Conference Session

Hurricane Katrina

Collection

2006 Annual Conference & Exposition

Authors

W. Robert Story, Virginia Tech; Brian LeCroy, Virginia Tech; Christina Pace, Virginia Tech; Michael Palmer, Virginia Tech; Leigh McCue, Virginia Tech

Tagged Divisions

Ocean and Marine

a distress signal, which suggests the storm provided aquick sinking. Four ships were originally sent out to search for the Fitzgerald. One ended upturning back in the middle of the voyage and another took almost 24 hours to get to the scene.There are many theories on the sinking of the Edmund Fitzgerald. The two most prominent areissues related to the severity of the storm and issues surrounding the maintenance of the boat.8The way that the boat was found split in two, with the sections separated by more than 170 feet,suggests that the boat took on a lot of water quickly and unevenly.9 The Edmund Fitzgerald’sfreeboard had been decreased due to an authorized change to her Plimsoll mark, thus it would beeasier to take on water in high seas