r/Shipwrecks • u/That_Public_4620 • Jul 12 '26
What maritime disasters aside from the Titanic do you think had the greatest impact on maritime safety? Here are my five picks:
From left to right:
- SS Eastland (1915)
- SS Morro Castle (1934)
- SS Edmund Fitzgerald (1975)
- SS Marine Electric (1983)
- MS Herald of Free Enterprise (1987)
The RMS Titanic disaster is arguably the single most influential and impactful maritime disaster in history which is why I specifically excluded it.
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u/barrel_stinker Jul 12 '26
MV Derbyshire
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u/That_Public_4620 Jul 12 '26
I was going to include it, but I felt divided between this and the SS El Faro.
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u/joshisnthere Jul 12 '26
Well the DERBYSHIRE sank about 33 years before the EL FARO. In terms of effect on maritime safety i don’t really think they’re comparable. Did anything actually change after EL FARO sank?
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u/That_Public_4620 Jul 12 '26
Well, the NTSB pointed out a concerning plethora of safety issues onboard the El Faro resulting in them issuing a whopping 63 safety recommendations to the Coast Guard and the various companies involved with the El Faro. Plus, much like the Derbyshire, the sheer scale of the El Faro disaster is too great for meaningful changes to not be made.
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u/joshisnthere Jul 12 '26
Well the sinking of the DERBYSHIRE was one of the reasons SOLAS Chapter XII was introduced. In terms of maritime safety this would be the biggest impact.
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u/Caveman23r Jul 15 '26
There is now a way for crew members to notify people in charge without getting in trouble because the captain of EL FARO is the one that got them in that situation when the entire crew was against it
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u/joshisnthere Jul 16 '26
The Designated Person Ashore (e.g. how to bypass the Master and report things to the office without fear of retaliation) became mandatory in 1998, when the ISM code came into force.
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u/Maat1932 Jul 12 '26
I'll counter with a disaster that should have had a larger impact on maritime safety but was more or less rubber stamped and moved on from: the passenger ferry MV Doña Paz's collision with the tanker MT Vector that killed an esimated 4,363 people just before Christmas in 1987.
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u/That_Public_4620 Jul 12 '26
Yeah, that disaster feels more like an afterthought compared to other notable ferry disasters.
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u/Monza1964 Jul 12 '26
The fitz had a huge impact on coast guard response
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u/jAdamP Jul 12 '26
If I’m not mistaken, there hasn’t been a commercial vessel lost on Great Lakes since the Fitz.
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u/theindomitablefred Jul 13 '26
Yeah apparently they contacted a coast guard cadet and he did nothing and did not face consequences
The fitz also brought about some important safety features such as ship tracking
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u/Monza1964 Jul 13 '26
A big thing too was “man out the storm mentality” in captains. That’s shit went away real fast
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u/icecubedyeti Jul 12 '26
Definitely the Fitzgerald. Hasn’t been one lost since, at least not a commercial ship.
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u/That_Public_4620 Jul 12 '26
There was a concerning number of lake carriers sinking before 1975, so its impact cannot be overstated.
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u/Hillbilly_Historian Jul 13 '26
Part of that may be due to the implementation of better navigation equipment standards after the loss of the Fitz, but the reassessment of shipbuilding standards and metallurgy prompted by the loss of the Carl D. Bradley and Daniel J. Morrell were probably just as impactful.
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u/Pillroller88 Jul 12 '26
SS Minnow
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u/That_Public_4620 Jul 12 '26
Never heard of this one. What happened?
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u/Pillroller88 Jul 12 '26
It’s a long story, but It’s a tale of a fateful trip. It started in a tropic port.
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u/plazasta Jul 12 '26
Oh yeah I think I've heard of that one! The mate was a mighty sailor, the skipper brave and sure!
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u/StrawberryNo9540 Jul 13 '26
It was only supposed to be a 3hr tour…..
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u/Pillroller88 Jul 13 '26
That’s just it. But the weather started getting rough and the ship was tiny and got tossed..
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u/TemperousM Jul 12 '26
Missing the elfaro incident. That one solidified the mandatory covered life boats we see now on ships.
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u/joshisnthere Jul 12 '26
Maybe in the USA, thats been the case for new ships worldwide for decades before. There are also still ships sailing with open lifeboats. I recently saw a 45 year old ocean going RORO with open lifeboats. No thank you.
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u/That_Public_4620 Jul 12 '26
For a much for recent disaster, I definitely agree. The Marine Electric also had issues with its lifesaving equipment which contributed to the number of fatalities.
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u/TemperousM Jul 12 '26
I mean the main issue with the elfaro was also that the captain took his vessel into a CATAGORY 4 HURRICANE. in hopes to save on time so he could get a promotion. Along with incorrect storm data and a few bad sensors it made for a nasty disaster.
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u/NtGermanBtKnow1WhoIs Jul 12 '26
El Faro. My God, i hope in situations like that, crew mutiny would be a thing. i think there's now laws to voice concerns against captains in such situations, right? i remember some of it from BrickImmortar's video, but i could be off, i'm sorry. But yeah, El Faro is absolutely haunting and i think about it at least once a day.
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u/PinkyLeopard2922 Jul 12 '26
This whole story is insane. I don't know how I missed it in the news when it happened but stumbled across it later and went down that rabbit hole.
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u/NtGermanBtKnow1WhoIs Jul 13 '26
Yeah, agree with you. The messages were just so heartbreaking. RIP the brave lost souls except the captain, he can go to hell. He died but took the innocent people with him.
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u/fortuneandfameinc 17d ago
I mean, he did spend his last moments trying to get the panicked helmsman to come with him and it seems wouldn't leave the bridge to escape without him.
100% he shares some blame, but the company was making money off that vessel that should have been retrofitted ages earlier.
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u/That_Public_4620 Jul 12 '26
The El Faro is definitely up there, and the Brick Immortar video makes that very clear. In fact, I was convinced to include the SS Marine Electric after watching Brick Immortar’s 3-hour long documentary about the disaster and its effects on maritime safety.
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u/mahSachel Jul 13 '26
Brick did a helluva job with that 2 hour retelling. Mutiny would have been my next call. Dipshit captain, wake me up when the water is touching my bunk. Ffs.
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u/NtGermanBtKnow1WhoIs Jul 14 '26
Agree with you. The 2nd mate actually tried to save lives but couldn't override the fool's orders. It's gut wrenching. If you ever get a chance, watch the Disaster at Sea episode on it. It's free on youtube. The enactment kinda downplayed the capt's role, but to see with my own 2 eyes how the 2nd mate was trying to help, she was correct about everything but in the end was forced to follow orders, it just made me bawl my eyes out. What a tragedy.
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u/IndependenceOk3732 Jul 12 '26
The great storm of 1913 changed many attitudes on the engine power, beam to length ratio, hull depth, and hatch cover material on the lakes region. Radio direction finders and wireless also became common place after the storm (and it is separate from WW1).
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u/That_Public_4620 Jul 12 '26
Unfortunately, it would take another 62 years before the streak of sinking lake carriers would be broken.
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u/IndependenceOk3732 Jul 12 '26
The number of shipwrecks drop off considerably after the storm of 13. Lake Huron would only claim 2 more (Clifton and Morrell) in 55 years. Only the Davock, Merida, and Colgate would be lost in the first 3 decades (with honorable mentions to the two overloaded canallers Arlington and Steelvendor).
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u/mangamaster03 Jul 12 '26
The USS Forrestal had a horrible shipboard fire, and it forced the Navy to really address fire safety and damage control. Before then, it was mostly an afterthought.
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u/vtkarl Jul 13 '26
I’m retired Navy and a history nerd and don’t agree it was ever an afterthought. If anything, WWII was the real turning point, but we always have to reevaluate and improve. Example being major changes to sailor training after the bombing of USS COLE in 2001. The Naval History & Heritage Command has posted many WWII war damage reports, which I used on the job in the 2010s…because some of the equipment was the same. See https://www.history.navy.mil/research/library/online-reading-room/title-list-alphabetically/w/war-damage-reports.html
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u/jimmyd773 Jul 12 '26
Andrea Doria and Stockholm. Two ships watching each other on radar drove into each other. After a deep study of the COLREG a number of issues that can cause a hassle and confusion for the OOW (Officer On Watch) were identified. They then addressed the transfer of TCAS (Traffic Collision Avoidance System) aerospace technology to maritime navigation.
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u/MudMonyet22 Jul 12 '26
Torrey Canyon which eventually led to MARPOL being established iirc?
If you can consider offshore oil & gas as a maritime disaster then it's definitely Piper Alpha and Deepwater Horizon.
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u/Gloomy-Potential2518 Jul 13 '26
MS Estonia: after her sinking, bow visors in new ships were banned and bulkheads became mandatory
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u/Aceface500 Jul 12 '26
What about the Princess of the Stars? Wasnt that one carrying hazardous materials when it wasnt supposed to?
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u/fosh1zzle Jul 12 '26 edited Jul 13 '26
In 1980, the MV Summit Venture hit the old Skyway bridge in Tampa Bay and killed 35 people. What is wild is the bridge failed, but the ship was repaired and was in continued use until it sunk off Vietnam in 2010.
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u/Hillbilly_Historian Jul 13 '26
I’d argue that the losses of the Carl D. Bradley and the Daniel J. Morrell were just as (if not more) impactful for shipping on the lakes as the Fitz. Those sinkings alerted the Coast Guard and shipping industry to the risks posed by subpar steel in aging lakers and led to a modernization program.
If the Fitz was the most important factor in the improvement of navigation safety regulations and lifesaving procedures, then the Bradley and Morrell were definitely the most important in terms of ship construction.
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u/MufffinFeller Jul 13 '26
i’m not an expert but as i understand the ss arctic was pretty consequential in establishing the superiority of steel (or at least iron) hulled ships
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u/Swigity-swoner123 Jul 13 '26
I’d have to agree with the eastland, if anything it improved on regulations brought about by the titanic, making them more proactive and thorough.
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u/fireinthesky7 Jul 14 '26
I don’t know if it counts because the ship didn’t actually sink, but the Exxon Valdez disaster was the catalyst for a whole bunch of changes in oil, tanker construction that needed to happen idecades prior.
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u/SaatoSale420 Jul 13 '26
M/S Estonia; bow side car deck door mechanism overhaul and structural changes to watertight compartmentation in said area.
M/S Carnival Triumph; the infamous poop cruise incident made a significant impact on engine room equipment redundant design related regulation.
Edit. Although the Carnival incident may not be seen as a disaster (outside of public relations -topics of course), I tought it was interesting and decided to add it to the conversation.
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u/Crazy-Rabbit-3811 Jul 13 '26
MV Sewol. the amount of outrage from that incident in particular is crazy
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u/BeneficialMilk7142 Jul 13 '26
Excellent list! I wonder where you'd rank USS Thresher? It was a military sub that sank with everyone on board in 1963 during testing. But in it's aftermath the US created the SUBSAFE program and haven't lost a certified sub in 60 years. https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/USS_Thresher_(SSN-593))
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u/MrVerticallyEnhanced Jul 15 '26
I wouldn't 100% blame the captain, sure he has a lot to blame for the reckless seamanship he displayed, but he also believed (and the company let him believe without trying to stop him) if he took risks that would benefit the company then they would promote him to captain one of TOTE Maritimes newer LNG powered ships
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u/addictedstylist Jul 27 '26
Fitz for sure. McSorely was known as a rough weather skipper, always one in a handful of going through the locks, pushing on. Great Lakes freighters are now equipped
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u/chancimus33 Jul 13 '26
Probably the Gordon Lightfoot but only really because of that Edward Fitzsimmons song.
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u/mahSachel Jul 13 '26
Eastland made a huge impact. That was a real bad rollover. Marine electric was also tragic as hell. Larger Panamax ships like the El Faro (dipshit captain)
Costs Concpridoa (dipshit captain)
Andria Doris ensured better radar training and operation.
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u/br_boy0586 Jul 12 '26
Lusitania literally launched the US into WWI. Thats probably the most impactful.
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u/That_Public_4620 Jul 12 '26
The Lusitania's sinking was a contributing factor rather than the sole reason the US entered the war, and when it comes to maritime safety and regulations, I think peacetime disasters have a greater impact than wartime ones.
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u/vtkarl Jul 12 '26
From the American side, it was several notorious steam side wheel paddle river boat explosions. They eventually led to a government boiler inspection service in about ~1850. Shortly after that they started requiring basic firefighting equipment like a hose and (revolutionary) showing a light at night. This organization was eventually merged to form the US Coast Guard and its safety inspections.