The Wreck of The Edmund Fitzgerald
Because of the weather conditions following the
sinking of the FITZGERALD and because the wreckage was lying on the bottom of
Lake Superior in 530 feet of water, a comprehensive examination of the damage to
the FITZGERALD was not undertaken until May 1976.
At that time, a task force was formed, including
representatives from the Coast Guard Marine Board of Investigation, the National
Transportation Safety Board, the U.S. Navy Supervisor of Salvage, the Naval
Undersea Center, and Seaward, Inc. of Falls Church, Virginia, an engineering
consultant firm under contract to the U.S. Navy Supervisor of Salvage to make a
visual survey of the wreckage using the USN CURV III System under contract to
the USCG. The CURV III is an unmanned, deep-diving vehicle controlled from the
surface and capable of television and still photography. This vehicle made 12
dives with a total of 56 hours 5 minutes bottom time and recorded 43,255 feet of
videotape and 985 still color photographs.
The results of the CURV III visual survey and three earlier side—scan sonar surveys were assembled and reviewed by Seaward, Inc., which prepared a sketch of the wreckage (see figure 3), and artists’ conceptions of the wreckage from several viewpoints. (See figures 4 to 8.)
The wreckage lies approximately 17 miles northwest of Whitefish Point, Michigan. The wreckage consists of an upright bow section, an inverted stern section, and debris from a missing 200-foot midship portion. The bow section is 276 feet long, inclined 15 degrees to port from the upright, extends from the stem to a location between hatches Nos. 8 and 9, and is buried in mud up to the 28-foot draft mark.
There was extensive damage to the forward deckhouse and there were several holes in the bow shell plating. The rest of the shell plating extending back to the rupture was intact. The No. 1 hatch cover was entirely inside the No. 1 hatch and showed indications of buckling from external loading. Sections of the coaming in way of the No. 1 hatch were fractured and buckled inward. The No. 2 hatch cover was missing and the coaming on the No. 2 hatch was fractured and buckled. Hatches Nos. 3 and 4 were covered with mud; however, one corner of hatch cover No. 3 could be seen in place. Hatch cover No. 5 was missing. A series of 16 consecutive hatch cover clamps were observed on the No. 5 hatch coaming. Of this series, the first and eighth were distorted or broken. All of the 14 other clamps were undamaged and in the open position. The No. 6 hatch was open and a hatch cover was standing on end vertically in the hatch. The hatch covers were missing from hatches Nos. 7 and 8 and both coamings were fractured and severely distorted. The bow section abruptly ended just aft of hatch No. 8 and the deck plating was ripped up from the separation to the forward end of hatch No. 7.
The stern section was upside down and inclined 10 degrees from the vertical away from the bow section. All bottom plating was intact from the stern to a location between hatches Nos. 17 and 18 where the vessel had separated. The rudder and propeller were undamaged with the rudder positioned no more than 10 degrees from centerline.
There was mud—covered wreckage extending out from the ruptured end of the stern section, but no identification of what part of the ship it came from can be determined. Three hatch coamings and a hatch cover were lying next to the stern section. One of the hatch coamings bore the numeral 11.
A few of the deck vents on the starboard side of the bow section could be seen above the mud. One vent near hatch No. 5 was torn away from the deck, leaving an opening in the deck at the base of the vent pipe. The vents on the port side of the bow section were covered with mud. Neither the spare propeller blade nor the hatch cover crane was visible and they have not been located.
The results of the CURV III visual survey and three earlier side—scan sonar surveys were assembled and reviewed by Seaward, Inc., which prepared a sketch of the wreckage (see figure 3), and artists’ conceptions of the wreckage from several viewpoints. (See figures 4 to 8.)
The wreckage lies approximately 17 miles northwest of Whitefish Point, Michigan. The wreckage consists of an upright bow section, an inverted stern section, and debris from a missing 200-foot midship portion. The bow section is 276 feet long, inclined 15 degrees to port from the upright, extends from the stem to a location between hatches Nos. 8 and 9, and is buried in mud up to the 28-foot draft mark.
There was extensive damage to the forward deckhouse and there were several holes in the bow shell plating. The rest of the shell plating extending back to the rupture was intact. The No. 1 hatch cover was entirely inside the No. 1 hatch and showed indications of buckling from external loading. Sections of the coaming in way of the No. 1 hatch were fractured and buckled inward. The No. 2 hatch cover was missing and the coaming on the No. 2 hatch was fractured and buckled. Hatches Nos. 3 and 4 were covered with mud; however, one corner of hatch cover No. 3 could be seen in place. Hatch cover No. 5 was missing. A series of 16 consecutive hatch cover clamps were observed on the No. 5 hatch coaming. Of this series, the first and eighth were distorted or broken. All of the 14 other clamps were undamaged and in the open position. The No. 6 hatch was open and a hatch cover was standing on end vertically in the hatch. The hatch covers were missing from hatches Nos. 7 and 8 and both coamings were fractured and severely distorted. The bow section abruptly ended just aft of hatch No. 8 and the deck plating was ripped up from the separation to the forward end of hatch No. 7.
The stern section was upside down and inclined 10 degrees from the vertical away from the bow section. All bottom plating was intact from the stern to a location between hatches Nos. 17 and 18 where the vessel had separated. The rudder and propeller were undamaged with the rudder positioned no more than 10 degrees from centerline.
There was mud—covered wreckage extending out from the ruptured end of the stern section, but no identification of what part of the ship it came from can be determined. Three hatch coamings and a hatch cover were lying next to the stern section. One of the hatch coamings bore the numeral 11.
A few of the deck vents on the starboard side of the bow section could be seen above the mud. One vent near hatch No. 5 was torn away from the deck, leaving an opening in the deck at the base of the vent pipe. The vents on the port side of the bow section were covered with mud. Neither the spare propeller blade nor the hatch cover crane was visible and they have not been located.
Posted: Sat - December 11, 2004 at 09:51 PM
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Published On: Dec 11, 2004 09:52 PM
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Published On: Dec 11, 2004 09:52 PM