Edmund Fitzgerald
In an eerie coincidence, freighter traffic stopped as storms swept over the upper Great Lakes late Wednesday and early Thursday - the 30th anniversary of the sinking of the Edmund Fitzgerald.
Ships headed into safe harbors to ride out the wind and waves.
"Pretty much everything came to a stop for the most part of 24 hours," said Randy Elliott, vessel traffic manager for the U.S. Coast Guard at Sault Ste. Marie, Mich. "Everybody saw it coming and was sitting somewhere protected."
Thirty years ago, during an era of different weather and communications technology, the Edmund Fitzgerald wasn't in safe port. She was crossing Lake Superior in the middle of a ferocious gale, damaged and listing and trying desperately to make it to Whitefish Bay. The Fitzgerald and her 29 crew members went down just 9 miles short of their safe harbor.
The similarities with the weather Thursday morning were striking. At 1 a.m. Nov. 10, 1975, the Fitzgerald reported winds of 52 knots and waves 10 feet high.
During the early morning of Nov. 10, 2005, the National Weather Service north of Marquette, Mich., reported sustained winds of 55 knots, with gusts up to 69 knots. The last ship report from out in Lake Superior came about 7 p.m. Wednesday, noting 55-knot winds and 15-foot waves just outside of Whitefish Bay, said John Bravender, meteorologist with the National Weather Service.
November 11, 2005 3:45 AM | Category: Boats