Tuesday, November 7, 2023

SS Normandie




The SS Normandie entered service in 1935, she almost immediately set a record for a transatlantic crossing in less than 100 hours, Le Havre to New York City. 

 During WW2 after the fall of France, the ship was commandeered by the US and was in the process of being converted to a troopship when it caught fire and capsized. It was a total loss. New York Daily News



 

2 comments:

rats said...

"Oops."

Dave said...

I wondered how she had capsized in harbor from a fire and it turns out to be a sad story. There were multiple agencies involved in fighting the fire and without modern communications and coordination they all ended up flooding her upper port-side superstructure with water which caused her to flip in water only 10 feet deeper than her draft. Had they pumped water into her evenly she would have simply settled on ground.