MYSTERY in the BERMUDA TRIANGLE: The El Faro Tragedy
From the channel of Autentic Documentary.
I think I may share/repost several videos about the El Faro, because the accident was such an avoidable tragedy. It should probably be noted here that the sinking of the SS El Faro has little to do with the mysterious Bermuda Triangle. The ship disappeared near the eye of Hurricane Joaquin in the morning on October 1, 2015. I remember hearing about this ship on the news. There's not much that's mysterious about the sinking. Most of the blame was placed on the ship's master. The ship's wreck position is known and it has been surveyed. Its VDR (Voice Data Recorder) was retrieved and studied. A VDR is the maritime version of the "black box" that is found on an airplane. The vessel lies about three miles (4,570 meters) below the Atlantic Ocean. No one survived the disaster.
"The wreckage of El Faro lies at a depth of between 15,318 and 15,482 feet (4,719 to 4,669 meters) in the Atlantic Ocean, about 20 nm northeast of Samana Cay. The primary underwater debris field, which includes the main hull and ship structure, covers an area of about 0.7 square mile (1.8 square kilometers) between latitudes 23.3786N and 23.3936N and longitudes 73.9061W and 73.9172W. Cargo containers, other cargo items, and some ship’s equipment and rails were found outside the primary debris field. Inside the primary field were the remains of El Faro’s port lifeboat; some of its cargo (about 40 containers and 7 vehicles); the main hull and the structures that separated from it, including the mast (with attached VDR), the exhaust stack, the bridge and the deck below it; and a few unidentified items." Source: NTSB.gov Marine Accident Report.
NTSB text source: NTSB.gov (.pdf report).
El Faro on Wikipedia.
Read an account of the sinking on the Statesman Journal.
Read an account of Danielle Randolph's life and career on Maine Maritime Academy. I think this young lady would have been, in the future, a great captain. If the captain had listened to her (and others), this accident might have been avoided.
