1956 — July 25, Andrea Doria and Stockholm collide in Fog off Nantucket Island, MA– 51
–51 Halpern. An Objective…Analysis of the Collision Between Stockholm and Andrea Doria.
–46 Passengers on the Italian passenger liner Andrea Doria
— 5 Crew members on the Swedish passenger liner Stockholm
–51 History.com. “1956. Ships collide off Nantucket.” (46/Andrea Doria, 5/Stockholm).
–51 Kelly. Andrea Doria. (46 on Andrea Doria and 5 crewmen on the Stockholm)
–47 Smith, Roger. Catastrophes and Disasters. Edinburgh and NY: Chambers, 1992, p. 169
–46 PBS. Lost Liners. Comparison Chart. Accessed 9-7-2016.
Narrative Information
Kelly: “…on July 25, 1956, two large passenger liners off Massachusetts were steaming toward each other through the night at a combined speed of 40 knots. In spite of ample room to maneuver, in spite of the radar that let them spot each other from a distance, and in spite of clear rules intended to avoid collisions, the Stockholm crashed into the Andrea Doria and ripped the luxurious ship open amidships. It was to be the last great drama of the age of transatlantic passenger liners….
The Andrea Doria was listing alarmingly to starboard, and seawater was pouring in. The enormous ship was in danger of sinking. Its 1,660 passengers and crew were in imminent peril….
“Several factors contributed to the collision. The International Regulations for Preventing Collisions at Sea stipulated that ships in fog “go at a moderate speed.” The Andrea Doria’s captain…was steaming ahead at nearly 22 knots through dense fog in order to keep to his schedule. At that speed, it would take the vessel three miles to stop. Those same rules dictated that when ships were meeting nearly head-on “each shall alter her course to starboard” to avoid a collision—keep to the right. But the rule did not apply to ships that were likely to “pass clear of each other.”
“Assuming the ships had plenty of room to pass on the left, Calamai veered slightly to port to allow more clearance. Johan-Ernst Carstens, the Stockholm third mate who was commanding the bridge, turned his ship to the right for the same reason, putting the two vessels on a collision course. When the Andrea Doria emerged from the fog, the crew saw the oncoming lights of the Stockholm. Carstens ordered a turn 20 degrees farther to the right, but failed to signal the maneuver with his ship’s whistle.
“Aboard the Doria, Captain Calamai had seconds to make a decision. He chose wrong, sending his ship into a hard left turn. The 29,000-ton vessel skidded across the path of the Stockholm and received her ice-cutter bow at almost a 90-degree angle.
“The ships rammed together just after 11:00 p.m. to the sound of sirens and bending steel. The Stockholm’s prow crashed 40 feet into the side of the Andrea Doria, through cabins filled with sleeping passengers. Forty-six of them were killed in the collision, along with five Swedish crewmen who slept in cabins in the bow of the Stockholm.
“The ships hung together for a few seconds, then parted. Though her bow had been sheared off, the Stockholm was in no danger of sinking. But the Andrea Doria, with 500 tons of seawater rushing into her empty starboard fuel tanks, listed 20 degrees. Because she was leaning over so badly, her crew could not lower the port lifeboats. The Doria, like the Titanic 44 years earlier, now had lifeboats for only half its passengers.
“Crewmen from the Stockholm began to ferry passengers from the stricken ship in their own motorized lifeboats. It was a slow process; Andrea Doria passengers were forced to negotiate steeply sloping decks and clamber down ropes or netting to reach the floating lifeboats. Some panicked and jumped. One man tossed his young daughter into a boat, fracturing her skull. She later died.
“On board the Stockholm, a sailor discovered 14-year-old Linda Morgan entangled in the wreckage near the bow. He could not find her name on the ship’s passenger list. He was startled when she revealed that she was a passenger on the Andrea Doria. Linda, who became known at the “miracle girl,” had been thrown from her bed onto the other ship during the collision, which had killed her half-sister and stepfather….
“No final adjudication was ever made of who was to blame for the accident; the numerous lawsuits were settled out of court. New rules were put into place afterward, dictating certification of radar operators and requiring approaching ships to establish radio contact.” (Kelly, Andrea Doria.)
Sources
Halpern. An Objective…Analysis of the Collision Between Stockholm and Andrea Doria. 47 pages. Accessed 2-10-2020 at: http://www.titanicology.com/AndreaDoria/Stockholm-Andrea_Doria_Collision_Analysis.pdf
History.com. “This Day in History. General Interest. July 25, 1956. Ships collide off Nantucket.” Accessed 9-7-2016 at: http://www.history.com/this-day-in-history/ships-collide-off-nantucket
Kelly, Jack. “Andrea Doria.” Shipwreck Central. Accessed 11/16/2008 at: http://www.shipwreckcentral.com/livedive/archives/2007/07/
PBS. Lost Liners. Comparison Chart. Accessed 9-7-2016 at: https://www.pbs.org/lostliners/chart.html
Smith, Roger. Catastrophes and Disasters. Edinburgh and New York: W & R Chambers, 1992.