The Coast Guard Certificate of Inspection
The Coast Guard Certificate of Inspection issued on
April 9, 1975, authorized the FITZGERALD to carry 49 persons, although it had
only 29 crewmen aboard on November 10, 1975.
The required lifesaving equipment, as stated on the
certificate was: 1 lifeboat on port side for 50 persons; 1 lifeboat on starboard
side for 50 persons; 2 inflatable liferafts for 25 persons each; 24 life rings;
and 83 life preservers.
The two lifeboats and one 25-person liferaft were located aft and one 25-person liferaft was located forward. The inflatable rafts were installed in racks designed to allow the rafts to float free and automatically inflate.
Fire and boat drills conducted in good weather while the FITZGERALD was moored indicated that a conventional lifeboat could not be launched in less than 10 minutes. Testimony indicated that as much as 30 minutes would be required to launch a lifeboat in a seaway and that a lifeboat probably could not be launched successfully and boarded in the seaway experienced by the FITZGERALD at the time of her loss. Most witnesses felt that a Great Lakes vessel could be abandoned more successfully with an inflatable liferaft rather than with a lifeboat.
Coast Guard regulations require fire and boat drills to be conducted at least weekly. The logbooks of the FITZGERALD were lost with the vessel; however, records available from the offices of Columbia Transportation Division indicate that 14 fire and boat drills were conducted between April 12 and October 31, 1975.
Based on the 49 persons permitted by the Certificate of Inspection, U.S. Coast Guard regulations require: 1 life preserver for each of the 49 persons, 25 as a required 50 percent excess, 2 in each lifeboat, 3 for the wheelhouse watch, and 2 in the engine room.
After an intensive search by U.S. Coast Guard and Canadian Coast Guard surface and air units, Michigan Air National Guard aircraft, and U.S. and Canadian merchant vessels between November 10 and 13, 1975, no survivors were found and no bodies were recovered. Ontario Canadian Provincial Police conducted numerous shoreline searches. The total lifesaving equipment recovered was: 1 lifeboat, one-half of another lifeboat, 2 inflatable liferafts, and 21 lifejackets or lifejacket pieces.
On November 10, the only Coast Guard surface search and rescue units available for open water deployment were the Buoy Tender WOODRUSH, located 300 miles from the accident at its home port in Duluth, Minnesota, and the Harbor Tug NAUGATUCK located at Sault Ste. Marie, MI. However, the NAUGATUCK is restricted from operating in open water when winds exceed 60 knots and, therefore, was directed not to proceed beyond the entrance to Whitefish Bay. All other Coast Guard surface units were either too far away or in a repair status
The two lifeboats and one 25-person liferaft were located aft and one 25-person liferaft was located forward. The inflatable rafts were installed in racks designed to allow the rafts to float free and automatically inflate.
Fire and boat drills conducted in good weather while the FITZGERALD was moored indicated that a conventional lifeboat could not be launched in less than 10 minutes. Testimony indicated that as much as 30 minutes would be required to launch a lifeboat in a seaway and that a lifeboat probably could not be launched successfully and boarded in the seaway experienced by the FITZGERALD at the time of her loss. Most witnesses felt that a Great Lakes vessel could be abandoned more successfully with an inflatable liferaft rather than with a lifeboat.
Coast Guard regulations require fire and boat drills to be conducted at least weekly. The logbooks of the FITZGERALD were lost with the vessel; however, records available from the offices of Columbia Transportation Division indicate that 14 fire and boat drills were conducted between April 12 and October 31, 1975.
Based on the 49 persons permitted by the Certificate of Inspection, U.S. Coast Guard regulations require: 1 life preserver for each of the 49 persons, 25 as a required 50 percent excess, 2 in each lifeboat, 3 for the wheelhouse watch, and 2 in the engine room.
After an intensive search by U.S. Coast Guard and Canadian Coast Guard surface and air units, Michigan Air National Guard aircraft, and U.S. and Canadian merchant vessels between November 10 and 13, 1975, no survivors were found and no bodies were recovered. Ontario Canadian Provincial Police conducted numerous shoreline searches. The total lifesaving equipment recovered was: 1 lifeboat, one-half of another lifeboat, 2 inflatable liferafts, and 21 lifejackets or lifejacket pieces.
On November 10, the only Coast Guard surface search and rescue units available for open water deployment were the Buoy Tender WOODRUSH, located 300 miles from the accident at its home port in Duluth, Minnesota, and the Harbor Tug NAUGATUCK located at Sault Ste. Marie, MI. However, the NAUGATUCK is restricted from operating in open water when winds exceed 60 knots and, therefore, was directed not to proceed beyond the entrance to Whitefish Bay. All other Coast Guard surface units were either too far away or in a repair status
Posted: Sat - December 11, 2004 at 09:54 PM
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Published On: Dec 11, 2004 09:58 PM
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Published On: Dec 11, 2004 09:58 PM