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What happaned to the Empress of ireland. It was sunk in the St. Lawrence River around the time the Titanic sun (1912)????

February 1, 2010


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The Empress of Ireland sank in the Gulf of St. Lawrence near Rimouski in the early hours of May 29, 1914 with the loss of 1012 souls. It was, and still is, Canada's worst maritime disaster. Outbound from Quebec City and heading for Liverpool, the Empress was struck amidships on the starboard side by the collier Storstad, heading upriver with a full load of coal. The two ships had sighted each other earlier but a fog bank came up suddenly and the ships disappeared from view. The Empress stopped; when the fog lifted, Storstad was only a short distance away and still making ten knots.
The wound was fatal. Within minutes the Empress rolled over on her side, trapping hundreds below decks. Less than fourteen minutes after the collision she disappeared into the frigid water.
Salvage efforts continued until September 1914, after which she was largely forgotten.
The ship was rediscovered by divers in the early 1960s. Divers can still explore the hulk but it is protected by the Quebec government.
Source(s):
Empress of Ireland: The Story of an Edwardian Line (by Derek Grout)
Forgotten Empress (by David Zeni)
Feb 26th, 2010 at 10:18 AM
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how did it sink
Source(s):
f
Nov 12th, 2010 at 10:01 PM
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