(WXYZ) — The Edmund Fitzgerald sank on Nov. 10, 1975 in Lake Superior, in a violent storm on the lake. November can be a turbulent month for weather across Michigan, and gales – very strong winds – are common on the Great Lakes.
Intense areas of low pressure can sweep across the Great Lakes region bringing arctic air masses. The relatively warm waters of the Great Lakes can help storms intensify and produce life-threatening conditions.
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On November 9, 1975, the Fitzgerald departed Superior, Wisconsin bound for Detroit’s Zug Island. Within 24 hours, the ship was battling hurricane-force winds and waves up to 25 feet. The U.S. Coast Guard told ships out on the Great Lakes to seek safe harbor as the storm strengthened.
The Coast Guard’s final report suggests the Fitzgerald instead nosedived into a large wave and was not able to recover and plunged to the bottom of Lake Superior in only seconds.
As the cargo of 26,116 tons of taconite pellets quickly shifted forward while the Fitzgerald was going down, the bow of the ship hit the bottom with such extreme force that the vessel snapped in two.
The National Transportation Safety Board released its final report on the investigation. It said in part:
"The probable cause of the accident was the sudden massive flooding of the cargo hold due to the collapse of one or more hatch covers. Before the hatch covers collapsed, flooding into the ballast tanks and tunnel through topside damage and flooding into the cargo hold through nonweathertight hatch covers caused a reduction in freeboard and a list."
You can read the entire NTSB report below.
NTSB report on the wreck of the Edmund Fitzgerald by WXYZ-TV Channel 7 Detroit on Scribd
