm collision. This vessel was overhauled in 1958 and was later deployed back as the Nantucket Lightship from 1960-1975. She was one of the longest standing lightships that the Nantucket Shoals ever had. She served 39 years as a lightship and is currently used as a museum that very recently was berthed in New York City. Although there were variations in the locations, they never deviated too much during its later years.

Looking for Andrea Doria Survivors

On July 22nd 2006, Nautical Research Group, in conjunction with the Andrea Doria International Historical Society, will be sponsoring a 50th Anniversary Survivors Reunion to be held at the United States Merchant Marine Academy at Kings Point New York.  This event is a closed affair that is only opened to Andrea Doria survivors, family and their guests. I am looking for any Andrea Doria survivor that would like to be included on the invitation list so I am asking my global audience to please email me information regarding Andrea Doria survivors.  I am the original founder of these reunions that started in 1990 and these reunions have been regularly held since that time.

There were six ships that saved the passengers and crew of the Andrea Doria. These ships are:

Stockholm                      532 people saved      308 passengers         234 crew
Ile de France                 753 people saved      576 passengers         177 crew
Cape Ann                         129 people saved          91 passengers           38 crew
Pvt Willliam Thomas  158 people saved       112 passengers            46 crew
Edward H. Allen             77 people saved            0 passengers           77 crew
Robert E. Hopkins            1 person saved             1 passenger                0 crew
TOTAL                     1660 person saved  1088 passengers  572 crew

If you have you information about an Andrea Doria survivor, please email David Bright at [email protected] .

Collision at Sea - Andrea Doria / Stockholm Questions

Many questions about the collision of the Andrea Doria and Stockholm have remained unanswered for 50 years. Back in the late 1950's, a prominent marine engineer named John C. Carrouthers, who was contracted by the US Navy to investigate marine accidents, concluded that misreading of the radar by the young third officer on the bridge of the Stockholm was the fatal error. As the world's nautical experts had an opportunity to look at all the evidence, they have felt that the misreading of the radar was highly probable as the fatal mistake. Mr. Carrouthers produced many research papers in prestigious professional journals that chronicled the mistakes that both ships made during their approach. He concluded emphatically that the fatal mistake was made by the Stockholm. Unfortunately, the treasure-trove of information that he provided extensively in these professional journals never really made it to the public mainstream media. Here is a brief Q&A about some of the major issues dealing with the collision of these two fine ships:

"You have wrote that the reason for the collision was a misreading of the radar at the bridge of the Stockholm. That is understandable. Is this the main reason for the collision? I have read that the guilt could not be proved, neither for the captain of the Andrea Doria nor for the captain for the Stockholm. Is this correct? "

There were many small errors made by both ships that contributed to the collision. Each small error concatenated to become bigger errors. However, the biggest error that fateful evening of 7/25/56 was the mis-reading of the radar by the young third officer Carstens. As far as guilt for the collision, there was none that was attributed. There were pre-trial depositions that were taken, in contemplation of a full trial, but both ship owners, deciding that it would not be in their best interests to have a long, drawn-out trial, settled their differences with their common insurers. Therefore-it never went to trial to decide who was at fault. Informally, the mariners in the US went over all the testimony; and understanding the laws of the sea figured that either the Stockholm bridge officer was mistaken about the radar. These mariners have always believed that the radar misreading was the reason. Every decision that Carstens made on the bridge from 20 minutes before the collision to the collision time suggest that he thought that the Doria was much further away. It made the most reasonable and logical sense for this theory. Back in those days, the radar rings were not illuminated and the range of the scale of the OD was done manually by moving a switch. It is believed by these experts that Carstens thought that he was on a different range (15 mile) when in reality he was on another range(5 mile). In order to verify what range you are on in the night, a small flashlight is used. However, Carstens has vehemently denied this, but computer projections of the collision prove out, with very little doubt that the reason for this collision was the radar mis-reading by Carstens.

"I have read that both ships recognized the danger, while the distance was about 12 miles. There is another point that I cannot understand: Why did the Andrea Doria change her course to portside? Normally – so I have learned for my license for sport boats – the ships should be passing portside to portside. So the normal reaction of the Andrea Doria should be to change to starboard? Can you explain to me the consideration of Captain Calamai to change to the wrong side?"

The Doria has always thought that the passing would be starboard to starboard. You are correct in your rule of navigation referring to normal passing of port to port-especially in a head on passing. However, you must understand that the Doria felt that they were on the starboard side ALWAYS and by going starboard to get into a position for a port to port passing would of had the Doria pass right across the bow of the Stockholm. As you know the port to port rule is only applied if the ships were in a head to head basis and would not be applied if it would put the ship in PERIL - and apparently the Doria officers felt that trying to align the Doria in a port to port passing would put the ship across the bow of the Stockholm and into peril.

   

As the Doria was going forward, assuming a starboard to starboard passing, it would be natural for the ship to steer to the port to open the distance between the two ships. Changing course to starboard would of placed the Doria in the Stockholm's path!

"I have inquired about the following years of the Stockholm until now to include multiple name changes.  In 2002 she received the name “Caribe.” Do you know whether this ship is still working today? And – do you own current printable photos of this ship? "

The Stockholm has had many names since she left the ownership of the Brostrom concern's Swedish-American Lines. In 1960, she was sold to the East Germans as a union cruise vessel called Völkerfreundschaft.  The Stockholm was sold to Italian interests in 1989. Ironically, it was given a refit in Genoa, the Andrea Doria's home port. When it first arrived, the press called the Stockholm the "ship of death." It was later gutted and given a new design resembling a modern cruise ship. Previously named the Italia I, Italia Prima, Valtur Prima and Caribe, the Stockholm currently sails as the Athena and is registered in Portugal.

Comparing Titanic's Decay with the Empress of Ireland, Lusitania, Britannic and Andrea Doria

Although Titanic is deteriorating while subjected to the natural force of the Atlantic Ocean, it has been preserved relatively well throughout the past ninety-three years. More recent shipwrecks, like the ill-fated Italian luxury liner Andrea Doria which sank in 1956, is in much worse shape structurally than Titanic. The Doria lies in 260 feet of water about 40 miles southwest of Nantucket Island. The relatively shallow depths, strong currents, aluminum-alloy- based superstructure and weather conditions have battered the Doria to the point where the top five deck levels have fallen down to the bottom of the ocean. With its entire superstructure gone, the Doria is now a huge steel hull with all of its once-beautiful infrastructure lying next to it on its starboard side in a vast heap of metallic wreckage.

It is important to put the decay of Titanic in the context of other contemporary twentieth century ocean liner shipwrecks. These once-opulent liner shipwrecks like the Lusitania, the Empress of Ireland and Titanic’s sister, Britannic have all sunk in different parts of the world and been exposed to a variety of different environmental factors. Despite their environmental differences, all of these fine liners are in relatively similar states of deterioration to that of Titanic. Judging by these many differences in environmental conditions, the fact that their states of deterioration are similar may prove to be a mere coincidence.

Prototype Car of the Future Lost on the Andrea Doria - Norseman

One of the "casualties" of the Andrea Doria sinking has received quite a bit of attention in the past decade; however, this casualty was not a person but a beautiful automobile called the Norseman. The Norseman was a special prototype car that was a joint project of Chrysler and Ghia. It is thought that the complete development of this automobile cost more than $100,000 1956-dollars. Normally, all passenger cars were placed in the garage section of the Andrea Doria that is slightly aft of the collision point where the Stockholm impaled the Doria underneath the bow wing bridge. These cars would have been placed on to the Doria by use of a crane and meticulously parked in the garage and arranged strategically for stability. However, the Norseman was no passenger vehicle and was specially packed and treated with extra care. The Norseman was put into a wooden crate and placed in the number 2 cargo area. While looking for a lost diver, I had an opportunity to see the Norseman for myself in the cargo hold. The crate had disintegrated and the car was in very, very poor condition. The ocean's salt water invaded the Norseman's metal and most of the car is rust, corrosion and a heap of indistinguishable junk. The tires are still there and have assisted to its identification.

I have been back to the cargo area several times (it is pretty scary in the cargo hold because the ship is lying on its starboard side) and visited the Norseman on a couple other occasions. I contributed to an article authored by a New York Times reporter that appeared in the Hemmings Motor News in the early 1990's. In 1996, a website in Germany translated part of this Hemmings article and added additional information. The link to this article is: http://riekmann.prohosting.com/magazin/chrysler_norseman/chrysler_norseman.htm
I have been interviewed about my dives to the Norseman several times since the original Hemmings article appeared. I have not been back to this cargo site since 1994 and with all the decay that the wreck has had over the past 10 years, it is doubtful if I will ( or anyone else) ever get a chance to see the remains of the Norseman again.

2006 - Year of New Underwater Shipwreck Discovery and Exploration

The following article is a modified extract of a comment that I made to fellow underwater explorer, Steve Libert about several of my projects over the next three months. I hope that you enjoy....

I thought that it might be tough to top all the exciting and wonderful expeditions that I had in 2005 that included Titanic, Empress of Ireland, the Bermuda Triangle rescue aircraft - Martin Mariner PBM-5, various historical shipwrecks that ranged from naval to merchant and old treasure galleons to ocean liners (including a Blue Riband Cunard Liner Oregon).

2006 is shaping up to be an even better and more historic diving season that will be highlighted by our series of events surrounding the 50th Anniversary of the Collision and Sinking of the Andrea Doria. I will be releasing some new nautical forensic information and underwater video regarding this beautiful Italian liner's sinking that will change the historical perception of that tragic evening. In two weeks, I am off to Florida diving deep in the underground caves using a mixed-gas, closed circuit rebreather (as part of a cave diving course run by two of the world's best instructors - legendary Tom Mount and former British Special Forces diver Andrew Driver). Hopefully we will find in situ evidence for some prehistoric species deep within these underwater caves (a mastodon or mammoth would be nice). In March, I have two presentations to give. The first presentation is at the American Academy of Underwater Sciences meeting at the University of Washington's Friday Harbor Laboratory (FHL) in the San Juan Islands -located north of Seattle between the mainland and Vancouver Island, British Columbia about the latest scientific observations about the biological decay of Titanic. The second presentation of the month will be at the Mote Marine Laboratory in Sarasota, Florida about Diving to the Italian Liner Andrea Doria. Before the end of the month of March, I am off to the Black Sea and this should be very interesting - perhaps, if I am very lucky, I might discover Noah's Ark (just kidding!). In addition, I have some other "secret" shipwreck explorations and projects that I can't quite divulge yet (don't want the bureaucrats to put a damper on all the adventure) but will provide some significant new information about several historic shipwrecks.

Thank you for your continued support for this web site which is globally the number one blog ( weblog ) for shipwrecks. I find that it is a perfect forum for me to get things off my chest without feeling inhibited about the dives, expeditions and science. As a corporation, Nautical Research Group is thriving and we have been able to pick and choose the best and most interesting underwater projects. Our unique blend of nautical archaeology and deep technical diving - wrapped around our roots in the biological sciences is unparallelled.