Secrets of the Dead (2000–…): Season 5, Episode 4 - The Sinking of the Andrea Doria - full transcript
The 1956 sinking of the luxurious Italian liner Andrea Doria is detailed. After being rammed near Nantucket by the Swedish liner Stockholm, the Andrea Doria stayed afloat for many hours, allowing most aboard to be rescued. This documentary explores who might have been at fault and includes interviews with survivors from both ships.
Announcer: COMING UP NEXT
ON "SECRETS OF THE DEAD"...
JULY 25, 1956,
TWO SHIPS COLLIDE
IN THE DEAD OF NIGHT.
Man: PEOPLE WERE RUNNING OUT,
AND YOU COULD HEAR THEM
SCREAMING.
THE SHIP IS SINKING.
Woman: AND I WAS THINKING
I WAS GONNA DIE.
Announcer: 1,500 WERE RESCUED
BEFORE THE "ANDREA DORIA"
WENT DOWN.
BUT FOR 50 YEARS,
MYSTERY HAS SURROUNDED
THE CAUSE OF THE COLLISION.
WAS IT DANGEROUS WEATHER,
FAULTY EQUIPMENT,
OR HUMAN ERROR?
UNCOVER THE TRUE STORY
OF THE SINKING OF
THE "ANDREA DORIA"
NEXT ON "SECRETS OF THE DEAD."
CAPTIONING MADE POSSIBLE BY
U.S. DEPARTMENT OF EDUCATION
"SECRETS OF THE DEAD"
WAS MADE POSSIBLE
BY CONTRIBUTIONS
TO YOUR PBS STATION FROM...
Narrator:
IN 1956, THE "ANDREA DORIA"
WAS ONE OF THE MOST STYLISH
CRUISE LINERS ON THE HIGH SEAS.
TODAY, SHE LIES IN RUINS
ON THE BOTTOM OF THE ATLANTIC.
BUT IN HER HEYDAY,
THE "ANDREA DORIA" FERRIED
THOUSANDS OF PASSENGERS
FROM ALL WALKS OF LIFE
BETWEEN EUROPE AND AMERICA.
SHE ALSO CARRIED THE WEIGHT
OF A NATION'S PRIDE,
AS ITALY WAS DESPERATE TO EMERGE
FROM THE RUINOUS WORLD WAR
THAT HAD KILLED ALMOST
HALF A MILLION OF HER PEOPLE
AND LEFT HER GLOBAL IMAGE
IN TATTERS.
THE SHIP'S DESIGNERS
SPARED NO EXPENSE ON THIS
"FLOATING ART MUSEUM."
HER 700 FEET OF SLEEK LINES
AND SUMPTUOUS INTERIORS
DRIPPED WITH
STUNNING WORKS OF ART...
PAINTINGS, SCULPTURES,
AND MOSAICS.
STATEROOMS AND BALLROOMS
WERE LAVISH...
PROMENADES IDYLLIC.
IN THE 1950s,
TRAVEL BY OCEAN LINER
WAS STILL A POPULAR WAY
TO CROSS THE ATLANTIC,
EVEN THOUGH AIR TRAVEL
WAS TAKING OFF.
THE "ANDREA DORIA" WAS
AN ELEGANT REMINDER OF A TIME
WHEN THE JOURNEY
WAS THE DESTINATION...
UNTIL JULY 25, 1956,
WHEN SHE COLLIDED WITH ANOTHER
LINER IN THE OPEN OCEAN...
AND THEN THE COLLISION...
RIGHT AFTER THE TWO WHISTLES,
A CRASH!
Narrator:
51 PEOPLE WERE KILLED,
MANY WHILE THEY SLEPT.
THE PEOPLE BENEATH ME
ON "B" AND "C" DECK
HAD DROWNED,
AND YOU COULD HEAR THEM
SCREAMING.
"IT'S VEERING!
IT'S GOING TO HIT US!"
Narrator: THE DISASTER WOULD
LEAD TO ONE OF THE GREATEST
SEA RESCUES IN HISTORY.
BUT QUESTIONS ABOUT
THE COLLISION REMAIN.
DO I SAVE THE SHIP?
OR DO I SAVE THE PASSENGERS?
Narrator: WHAT REALLY HAPPENED
IN THE NORTH ATLANTIC
THAT JULY NIGHT?
WHO WAS RESPONSIBLE
FOR THE TRAGEDY?
HAD BAD DECISIONS BEEN MADE?
WAS THERE REALLY FOG
OFF THE COAST OF NANTUCKET?
AND WERE THE TWO SHIPS
TRAVELING TOO FAST
IN DANGEROUS CONDITIONS?
AND DID ECONOMIC INTERESTS KEEP
THE TRUTH HIDDEN FOR 50 YEARS?
THE "ANDREA DORIA"
WAS DESIGNED FOR BEAUTY
AND HAD STATE-OF-THE-ART
ENGINEERING.
SHE BOASTED
11 WATERTIGHT COMPARTMENTS
MEANT TO KEEP HER AFLOAT
EVEN IF TWO WERE BREACHED.
HER FLANKS OVERFLOWED
WITH LIFEBOATS...
A LESSON LEARNED
FROM THE "TITANIC" TRAGEDY
4 DECADES EARLIER.
WHEN THE "DORIA"
TOOK HER FIRST DIP IN THE WATER
ON JUNE 16, 1951,
IT WAS A MAJOR EVENT
IN THE SHIPBUILDING MECCA
OF GENOA.
THE CITY IS THE HOME
OF CHRISTOPHER COLUMBUS
AND GENERATIONS OF
OTHER SEAFARERS.
TO A YOUNG NAVAL OFFICER
LIKE EUGENIO GIANNINI,
A COMMISSION
ON THE "ANDREA DORIA"
WAS AS GOOD AS IT GETS.
FOR ME, THIS WAS
A DREAM COME TRUE.
TO BE AN OFFICER
ON THE "ANDREA DORIA"
WAS AN EXTRAORDINARY ACHIEVEMENT
BECAUSE IT WAS THE MOST
BEAUTIFUL SHIP IN THE WORLD.
Narrator: JANUARY 15, 1953.
THE "ANDREA DORIA'S"
MAIDEN VOYAGE.
SHE HEADS FROM NAPLES
TO NEW YORK.
HUGE CROWDS TOAST HER ARRIVAL.
3 1/2 YEARS LATER,
THE "DORIA" HAD MADE
THE EUROPE-TO-NEW-YORK CROSSING
100 TIMES.
MANY OF THESE VOYAGES HAD
BOASTED HOLLYWOOD ROYALTY
LIKE CARY GRANT,
KIM NOVAK,
ORSON WELLES,
AND JOAN CRAWFORD...
ALL FANS OF THE YOUNG
BUT ALREADY LEGENDARY VESSEL.
Herlihy: A BEVY OF BEAUTY
PROMENADES
ON THE NEW ITALIAN LINE
FLAGSHIP THE "ANDREA DORIA,"
DISPLAYING STYLES WITH
AN INTERNATIONAL FLAVOR.
ALL ASHORE THAT'S GOING ASHORE!
Narrator: AT THE "DORIA'S" HELM
WAS DECORATED 58-YEAR-OLD
COMMANDER PIERO CALAMAI,
A RESERVED AND SERIOUS MAN
CHARGED WITH TRANSPORTING SOME
700 CREW AND 1,000 PASSENGERS
ON THE 4,000-MILE VOYAGE
ACROSS THE MEDITERRANEAN
AND NORTH ATLANTIC
TO THE WEST SIDE PIERS
OF MANHATTAN.
Gianinni: COMMANDER CALAMAI
WAS A SKILLED SEAMAN.
I NEVER SAW HIM LOSE HIS TEMPER
DURING THE MONTHS
I SERVED UNDER HIM.
I ALWAYS SAW HIM
JUDGE THINGS CALMLY,
WITH ABILITY AND GOOD SENSE.
Narrator: CALAMAI HAD BEEN
GROOMED FOR LIFE AT SEA
SINCE HIS BOYHOOD IN GENOA.
HE HAD RECEIVED MEDALS OF VALOR
DURING BOTH WORLD WARS,
SERVED ON 27 MERCHANT SHIPS,
AND ON MANY GREAT OCEAN LINERS.
ON JULY 17, 1956,
CAPTAIN CALAMAI
WAS NEARING RETIREMENT.
HE FIGURED THIS VOYAGE
MIGHT BE HIS LAST
ABOARD THE "ANDREA DORIA."
LITTLE DID HE KNOW HOW PROPHETIC
THOSE THOUGHTS WOULD BECOME.
THE DAY THE "DORIA" SET SAIL FOR
NEW YORK WAS TYPICALLY HECTIC.
AS USUAL, THE SHIP
WAS ALMOST FULLY BOOKED.
PASSENGERS CAME FROM ALL ENDS
OF THE CLASS SPECTRUM...
FROM EUROPEANS FLEEING POVERTY
FOR AMERICA
TO UPPER-CLASS TOURISTS
ON LUXURY VACATIONS.
IN HER CARGO HOLD,
SHE EVEN HAULED
A $150,000 EXPERIMENTAL CAR
MADE BY ITALIAN AUTOMAKER GHIA
FOR CHRYSLER.
DANTE GALLINARI AND HIS BROTHER
WERE HEADING TO AMERICA
WITH THEIR MOTHER.
THEY WERE FOLLOWING
THEIR FATHER,
WHO HAD IMMIGRATED
AHEAD OF THEM.
Gallinari:
FOR ME AS A 10-YEAR-OLD,
I WAS WIDE-EYED.
AND LOOKING AT IT,
IT WAS VERY IMPRESSIVE...
A LARGE SHIP,
A VERY NEW LIGHT SHIP.
AND IT WAS JUST MARVELOUS.
Narrator: JEROME REINERT,
AN AMERICAN STUDENT IN ROME,
HAD EXPECTED TO FLY HOME
BUT HAD CHANGED HIS PLANS
BECAUSE OF A GIRL.
SHE WAS COMING BACK TO NEW YORK
ON THE "ANDREA DORIA."
SO I CASHED IN MY TICKET
AND USED THE MONEY TO BUY
A CABIN ON THE "ANDREA DORIA."
Narrator: PAT MASTRINCOLA
WAS WITH HIS MOTHER
AND 9-YEAR-OLD SISTER ARLENE.
Mastrincola:
I WAS ON THE "ANDREA DORIA"
BECAUSE MY MOTHER
WAS AN ITALIAN WAR BRIDE
AND THIS WAS HER FIRST TRIP BACK
IN ORDER FOR US TO MEET
OUR GRANDFATHER, AUNTS,
AND UNCLES
AND THE REST OF OUR FAMILY.
Narrator: LILIANA DOONER
WAS IN TOURIST CLASS
WITH HER 3-YEAR-OLD DAUGHTER,
MARIA.
WE WERE GOING TO NEW JERSEY
TO RAISE OUR FAMILY.
Narrator:
GIOVANNA AND LEONARDO PALADINO,
LIKE SO MANY OTHERS,
WERE SIMPLY OUT TO
TRY THEIR LUCK IN AMERICA.
I HAD A SHOP IN ITALY.
I WAS INDEPENDENT,
WITH TWO PEOPLE
WORKING FOR ME.
BUT ONE DAY,
SOMEONE SAID,
"COME TO AMERICA.
YOU'LL GET RICH."
Narrator:
THE PALADINOS HAD BROUGHT
THEIR 3 DAUGHTERS WITH THEM,
HOPING TO MAKE IT
IN THE LAND OF OPPORTUNITY.
IT WAS A SHIP
BRIMMING WITH HOPES,
WHICH QUITE OFTEN
BECAME REALITY.
IT WAS THE BEGINNING OF THE LIFE
OF A CITY ON THE SEA.
Narrator:
BUT THE DIVERSE PASSENGER LIST
AND MELTING POT APPEARANCE
ONLY WENT SO FAR.
FACILITIES, INCLUDING POOLS,
SLEEPING QUARTERS,
AND DINING ROOMS,
WERE STRICTLY SEGREGATED
BY CLASS.
Mastrincola: WELL,
YOU WERE SUPPOSED TO
STAY IN TOURIST CLASS.
AND I WOULD GO
INTO THE ENGINE ROOM,
CABIN CLASS, FIRST CLASS.
AND I'D ALWAYS BE CAUGHT.
EVERY TIME I WOULD
SNEAK OUT OF TOURIST,
SOMEBODY WOULD SAY, "YOU,
BACK DOWN WHERE YOU BELONG."
IT'S LIKE THEY KNEW,
THEY WAITED FOR ME.
Narrator:
SOON AFTER SHE SET SAIL,
THE "DORIA" PASSED
THE ROCK OF GIBRALTAR,
LEAVING THE MEDITERRANEAN BEHIND
AND HEADING INTO THE ATLANTIC.
ALMOST IMMEDIATELY,
SECOND ENGINE OFFICER
GIOVANNI CORDERA
SPOTTED FOG IN THEIR PATH.
ALTHOUGH IT WAS JULY,
A FAVORABLE SEASON,
AFTER CROSSING GIBRALTAR,
WE HAD FOG QUITE OFTEN...
A CALM SEA, BUT A LOT OF FOG.
Narrator: EARLY IN THE CRUISE,
LILIANA DOONER
HAD A PREMONITION.
Dooner: ONCE I DREAMT
THAT MY DAUGHTER AND
WERE NOT ON THE "ANDREA DORIA,"
BUT ON THE "CAPE ANN,"
AND I SAW MYSELF
BOARD "THE CAPE ANN"...
BECAUSE THE "ANDREA DORIA"
WAS SINKING.
WHEN I WENT TO BREAKFAST,
I TOLD MY FRIENDS
AND PEOPLE AT THE TABLE,
"I DON'T FEEL LIKE EATING,
BECAUSE I DREAMT OF THE SINKING
OF THE "ANDREA DORIA."
THEY LAUGHED AND SAID, "THINGS
LIKE THAT DON'T HAPPEN ANYMORE."
Narrator: DOONER'S DREAM
WAS GIVEN LITTLE THOUGHT.
FOR MOST PASSENGERS, THE JOURNEY
WAS CAREFREE AND RELAXING,
AS THE SHIP STEAMED
ACROSS THE OPEN ATLANTIC.
JUST LIKE ON TODAY'S CRUISES,
LAVISH MEALS
WERE A "DORIA" HIGHLIGHT.
Gallinari: BESIDES GOING TO
ALL THE DIFFERENT MEALS,
ON DECK, IN THE BACK,
THERE WAS ALWAYS...
WE PLAYED HIDE AND GO SEEK,
WE PLAYED TAG.
IT WAS FUN WATCHING,
PEOPLE-WATCHING.
Narrator: BY JULY 25,
THE SHIP HAD CROSSED
THE ATLANTIC
AND WAS NEARING THE END
OF HER VOYAGE.
THE NEXT MORNING, NEW YORK CITY.
PASSENGERS WERE ENJOYING
THE LAST FEW HOURS OF DAYLIGHT
AND PREPARING FOR
THEIR FINAL EVENING AT SEA.
ON THE BRIDGE, CAPTAIN CALAMAI
WAS SCANNING THE HORIZON FOR FOG
AS THE SHIP APPROACHED
THE BUSY SHIPPING LANES
OFF THE EAST COAST.
IT WAS JULY,
AND SO FAR IT HAD BEEN
A NICE JOURNEY,
APART FROM THE FOG,
BUT IT WAS PRETTY NORMAL
TO HAVE FOG APPROACHING
THE CONTINENTAL SHELF.
THAT DAY, WE ENCOUNTERED IT
AT 3:00 IN THE AFTERNOON.
Narrator: CALAMAI ORDERED
THE FOG SIGNAL TURNED ON
AS A SAFETY MEASURE.
Cordera: THAT FAMOUS AFTERNOON,
WE WERE SAILING UNDER FOG ALERT.
THIS MEANT EXTRA GUARDS,
REDUCING BOILER PRESSURE,
AND BEING READY
TO MAKE A SUDDEN STOP
SHOULD WE GET THE ORDER
TO STOP OR REDUCE SPEED.
Narrator:
WHETHER TO SLOW DOWN IN FOG
IS A DILEMMA MANY MARINERS FACE.
SAFETY DEMANDS IT,
BUT CAPTAINS FACE ENORMOUS
PRESSURE FROM THEIR COMPANIES
TO DELIVER THEIR CARGOS
TO PORT ON TIME.
DELAYS CAN BE COSTLY
AND BAD FOR PUBLICITY.
ANY SKIPPER THAT IS GOING TO BE
LATE TO A LARGE DEGREE
ON ANY CONSISTENT BASIS IS
PROBABLY GOING TO LOSE HIS JOB.
WE'D BEEN SAILING THROUGH FOG
ALL AFTERNOON.
ON THE BRIDGE,
I MET COMMANDER CALAMAI.
HE'D BEEN ON THE BRIDGE
SINCE WE'D ENCOUNTERED FOG,
AS WAS USUAL.
HE NEVER ABANDONED IT.
Narrator: CALAMAI WAS PRUDENT
TO STAY ON THE BRIDGE,
BUT HE ALSO MADE
A LESS CAUTIOUS DECISION
THAT WOULD HAUNT HIM
FOR THE REST OF HIS LIFE.
Goldstein: THE CAPTAIN
OF THE "ANDREA DORIA,"
A VETERAN OF MANY YEARS AT SEA,
SLOWED DOWN ONLY SLIGHTLY,
FROM 23 KNOTS TO 21.8 KNOTS.
Narrator: THE RULE OF THUMB
IS THAT A SHIP SHOULD
NEVER GO FAST ENOUGH
THAT SHE CAN'T STOP
IN HALF THE DISTANCE
VISIBLE FROM THE BRIDGE.
IN HEAVY FOG THAT EVENING,
VISIBILITY
WAS EXTREMELY LIMITED.
BY 10:00 P.M.,
NEW YORK CITY,
THE SHIP'S FINAL DESTINATION,
WAS WRAPPED IN DARKNESS.
THAT MORNING,
A SWEDISH CRUISE LINER
NAMED THE "STOCKHOLM"
HAD LEFT MANHATTAN'S
57th STREET DOCK.
SHE WAS STEAMING TOWARD
GOTHENBURG, SWEDEN,
ON A BEARING ROUGHLY PARALLEL
TO THE "ANDREA DORIA'S."
THE "STOCKHOLM'S" COMMANDER
WAS HARRY GUNNAR NORDENSON.
HE WAS BORN IN AMERICA
TO SWEDISH PARENTS
AND WAS A 46-YEAR VETERAN
OF LIFE ON THE SEA.
UNLIKE THE SLEEK "ANDREA DORIA,"
THE "STOCKHOLM"
WAS A STURDY WORKHORSE,
SHORN OF THE TRIMMINGS
THAT GRACED THE "DORIA"
AND WEIGHING LESS THAN HALF
OF THE ITALIAN SHIP.
HER REINFORCED BOW
MADE HER IDEAL FOR FOLLOWING
NORTH SEA ICE-BREAKERS
AND GAVE HER UNUSUAL MIGHT
FOR A CRUISE LINER.
LIKE THE "DORIA,"
THE "STOCKHOLM" WAS FITTED WITH
UP-TO-DATE SAFETY FEATURES,
INCLUDING RADAR.
RADAR TECHNOLOGY
WAS STILL IN ITS INFANCY,
BUT IT GAVE CREWS THE ABILITY
TO DETECT OTHER SHIPS
FROM MILES AWAY.
PERHAPS BECAUSE HE HAD RADAR,
NORDENSON CHOSE A COURSE
FOR THE "STOCKHOLM"
THAT WOULD TAKE HER 20 MILES
NORTH OF HER USUAL ROUTE.
THE SHORTCUT WOULD SAVE TIME.
IT WOULD ALSO PUT HER
INTO ONE OF THE WORLD'S
BUSIEST SHIPPING LANES.
THE AREA WAS ACTUALLY CALLED
THE TIMES SQUARE OF THE ATLANTIC
BECAUSE IT WAS
SO HEAVILY TRAVELED.
ON ANY GIVEN DAY,
THERE MIGHT HAVE BEEN
50 OR 60 SHIPS
COMING INTO AND OUT OF
NEW YORK HARBOR,
MANY OF THEM OCEAN LINERS.
THEY WOULD ALL BE GOING IN
THIS AREA SOUTH OF NANTUCKET.
Narrator: KEEPING WATCH
ON THE "STOCKHOLM'S" BRIDGE
WAS 26-YEAR-OLD THIRD OFFICER
JOHAN CARSTENS-JOHANNSEN.
CARSTENS WAS KNOWN
AS A GENIAL SHIPMATE
AND A RELIABLE HELMSMAN,
AND THIS WAS HIS FOURTH VOYAGE
ON THE "STOCKHOLM."
THE CAPTAIN GAVE CARSTENS
CLEAR INSTRUCTIONS...
STAY AT LEAST ONE MILE AWAY
FROM PASSING SHIPS
AND ALERT HIM IMMEDIATELY
IF THEY ENCOUNTERED FOG.
BUT DESPITE WEATHER BULLETINS
REPORTING THICK FOG
NEAR THE "NANTUCKET" LIGHTSHIP,
CARSTENS WOULD LATER CLAIM
HE SAW NO FOG
AS THE "STOCKHOLM"
APPROACHED THE AREA.
THE "ANDREA DORIA" CREW,
ON THE OTHER HAND,
NOTED HEAVY FOG,
BUT FELT THEY WERE TAKING
THE APPROPRIATE PRECAUTIONS.
JUST AFTER 10:00 P.M.,
CARSTENS REALIZES THAT HIS SHIP
IS TWO MILES FARTHER NORTH
THAN HE'D THOUGHT
AND CLOSER TO THE NOTORIOUSLY
HAZARDOUS AREA
AROUND THE "NANTUCKET"
LIGHTSHIP.
AT EXACTLY 22:45,
WE SPOTTED A RADAR SIGNAL AT
17 MILES, 4 DEGREES STARBOARD.
IT WAS CLEAR THE SHIP
WAS COMING TOWARDS US
ON A PARALLEL
AND OPPOSITE COURSE...
AND THAT IT WOULD
PASS US TO STARBOARD
AT A DISTANCE OF
ABOUT 1.2 OR 1.3 MILES,
A CONSIDERABLE DISTANCE.
Narrator: THE APPROACHING SHIP
IS THE "STOCKHOLM,"
AND SHE HAS ALSO SPOTTED
THE "ANDREA DORIA" ON HER RADAR.
BUT TO CARSTENS,
THE "DORIA" LOOKS LIKE
SHE IS APPROACHING
ON HIS PORT, OR LEFT, SIDE...
NOT THE STARBOARD.
SO HE PREPARES
TO LET THE "DORIA" PASS
ON HIS LEFT.
THIS PORT-TO-PORT PASSING
IS A GENERAL RULE OF THE ROAD.
BUT SINCE THE RADAR READINGS ON
THE TWO SHIPS DO NOT MATCH UP,
THEY ARE HEADING TOWARDS
A PERILOUS CONFRONTATION...
AND BOTH SHIPS
ARE STILL SAILING AT HIGH SPEED.
HEEDING HIS CAPTAIN'S
INSTRUCTIONS
NEVER TO PASS A SHIP
AT LESS THAN A MILE DISTANCE,
CARSTENS ORDERS
A SHARP TURN TO STARBOARD,
THINKING HE WILL
INCREASE THE DISTANCE
BETWEEN THE "STOCKHOLM"
AND THE OTHER SHIP
BEFORE THEY PASS.
THE "DORIA" IS TAKING
OTHER PRECAUTIONS.
I WENT TO THE SIDE OF THE BRIDGE
TO TRY TO HEAR THE FOG SIGNALS
THAT A SHIP SAILING IN FOG
HAD TO EMIT.
Narrator: BUT CARSTENS,
WHO LATER CLAIMS
THERE WAS NO FOG,
DOES NOT SEND A SIGNAL
OR ALERT HIS CAPTAIN.
HE DECIDED NOT TO CALL HIM,
FELT HE COULD HANDLE IT
ON HIS OWN.
Narrator: MEANWHILE,
EACH SHIP CONTINUES TO OPERATE
UNDER DIFFERENT ASSUMPTIONS
ABOUT THE ROUTE AND LOCATION
OF THE OTHER.
SURPRISINGLY,
THEY DON'T HAVE THE TECHNOLOGY
TO TALK TO EACH OTHER
SHIP-TO-SHIP,
AND THEIR OPPOSITE
RADAR READINGS
HAVE PUT THEM
ON A COLLISION COURSE.
SUDDENLY, CAPTAIN CALAMAI
CATCHES A GLIMPSE
OF THE "STOCKHOLM"
THROUGH THE FOG.
IT'S DIRECTLY IN THEIR PATH
AND CLOSING FAST.
COMMANDER,
IT'S VEERING CLOSER!
IT'S GOING TO
HIT US!
Narrator: THE STOCKHOLM IS NOW
ONLY A MILE AND A HALF AWAY.
IT WAS A MATTER OF SECONDS.
DECISIONS HAD TO BE TAKEN
IMMEDIATELY.
Narrator:
THE HELMSMAN TURNS SHARPLY,
DRIVING HARD TO THE LEFT TO
AVOID THE ONCOMING "STOCKHOLM."
WE HAD TO COUNT ON OUR SPEED
TO AVOID COLLISION.
Narrator: ON THE "STOCKHOLM,"
CARSTENS LOSES PRECIOUS SECONDS
TAKING A PHONE CALL
FROM THE LOOKOUT
BEFORE FINALLY REALIZING
THAT THE "DORIA" IS NOW
DIRECTLY AHEAD.
STILL ASSUMING
SHE WILL PASS ON HIS LEFT,
HE VEERS HARD TO HIS RIGHT.
AT THIS MOMENT,
THE SHIPS HAVE ABOUT 100 SECONDS
TO PREVENT A COLLISION.
WE WERE IN OUR CABIN.
Narrator: 60 SECONDS.
I WAS SITTING IN A BIG LOUNGE
CHAIR, AROUND A COCKTAIL TABLE.
Narrator: 40.
I WAS BORED WITH THE MOVIE.
IT WAS A LOVE STORY.
Narrator: 30 SECONDS
TO PREVENT A CATASTROPHE.
IN A FINAL, DESPERATE MOVE,
CARSTENS GIVES THE ORDER
FOR FULL REVERSE.
BUT TIME QUICKLY RUNS OUT.
THE REINFORCED BOW
OF THE "STOCKHOLM"
SMASHES INTO THE SIDE
OF THE "ANDREA DORIA"
WITH THE FORCE
OF A MASSIVE TORPEDO.
THE 13,000-TON VESSEL
SLICES DIRECTLY INTO
THE ANDREA DORIA'S SIDE,
HER REINFORCED BOW
TEARING STRAIGHT INTO
THE ITALIAN SHIP'S LOWER CABINS,
PEELING THEM OPEN
LIKE A CAN OPENER.
THE ROOM ACTUALLY ROCKED.
AND EVERYBODY STARTED
TO SLIDE ACROSS THE ROOM
AGAINST THE WALL.
MY MOM GRABBING ME IN THE ARM
AND TELLING ME
TO "WAKE UP, WAKE UP,"
AND GRABBED ME BY THE ARM
AND OUT THE DOOR OF THE CABIN,
BECAUSE SHE HEARD
ALL THIS COMMOTION
AND THIS SCREAMING GOING ON.
Narrator: THE IMPACT LASTS
JUST A FEW SECONDS
BUT CATCHES THE "DORIA"
AT HER MOST VULNERABLE SPOT.
THE DAMAGE IS HORRIFIC.
HER SUPPOSEDLY
WATERTIGHT COMPARTMENTS
IMMEDIATELY BEGIN
TAKING ON WATER.
Goldstein: IT WAS HIT
IN THE AREA OF THE FUEL TANKS.
THE TANKS WERE ALL
VIRTUALLY EMPTY
BECAUSE IT WAS ONLY A FEW HOURS
FROM ITS ARRIVAL IN NEW YORK.
WHAT HAPPENED IS,
YOU HAVE SEAWATER
NOW RUSHING INTO
THE EMPTY STARBOARD TANKS.
IT WENT BACK AND FORTH,
AND THEN IT SETTLED
ON THE STARBOARD SIDE.
Narrator: INSTANT FLOODING
SETS THE SHIP LISTING
22 DEGREES TO STARBOARD.
INSIDE, PANIC AND CHAOS ERUPT.
PAT MASTRINCOLA RUNS DOWN
TO THE LOWER DECKS
LOOKING FOR HIS SISTER.
SO AS I STARTED TO GO
INTO THE CORRIDOR,
PEOPLE WERE RUNNING OUT,
AND THESE PEOPLE WERE
IN THEIR NIGHTCLOTHES,
THEY WERE COVERED WITH OIL,
THEY WERE SCREAMING,
THEY WERE PANICKY.
Leonardo Paladino:
WE COULD HEAR SCREAMING
EVERYWHERE.
THOSE WHO
HAD BEEN SLEEPING
CAME OUT OF THE CABINS
ALMOST NAKED.
Gallinari:
AND ONE OF THE OFFICERS
WAS SAYING,
"CALM, CALM.
EVERYTHING SEEMS TO BE FINE."
BUT PEOPLE WERE STILL GOING
AS FAR UP AS THEY COULD GO.
Narrator: UNAWARE OF WHAT
THEY WILL FIND ABOVE,
LOWER-CLASS PASSENGERS
ARE DESPERATE TO GET
AS FAR AS POSSIBLE
FROM THE RISING WATER.
BUT I WAS LUCKY BECAUSE,
BEING A BOY,
I COULD SNEAK RIGHT
BETWEEN THE DOOR
IN A PILE OF PEOPLE,
AND I GOT OUT.
WHEN I GOT NEAR THE CABIN AREA,
I COULD HEAR THE PEOPLE BELOW ME
SCREAMING...
ON "B" AND "C" DECK HAD DROWNED,
AND YOU COULD HEAR THEM
SCREAMING.
Narrator:
THE CRASH KILLS 43 PEOPLE
ON IMPACT,
MOST OF THEM FROM "C" DECK,
WHERE MANY OF THE POOREST
PASSENGERS HAVE CABINS.
THE SERGIO FAMILY,
MOVING TO AMERICA FROM
A SMALL VILLAGE NEAR NAPLES,
ARE ALL KILLED.
FERDINAND AND FRANCES THERIOT
ALSO DIE THAT NIGHT,
BUT THEIR SON PETER,
JUST A FEW CABINS AWAY,
IS UNHURT.
THE "NEW YORK TIMES"
CORRESPONDENT FROM SPAIN,
CAMILLE CINFARRA,
AND HIS DAUGHTER JOAN
ARE KILLED.
BUT HIS STEPDAUGHTER,
14-YEAR-OLD LINDA MORGAN,
BECOMES KNOWN AS
THE "MIRACLE GIRL"
OF THE "ANDREA DORIA"
WHEN, INCREDIBLY,
SHE IS FLUNG FROM HER CABIN ONTO
THE PROW OF THE "STOCKHOLM"...
AND SURVIVES.
AS PASSENGERS BELOW DECKS
SCRAMBLE FOR SAFETY,
CAPTAIN CALAMAI SENDS OUT
AN S-O-S TO SHIPS IN THE AREA
AND HAS TO MAKE
A MOMENTOUS DECISION.
DO I SAVE THE SHIP?
OR DO I SAVE THE PASSENGERS?
NOW, WHAT HE COULD HAVE DONE
IS ESSENTIALLY
GET THE SHIP UNDERWAY
AND TAKE IT INTO THE SHALLOWS
OF THE NANTUCKET SOUND AREA
AND THEREFORE TRY
TO BEACH HIS SHIP.
Narrator: BUT CALAMAI KNOWS
THAT STEERING THE SHIP
INTO SHALLOW WATER
IS A RISKY MANEUVER.
GETTING HER UNDERWAY WOULD
MAKE HER TAKE ON WATER FASTER,
AND PUTTING HER
INTO THE SHALLOWS
WOULD MAKE IT MORE DANGEROUS
FOR THE RESCUE SHIPS
TO GET CLOSE.
HE ESSENTIALLY GAVE UP HIS SHIP
FOR THE RIGHT TO SAVE PEOPLE.
Narrator:
THE "DORIA'S" CREW BEGIN
PREPARING TO EVACUATE,
BUT WHEN THEY GO
FOR THE LIFEBOATS,
THEY REALIZE THE ANGLE
OF THE TILTING DECK
HAS MADE HALF OF THEM
INACCESSIBLE.
HAUNTED BY MEMORIES
OF THE "TITANIC,"
THE PASSENGERS BEGIN TO DESPAIR.
IF THE SURVIVORS CAN'T EVACUATE
THE SHIP, THE DEATH TOLL, TOO,
WILL BE REMINISCENT
OF THAT EARLIER DISASTER.
BUT THIS TIME,
HELP IS ON THE WAY.
THE FRENCH OCEAN LINER
"ILE DE FRANCE"
IS HEADED TO EUROPE
BUT QUICKLY CHECKS IN
TO SEE IF SHE IS NEEDED.
VIA TELEGRAPH,
HER CAPTAIN TELLS CALAMAI
IT WILL BE AT LEAST TWO HOURS
BEFORE HE ARRIVES.
"PLEASE COME,
WITH ALL LIFEBOATS READY."
MEANWHILE, SURVIVORS
ON THE LOWER DECKS
CONTINUE TO SCRAMBLE HIGHER
TO AVOID THE RISING WATER.
OTHERS SCUTTLE THE OPPOSITE WAY
TO FIND MISSING LOVED ONES.
PAT MASTRINCOLA FINALLY REACHES
HIS FAMILY'S CABIN,
BUT HIS SISTER'S BED IS EMPTY.
OUR CABIN WAS PROBABLY
WITHIN 20 FEET OF THE HOLE.
WHEN I GOT TO THE CABIN,
MY SISTER, SHE HAD ROLLED
OUT OF THE BED,
AND SHE WAS SLEEPING
ON THE WALL.
I WOKE HER UP.
I SAID, "ARLENE, GET UP.
THE SHIP IS SINKING."
IF THE COLLISION HAD HAPPENED
ONE SECOND LATER,
MY SISTER
WOULD HAVE BEEN KILLED.
AND HOW SHE SLEPT THROUGH IT,
I HAVE NO IDEA.
Narrator: FOR THE PASSENGERS
WHO MAKE IT TO THE UPPER DECKS,
CONFUSION AND FEAR TAKE ROOT.
THEN CAME, I GUESS,
THE SCARY PART,
WAITING FOR RESCUE SHIPS.
BECAUSE EVERY TIME
THE SHIP MADE A NOISE,
YOU THOUGHT IT WAS GOING TO
TURN OVER AND THAT'S IT.
Narrator: THE "DORIA"
CONTINUES TO LIST.
PASSENGERS AND CREW SOON REALIZE
IT'S NOW NOT A QUESTION OF
WHETHER THE SHIP WILL SINK,
BUT WHEN.
THE MERCHANT SHIP
"CAPE ANN" ARRIVES
WITH TWO SMALL RESCUE BOATS.
LILIANA DOONER, WHO HAD DREAMT
ABOUT THE "CAPE ANN,"
JUMPS INTO ONE
WITH HER DAUGHTER MARIA.
WE COULDN'T BOARD
THE "CAPE ANN."
THE LADDER DIDN'T
REACH THE LIFEBOAT.
THE WAVES FLUNG US
AGAINST THE "CAPE ANN,"
AND I SAID TO MYSELF,
"GOOD HEAVENS, I DIDN'T DIE
ON THE ANDREA DORIA,
AND I'M GOING TO DIE HERE?"
BUT THE CREW WERE SKILLED
AND KNEW HOW TO GET US ON BOARD.
Narrator: 5 PEOPLE DIED
ON THE "STOCKHOLM"
DURING THE COLLISION,
BUT SHE REMAINS
STRUCTURALLY SOUND.
SHE SENDS LIFEBOATS,
BUT THERE ARE STILL NOT ENOUGH.
FINALLY, CHEERS ERUPT
FROM THE "ANDREA DORIA"
WHEN THE GIANT "ILE DE FRANCE"
APPEARS OUT OF THE FOG,
EARLIER THAN EXPECTED.
SHE IMMEDIATELY
THROWS DOWN HER LIFEBOATS
AND BEGINS MAKING RESCUES.
BUT NOT ALL GOES SMOOTHLY.
ONE YOUNG GIRL, NORMA DI SANDRO,
SMASHES HER HEAD
WHEN HER ANXIOUS FATHER
DROPS HER OVER THE SIDE
INTO A LIFEBOAT.
STORIES OF BOTH HEROISM
AND COWARDICE SPREAD
AMONG THE SURVIVORS.
SOME HEAR THAT "DORIA" SEAMEN
ARE TAKING PRECIOUS LIFEBOAT
BERTHS FOR THEMSELVES.
OTHERS REPORT SELFLESS
CREW MEMBERS SAVING LIVES.
BY DAWN, NEWS OF THE COLLISION
REACHES NEW YORK
AND THE REST OF THE WORLD.
THE "ANDREA DORIA" IS SINKING.
UNKNOWN.
REPORTERS AND CAMERA CREWS
FLOCK TO THE SCENE
TO FILM THE MOST BEAUTIFUL SHIP
IN THE WORLD LYING ON HER SIDE,
BEING SWALLOWED BY THE ATLANTIC.
THE "STOCKHOLM,"
HER BOW AMPUTATED
BUT HER DECKS FULL,
HEADS FOR NEW YORK WITH
MORE THAN 500 SURVIVORS.
THE OPERATION BECOMES ONE OF
THE BIGGEST MARITIME RESCUES
IN HISTORY.
48 DEAD ON BOTH SHIPS,
BUT MORE THAN 1,600
"DORIA" PASSENGERS SAVED.
ABOARD THE "ANDREA DORIA",
CAPTAIN CALAMAI AND HIS TOP
OFFICERS REMAIN ON THE BRIDGE,
HANGING ON EVEN AS THE SHIP
LISTS TO 40 DEGREES.
THE CAPTAIN REFUSES
TO ABANDON HIS VESSEL.
WE CLIMBED DOWN TO THE LIFEBOAT,
AND CAPTAIN CALAMAI
REMAINED ON BOARD.
HE SAID, "MOVE AWAY,
REMAIN CLOSE BY,
AND AT THE LAST MOMENT,
I WILL COME WITH YOU."
SO WE ALL CAME BACK.
AND WHEN HE SAW
OUR DETERMINATION,
BECAUSE WE'D ALREADY
STARTED TO CLIMB BACK,
HE SAID, "OK, I'LL GO WITH YOU."
Narrator: FINALLY, EARLY
IN THE MORNING OF THE 26th,
CAPTAIN CALAMAI
GETS INTO A LIFEBOAT
AND ROWS AWAY
FROM HIS BELOVED "DORIA."
AT A FEW MINUTES PAST 10:00,
THE ICONIC SHIP BEGINS
HER FINAL DEATH "THROES".
I DIDN'T BELIEVE
THAT SHIP WOULD SINK.
THERE WAS A WEAK SUN,
AND THE SHIP SPARKLED
AS SHE SANK.
Narrator:
THE PORTSIDE LIFEBOATS,
FREE AT LAST,
FINALLY HIT THE SEA,
JUST BEFORE THE LAST
PIECE OF THE SHIP
DISAPPEARS BENEATH THE WAVES.
I LOOKED AT MY WATCH
AND WROTE ON A PIECE OF PAPER,
"10:15, SUNK."
Narrator: LATER THAT DAY,
THE ILE DE FRANCE
REACHES NEW YORK
WITH OVER 750 SURVIVORS,
MANY AMAZED TO BE ALIVE.
IMMEDIATELY, THE BODIES
OF THE DEAD ARE TENDED TO,
AND THE SEARCH FOR
MISSING SURVIVORS BEGINS.
WITH THOUSANDS CONVERGING
ON THE DOCKS,
THE SCENE IS CHAOTIC.
LILIANA DOONER DISEMBARKS
FROM THE "CAPE ANN"
CARRYING HER DAUGHTER MARIA.
ELSEWHERE, A COAST GUARD
HELICOPTER EVACUATES
THE MOST SERIOUSLY INJURED.
AMONG THEM IS LITTLE
NORMA DI SANDRO,
WHO IS TRANSFERRED
TO A BOSTON HOSPITAL
WITH A FRACTURED SKULL
FROM HER FALL INTO THE LIFEBOAT.
FOR THE PALADINOS, TOO,
THE NIGHTMARE CONTINUES.
ONE OF THEIR DAUGHTERS
IS MISSING.
ON BOARD
THE "ILE DE FRANCE,"
I FOUND
TWO OF MY CHILDREN.
I DIDN'T FIND THE THIRD.
Narrator:
THE FAMILY IS IN SHOCK.
IT WAS TERRIBLE.
I DISEMBARKED
WITH TWO CHILDREN,
BUT I HAD 3.
I THOUGHT THAT
THE OTHER ONE WAS...
Narrator: GRIEF-STRICKEN,
THEY ARE TAKEN IN BY A RELATIVE.
WE WERE WATCHING
THE TELEVISION
IN THE EVENING,
AT AROUND 11:30, 12:00,
AND I SAW MY LITTLE GIRL
WITH THE RED CROSS.
Narrator: THEIR THIRD DAUGHTER
IS IN THE ARMS OF A NURSE,
RESCUED BY ANOTHER SHIP.
REUNITED, THE WHOLE FAMILY
VISITS A NEARBY CHURCH
TO GIVE THANKS.
NORMA DI SANDRO IS NOT SO LUCKY.
DESPITE DOCTORS' BEST EFFORTS,
SHE DIES FROM HER INJURIES.
WITHIN DAYS OF
THE EPIC CRASH AND RESCUE,
STUNNED SURVIVORS, MOURNERS,
AND MUCH OF THE WORLD
BEGIN ASKING
THE DIFFICULT QUESTIONS.
HOW COULD THIS TRAGEDY
HAVE HAPPENED?
WHO WAS RESPONSIBLE?
AND HOW CAN THE VICTIMS
EVER BE COMPENSATED?
HUGE INTERESTS ARE AT STAKE.
IMMEDIATELY, ARMIES OF LAWYERS,
PUBLICISTS, AND STRATEGISTS
BEGIN CIRCLING.
THE STAGE IS SET
FOR A P.R. BATTLE BETWEEN
COUNTRIES AND COMPANIES.
Man: FROM A MEDIA POINT OF VIEW,
THE SWEDES WERE MORE SHREWD,
MANAGING TO ATTRACT
GREATER POPULARITY
THAN THE ITALIAN LINE.
THERE IS NO DOUBT ABOUT THAT.
Narrator: RIGHT FROM THE START,
THE "DORIA'S" OWNERS
ORDER HER MEN TO BE SILENT,
A STRATEGY THAT PROVES
DISASTROUS.
NEWSPAPERS PUBLISH PHOTOS
OF THE ITALIANS LOOKING AWKWARD,
EVEN GUILT-RIDDEN.
THE SWEDES, ON THE OTHER HAND,
ORGANIZE PRESS EVENTS
TO EXPLAIN WHAT HAD HAPPENED.
SOME EVEN CLAIM
THE "ANDREA DORIA" SANK
BECAUSE SHE WAS BADLY BUILT.
THE SWEDISH PUBLICITY CAMPAIGN,
COMBINED WITH LINGERING
RACISM AND HOSTILITY
AFTER WORLD WAR II,
PUT THE ITALIANS
AT A DISADVANTAGE
FROM THE START.
IT SEEMED TO BE KIND OF
A PREJUDICIAL ATTITUDE
THAT PERHAPS ITALIANS
WERE LESS TRUSTWORTHY,
WERE MORE TEMPERAMENTAL;
AND THAT THE SWEDISH CAME FROM,
SAY, A MORE EFFICIENT STOCK.
Narrator: EACH SIDE ACCUSES
THE OTHER OF CAUSING THE CRASH.
BUT THE INSURANCE COMPANIES
AREN'T AS INTERESTED
IN POINTING FINGERS
AS THEY ARE
IN LIMITING LIABILITY
TO MATERIAL DAMAGES...
THE VALUE OF THE SHIPS
AFTER THE ACCIDENT.
THE "STOCKHOLM,"
AFLOAT BUT WITH NO BOW,
IS DEEMED TO BE WORTH
ABOUT $3 MILLION.
THE "ANDREA DORIA"
HAS BEEN REDUCED TO
THE VALUE OF HER LIFEBOATS
AND COMPENSATION
FOR THE PASSENGERS' TICKETS...
ONLY ABOUT $400,000.
HEARINGS BEGIN ON SEPTEMBER 19
IN FOLEY SQUARE, MANHATTAN.
THE PRESS AND PUBLIC
ARE RIVETED.
THE CASE WILL HINGE ON
A FEW CENTRAL QUESTIONS:
HAD THE "STOCKHOLM"
RAMMED THE "DORIA"
WITH A SUDDEN
AND DANGEROUS MANEUVER,
AS CLAIMED BY THE ITALIANS?
OR WAS IT THE "DORIA"
THAT HAD CUT ACROSS
THE SWEDISH SHIP'S PATH?
WHICH OFFICER
HAD MISREAD HIS RADAR,
CAUSING HIM TO MISJUDGE
THE DISTANCE BETWEEN THE SHIPS
AND THE DIRECTION
THEY WERE HEADING?
HAD THE SHIPS
BEEN TRAVELING TOO FAST?
AND HAD THERE REALLY BEEN FOG
THAT NIGHT OFF NANTUCKET?
THE "ANDREA DORIA'S" LAWYER,
EUGENE UNDERWOOD,
SEEN HERE WITH CAPTAIN CALAMAI,
IS ONE OF NEW YORK'S MOST FAMOUS
MARITIME ATTORNEYS.
BELIEVING NEITHER SIDE CAN PROVE
THE OTHER IS ENTIRELY AT FAULT,
HE OFFERS A SETTLEMENT
TO THE "STOCKHOLM'S" LAWYER,
CHARLES HAIGHT.
HAIGHT REJECTS THE OFFER,
STICKING BY THIRD OFFICER
CARSTEN'S CLAIM
THAT HE HAD SEEN NO FOG,
AND SO HAD NO REASON
TO REDUCE SPEED
OR SOUND THE FOG WHISTLE.
QUESTIONING ON BOTH SIDES
GETS AGGRESSIVE.
AT ONE ESPECIALLY
GRUELING POINT,
CAPTAIN NORDENSON
OF THE "STOCKHOLM" FAINTS
AND IS TAKEN TO THE HOSPITAL.
TENSIONS REACH A BOILING POINT
WHEN CARSTENS TAKES THE STAND.
MY NAME IS
JOHAN CARSTENS-JOHANNSEN.
I AM 76 YEARS OLD,
AND I WAS THE MATE ON BRIDGE,
OFFICER ON BRIDGE
ON THE "STOCKHOLM"
IN THE COLLISION
WITH THE "ANDREA DORIA".
Narrator: HALF A CENTURY LATER,
CARSTENS STANDS BY HIS STATEMENT
FROM THE HEARING...
THE ITALIANS HAD STEERED
DIRECTLY INTO HIS PATH.
BUT THE "DORIA" CAPTAIN,
CALAMAI,
HE MADE THIS TURN TO PORT,
AND THAT'S...
I CAN'T UNDERSTAND IT.
YOU NEVER MAKE A MANEUVER
LIKE THAT.
Narrator: TO THIS DAY,
HE STILL INSISTS THERE WAS
NO FOG IN THE AREA THAT NIGHT.
SURE, SURE.
I GET CONTINUOUS REPORTS
FROM THE RADIO OPERATORS
ABOUT THE CONDITIONS,
AND THERE WAS NO FOG
IN THE AREA.
INDEED, THERE WAS FOG.
THE "NANTUCKET" LIGHTSHIP
CONFIRMED THAT THERE WAS FOG.
ALL THE OTHER VESSELS
THAT WERE IN THE AREA
WE NOW KNOW
CONFIRMED THERE WAS FOG.
THERE WERE 60 CASES
IN THE LOG BOOKS
OF THE "STOCKHOLM"
SHOWING THAT SHE HAD ENCOUNTERED
FOG AND NEVER REDUCED SPEED.
Narrator: THIS WAS...
AND STILL IS...
COMMON PRACTICE IN SHIPPING.
WITH TIGHT SCHEDULES
AND HIGH-PAID
DOCK WORKERS WAITING,
DELAYS CAN BE COSTLY.
THOUGH THE "ANDREA DORIA'S"
LOG BOOK WENT DOWN
WITH THE SHIP,
IT, TOO, WAS LIKELY
FILLED WITH ENTRIES
ABOUT HIGH-SPEED TRAVEL
DURING FOG.
THE NIGHT OF THE COLLISION
WAS NO EXCEPTION.
Volk: THE "ANDREA DORIA'S" FAULT
WAS PRIMARILY HER EXCESS
OF SPEED IN FOG.
SHE REDUCED SPEED SLIGHTLY
BY REDUCING THE PRESSURE
ON THE TURBINES.
THE COURTS MOST CERTAINLY
WOULD HAVE FELT THAT
THAT WAS NOT SUFFICIENT.
Narrator:
BUT WHAT ABOUT THE RADAR?
IT SHOULD HAVE PREVENTED
THE COLLISION,
EVEN IN FOGGY CONDITIONS.
EACH SIDE BLAMED THE OTHER
ON THIS FRONT.
CAPTAIN CALAMAI WAS GRILLED
ABOUT HIS DECISION
TO SIMPLY EYEBALL THE READINGS
INSTEAD OF PLOTTING THEM
ON A CHART FOR GREATER ACCURACY.
THE "STOCKHOLM'S" LAWYER
MADE THE ARGUMENT
THAT THIS OVERSIGHT COULD
HAVE PUT THE "ANDREA DORIA"
INTO THE PATH
OF THE "STOCKHOLM."
CARSTENS, ON THE OTHER HAND,
CLAIMED HE HAD PLOTTED
HIS READINGS,
THOUGH HIS CHARTS WENT MISSING
AFTER THE COLLISION.
QUESTIONS WERE RAISED
ABOUT WHETHER HE HAD READ
HIS EQUIPMENT CORRECTLY,
BUT IN THE END,
NEITHER SIDE WAS ABLE
TO GET MUCH TRACTION,
EVEN THOUGH THERE WAS NO WAY
BOTH MEN COULD HAVE BEEN RIGHT.
THE READINGS
WERE NOT PRECISELY ACCURATE
IN TERMS OF HOW THEY READ
THEIR RADAR SCREENS.
THE "ANDREA DORIA" FELT THAT
THE "STOCKHOLM" WAS APPROACHING
TO ITS RIGHT.
CARSTENS-JOHANNSEN FELT
THE "DORIA" WAS APPROACHING
TO ITS LEFT.
AND THAT WAS INCOMPATIBLE.
THAT COULDN'T BE.
Narrator: THE RADAR ARGUMENT
ENDED IN A STALEMATE,
AND THE INCREASINGLY TESTY
HEARINGS
BECAME A PUBLIC RELATIONS
NIGHTMARE FOR BOTH SIDES.
TESTIMONY REVEALED FAULTS
AND MISTAKES ALL AROUND,
OPENING THE DOOR FOR HUGE
INDIVIDUAL CLAIMS BY PASSENGERS.
SO, FEARING A VERDICT THAT
WOULD FORCE BIG PAYOUTS,
LLOYD'S OF LONDON,
WHICH HAD AN INSURANCE STAKE
IN BOTH SHIPS,
FORCED A SETTLEMENT BEFORE
A RULING COULD BE MADE.
BOTH SIDES AGREED TO IGNORE
QUESTIONS OF BLAME,
FORGO A TRIAL,
PAY OUT AS LITTLE AS POSSIBLE,
AND MOVE ON.
A FUND OF $6 MILLION
WAS SET UP TO BE DIVIDED
AMONG THE SURVIVORS.
MOST RECEIVED A PITTANCE...
A MERE 7 CENTS
ON EVERY DOLLAR CLAIMED.
TYPICAL PAYOUTS RANGED FROM
ONLY $10,000-$30,000.
Giannini:
EVERYTHING WAS HUSHED UP.
IT ALL SANK INTO OBLIVION.
THE SINKING OF
THE "ANDREA DORIA"
WAS A CHAPTER
THAT HAD TO BE CLOSED.
Narrator: THE SWEDES ENDED
THEIR PART IN THE AFFAIR
BY REWARDING CARSTENS
AND CAPTAIN NORDENSON
WITH LAVISH PROMOTIONS TO
A FLAGSHIP SWEDISH VESSEL.
THE "STOCKHOLM,"
HER BOW REPAIRED,
WAS PUT BACK INTO SERVICE.
TODAY, SHE CRUISES THE WATERS
OF THE CARIBBEAN.
THE SWEDES FOUND IT EASY
TO MOVE ON,
BUT FOR THE PASSENGERS AND CREW
OF THE "ANDREA DORIA,"
LETTING GO WAS NOT SO SIMPLE.
CAPTAIN CALAMAI
NEVER SAILED AGAIN,
AND SOON RETIRED A BROKEN MAN.
HE TOLD FRIENDS AFTER THE CRASH,
"ALL MY LIFE, I LOVED THE SEA.
NOW I HATE IT."
WITH EMOTIONS STILL RAW
AND SO MUCH LEFT UNANSWERED
AFTER THE SETTLEMENT,
THE ITALIAN NAVAL MINISTRY
DECIDED TO CONDUCT
ITS OWN INQUIRY
ONE YEAR AFTER THE DISASTER.
THE REPORT EXONERATED
THE "ANDREA DORIA" OFFICERS
FOR THE FACT THAT THE SHIP SANK
AND DISMISSED ACCOUNTS OF
SELFISH BEHAVIOR BY HER CREW
DURING THE RESCUE.
BUT IT SPARED NEITHER SIDE
CRITICISM
OVER CAUSING THE CRASH
IN THE FIRST PLACE.
WORRIED THAT THE FINDINGS
WOULD JEOPARDIZE THE BLAME-FREE
TERMS OF THE SETTLEMENT,
ITALY DECIDED NOT
TO RELEASE THE REPORT.
BUT IN OTHER PARTS OF THE WORLD,
THE COLLISION CONTINUED
TO DRAW INTEREST.
AT THE U.S. MERCHANT MARINE
ACADEMY IN NEW YORK,
THE INVESTIGATION
WAS REOPENED IN 1971.
A CURIOUS NAVAL EXPERT
NAMED JOHN CARROTHERS
CONDUCTED A STUDY USING
BOTH SHIPS' COURSE RECORDS.
WORKING BACKWARDS
FROM THE POINT OF IMPACT,
HE CONCLUDED THAT
THE "STOCKHOLM"
HAD CAUSED THE COLLISION.
HE CLAIMED CARSTENS
HAD MISREAD HIS RADAR,
THINKING THE "ANDREA DORIA"
WAS 3 TIMES FARTHER AWAY
THAN SHE ACTUALLY WAS.
BY THE TIME
HE REALIZED HIS MISTAKE,
IT WAS TOO LATE
TO CHANGE COURSE.
CARROTHERS' FINDINGS ARE STILL
TAUGHT TODAY AT THE ACADEMY.
Man: THERE IS NO DOUBT
IN MY MIND.
I BELIEVE THAT
CARSTENS JOHANNSEN
MISINTERPRETED THE RADAR.
IT'S THE ONLY
LOGICAL CONCLUSION
THAT I CAN DRAW
FROM THE COLLISION.
Narrator: MEURN HANGS A PHOTO
OF CAPTAIN CALAMAI
IN HIS CLASSROOM.
I THINK IT WAS EXEMPLARY.
I FELT SORRY FOR THE MAN.
I THINK HE WAS UNFAIRLY BLAMED
I THINK WHAT HE DID
WAS EXTRAORDINARY.
Narrator: IN MARCH OF 1972,
CARROTHERS SENT CALAMAI
THE RESULTS OF HIS STUDY,
HOPING TO RELEASE THE BROKEN
CAPTAIN FROM HIS GUILT.
HE ENDED WITH THESE WORDS:
"REST ASSURED, CAPTAIN CALAMAI,
"THERE ARE MANY OF US
WHO WOULD BE MORE THAN WILLING
TO SERVE UNDER YOUR COMMAND
AT ANYTIME."
BUT CALAMAI DIDN'T HAVE
THE HEART TO OPEN THE LETTER.
HE KEPT IT IN A DRAWER
AND DIED A MONTH LATER.
ACCORDING TO HIS DAUGHTERS,
HIS FINAL WORDS WERE,
"ARE THE PASSENGERS SAVED?"
CARSTENS-JOHANNSEN, MEANWHILE,
SPENT THE REST OF HIS CAREER
AT SEA
AND NOW LIVES A LIFE OF
QUIET RETIREMENT IN SWEDEN.
HE IS AT PEACE
WITH THE DECISIONS
HE MADE THAT JULY NIGHT.
Carstens-Johannsen:
BUT IT'S NOT THAT I'M THINKING,
"SHOULD I DO SO AND SO?"
I DID WHAT I DID,
AND I KNOW IT'S RIGHT.
SO I HAVE NO PROBLEM WITH IT,
BUT IT IS SOMETHING
YOU NEVER FORGET,
AND I HAVE TO LIVE WITH IT
ALL OF MY LIFE.
Narrator: EVEN TODAY,
HE MAINTAINS THAT
HE SAW NO FOG.
Carstens-Johannsen:
THE HORIZON WAS
A LITTLE BIT NOT CLEAR,
BUT NO FOG.
THAT NIGHT, IT WAS CLEAR.
AND WHEN YOU ARE GOING
IN THESE WATERS,
YOU ALWAYS HAVE A VERY GOOD LOOK
FOR THE FOG,
BUT THERE WAS NO FOG.
Narrator:
CARSTENS' ITALIAN COUNTERPARTS
STILL DON'T BELIEVE HIM.
HE KNOWS HE COMMITTED AN ERROR.
BETTER FOR HIM
TRYING TO FORGET,
BECAUSE CARRYING THE WEIGHT
OF SUCH A RESPONSIBILITY
IS HARD FOR ANYONE, EVEN FOR
THE STRONGEST MAN IN THE WORLD.
Narrator:
THE "ANDREA DORIA" HERSELF
LIES 250 FEET BELOW
THE SURFACE OF THE ATLANTIC.
FOR 50 YEARS,
SHE HAS BEEN A POWERFUL LURE
FOR TREASURE HUNTERS
AND HISTORIANS ALIKE.
STRONG AND UNPREDICTABLE
CURRENTS AND COLD, MURKY WATER
HAVE MADE HER
A DANGEROUS PLACE TO DIVE.
HER DISINTEGRATING HULL
HAS ALLOWED FEW TO EXPLORE
THE NATURE OF HER WOUND.
BUT ONE EXPEDITION IN 1988
ENJOYED A CONFLUENCE
OF FAVORABLE CONDITIONS
AND SHED SOME LIGHT
ON ONE OF THE "ANDREA DORIA'S"
LINGERING MYSTERIES.
DIVER AND HISTORIAN DAVID BRIGHT
LED THE TEAM.
FROM A DIVER'S PERSPECTIVE,
THE "ANDREA DORIA" REPRESENTED
THE MOUNT EVEREST OF DIVING.
IT WAS IN THE MIDDLE-TO-LATTER
PART OF AUGUST,
WHICH WAS MUCH LATER
THAN WE HAD NORMALLY
EVER BEEN OUT THERE,
AND WHEN WE GOT
TO THE SHIPWRECK SITE,
THE WATER WAS CRYSTAL BLUE,
JUST ABSOLUTELY BEAUTIFUL.
Narrator: BRIGHT WAS AMAZED
AS THE PROFILE OF THE SHIP
SLOWLY APPEARED.
SHE WAS LYING ON HER RIGHT SIDE,
AND AS HE APPROACHED,
HE SAW THE AFT FIN,
A SMALL TERRACE
AT THE REAR OF THE VESSEL.
IT WAS COVERED WITH NETS,
LIKELY USED BY PASSENGERS AS
THEY ATTEMPTED TO ABANDON SHIP.
BRIGHT SAW THE HUGE
LEFT PROPELLER...
THE LAST VISIBLE PIECE
OF THE "DORIA"
AS SHE SLIPPED INTO THE SEA.
THEN THE SPACIOUS DECKS,
WHERE PASSENGERS
HAD SPENT THEIR TIME
WALKING IN THE OCEAN BREEZE.
BELOW THE DECKS, A SIGHT
THAT TOOK BRIGHT BY SURPRISE.
Bright:
THE VISIBILITY WAS TREMENDOUS,
AND WE HAD AN OPPORTUNITY
TO SEE PARTS OF THE SHIP
IN TOTAL,
WHEREAS BEFORE,
YOU WERE ONLY ABLE TO SEE
10 AND 15 FEET OF THE SHIP
AT ANY ONE TIME.
BUT BY DIVING THE SHIP,
AND THIS IS VERY IMPORTANT,
WE WERE ABLE TO FIND OUT
THAT THE "STOCKHOLM"
HAD INFLICTED MUCH MORE DAMAGE
THAN ANYBODY HAD ACTUALLY KNOWN.
IN OTHER WORDS,
PORTIONS OF THE "STOCKHOLM"
SLICED INTO THE KEEL
OR THE BOTTOM LEVEL OF THE SHIP.
BY DOING SO,
WATER WAS ACTUALLY ENTERING IN
IN A MUCH BIGGER HOLE
THAN WHAT WAS EVER
THOUGHT INITIALLY
DURING THAT PERIOD OF TIME.
IT'S MORE OF A REMARKABLE STORY
OF HOW THE "ANDREA DORIA"
WAS ABLE TO SURVIVE 11 HOURS
WITH SUCH A TREMENDOUS WOUND
IN ITS SIDE.
Narrator: THIS FINDING WOULD
RESTORE THE "ANDREA DORIA'S"
DAMAGED IMAGE,
REFUTING CRITICS WHO CLAIMED
THAT LESS ATTENTION HAD BEEN
PAID TO HER SEAWORTHINESS
THAN TO HER LAVISH APPEARANCE.
BUT THE "ANDREA DORIA'S" DEMISE
WOULD SIGNAL THE END OF AN ERA
FOR TRANSATLANTIC OCEAN TRAVEL.
ESSENTIALLY,
IT WAS THE FIRST SHIP
THAT PERISHED IN FRONT OF
THE TELEVISION SET.
IT WAS A FLOATING ART MUSEUM
THAT EMBODIED ALL OF
THE HERITAGE AND CULTURE
OF ITALY.
IT WAS THE TWILIGHT OF
TRANSATLANTIC CROSSING.
IN THE NEXT YEAR,
THE JET CAME AVAILABLE.
Narrator: AND JUST AS
IN THE WAKE OF
THE "TITANIC" DISASTER,
NEW SAFETY STANDARDS WERE
INITIATED AFTER THE CRASH.
RADAR UPGRADES WERE INSTALLED,
AND ADDITIONAL LOOKOUTS
WERE MANDATED
WHEN VISIBILITY WAS POOR.
BUT FOR THE "DORIA,"
THESE CHANGES CAME TOO LATE.
HER DEMISE WAS THE RESULT
OF MISTAKES ON BOTH SIDES
AND THE CAUSE OF
HALF A CENTURY OF EXAMINATION,
ARGUMENT, AND DEBATE.
SHE SANK BEFORE
THE EYES OF THE WORLD
AND TOOK MANY OF HER SECRETS
WITH HER TO THE DEPTHS.
"ALL MY LIFE, I LOVED THE SEA.
NOW■I HATE IT."
"ALL MY LIFE, I LoVÑD THE SEAn
NOW I HATE IT."
REOPEN INVESTIGATIONS
OF THE PAST AT PBS ONLINE.
HISTORY IS REVEALING
ITS FORGOTTEN SECRETS
CAPTIONING MADE POSSIBLE BY
U.S. DEPARTMENT OF EDUCATION
"SECRETS OF THE DEAD"
WAS MADE POSSIBLE
BY CONTRIBUTIONS
TO YOUR PBS STATION FROM...
ON "SECRETS OF THE DEAD"...
JULY 25, 1956,
TWO SHIPS COLLIDE
IN THE DEAD OF NIGHT.
Man: PEOPLE WERE RUNNING OUT,
AND YOU COULD HEAR THEM
SCREAMING.
THE SHIP IS SINKING.
Woman: AND I WAS THINKING
I WAS GONNA DIE.
Announcer: 1,500 WERE RESCUED
BEFORE THE "ANDREA DORIA"
WENT DOWN.
BUT FOR 50 YEARS,
MYSTERY HAS SURROUNDED
THE CAUSE OF THE COLLISION.
WAS IT DANGEROUS WEATHER,
FAULTY EQUIPMENT,
OR HUMAN ERROR?
UNCOVER THE TRUE STORY
OF THE SINKING OF
THE "ANDREA DORIA"
NEXT ON "SECRETS OF THE DEAD."
CAPTIONING MADE POSSIBLE BY
U.S. DEPARTMENT OF EDUCATION
"SECRETS OF THE DEAD"
WAS MADE POSSIBLE
BY CONTRIBUTIONS
TO YOUR PBS STATION FROM...
Narrator:
IN 1956, THE "ANDREA DORIA"
WAS ONE OF THE MOST STYLISH
CRUISE LINERS ON THE HIGH SEAS.
TODAY, SHE LIES IN RUINS
ON THE BOTTOM OF THE ATLANTIC.
BUT IN HER HEYDAY,
THE "ANDREA DORIA" FERRIED
THOUSANDS OF PASSENGERS
FROM ALL WALKS OF LIFE
BETWEEN EUROPE AND AMERICA.
SHE ALSO CARRIED THE WEIGHT
OF A NATION'S PRIDE,
AS ITALY WAS DESPERATE TO EMERGE
FROM THE RUINOUS WORLD WAR
THAT HAD KILLED ALMOST
HALF A MILLION OF HER PEOPLE
AND LEFT HER GLOBAL IMAGE
IN TATTERS.
THE SHIP'S DESIGNERS
SPARED NO EXPENSE ON THIS
"FLOATING ART MUSEUM."
HER 700 FEET OF SLEEK LINES
AND SUMPTUOUS INTERIORS
DRIPPED WITH
STUNNING WORKS OF ART...
PAINTINGS, SCULPTURES,
AND MOSAICS.
STATEROOMS AND BALLROOMS
WERE LAVISH...
PROMENADES IDYLLIC.
IN THE 1950s,
TRAVEL BY OCEAN LINER
WAS STILL A POPULAR WAY
TO CROSS THE ATLANTIC,
EVEN THOUGH AIR TRAVEL
WAS TAKING OFF.
THE "ANDREA DORIA" WAS
AN ELEGANT REMINDER OF A TIME
WHEN THE JOURNEY
WAS THE DESTINATION...
UNTIL JULY 25, 1956,
WHEN SHE COLLIDED WITH ANOTHER
LINER IN THE OPEN OCEAN...
AND THEN THE COLLISION...
RIGHT AFTER THE TWO WHISTLES,
A CRASH!
Narrator:
51 PEOPLE WERE KILLED,
MANY WHILE THEY SLEPT.
THE PEOPLE BENEATH ME
ON "B" AND "C" DECK
HAD DROWNED,
AND YOU COULD HEAR THEM
SCREAMING.
"IT'S VEERING!
IT'S GOING TO HIT US!"
Narrator: THE DISASTER WOULD
LEAD TO ONE OF THE GREATEST
SEA RESCUES IN HISTORY.
BUT QUESTIONS ABOUT
THE COLLISION REMAIN.
DO I SAVE THE SHIP?
OR DO I SAVE THE PASSENGERS?
Narrator: WHAT REALLY HAPPENED
IN THE NORTH ATLANTIC
THAT JULY NIGHT?
WHO WAS RESPONSIBLE
FOR THE TRAGEDY?
HAD BAD DECISIONS BEEN MADE?
WAS THERE REALLY FOG
OFF THE COAST OF NANTUCKET?
AND WERE THE TWO SHIPS
TRAVELING TOO FAST
IN DANGEROUS CONDITIONS?
AND DID ECONOMIC INTERESTS KEEP
THE TRUTH HIDDEN FOR 50 YEARS?
THE "ANDREA DORIA"
WAS DESIGNED FOR BEAUTY
AND HAD STATE-OF-THE-ART
ENGINEERING.
SHE BOASTED
11 WATERTIGHT COMPARTMENTS
MEANT TO KEEP HER AFLOAT
EVEN IF TWO WERE BREACHED.
HER FLANKS OVERFLOWED
WITH LIFEBOATS...
A LESSON LEARNED
FROM THE "TITANIC" TRAGEDY
4 DECADES EARLIER.
WHEN THE "DORIA"
TOOK HER FIRST DIP IN THE WATER
ON JUNE 16, 1951,
IT WAS A MAJOR EVENT
IN THE SHIPBUILDING MECCA
OF GENOA.
THE CITY IS THE HOME
OF CHRISTOPHER COLUMBUS
AND GENERATIONS OF
OTHER SEAFARERS.
TO A YOUNG NAVAL OFFICER
LIKE EUGENIO GIANNINI,
A COMMISSION
ON THE "ANDREA DORIA"
WAS AS GOOD AS IT GETS.
FOR ME, THIS WAS
A DREAM COME TRUE.
TO BE AN OFFICER
ON THE "ANDREA DORIA"
WAS AN EXTRAORDINARY ACHIEVEMENT
BECAUSE IT WAS THE MOST
BEAUTIFUL SHIP IN THE WORLD.
Narrator: JANUARY 15, 1953.
THE "ANDREA DORIA'S"
MAIDEN VOYAGE.
SHE HEADS FROM NAPLES
TO NEW YORK.
HUGE CROWDS TOAST HER ARRIVAL.
3 1/2 YEARS LATER,
THE "DORIA" HAD MADE
THE EUROPE-TO-NEW-YORK CROSSING
100 TIMES.
MANY OF THESE VOYAGES HAD
BOASTED HOLLYWOOD ROYALTY
LIKE CARY GRANT,
KIM NOVAK,
ORSON WELLES,
AND JOAN CRAWFORD...
ALL FANS OF THE YOUNG
BUT ALREADY LEGENDARY VESSEL.
Herlihy: A BEVY OF BEAUTY
PROMENADES
ON THE NEW ITALIAN LINE
FLAGSHIP THE "ANDREA DORIA,"
DISPLAYING STYLES WITH
AN INTERNATIONAL FLAVOR.
ALL ASHORE THAT'S GOING ASHORE!
Narrator: AT THE "DORIA'S" HELM
WAS DECORATED 58-YEAR-OLD
COMMANDER PIERO CALAMAI,
A RESERVED AND SERIOUS MAN
CHARGED WITH TRANSPORTING SOME
700 CREW AND 1,000 PASSENGERS
ON THE 4,000-MILE VOYAGE
ACROSS THE MEDITERRANEAN
AND NORTH ATLANTIC
TO THE WEST SIDE PIERS
OF MANHATTAN.
Gianinni: COMMANDER CALAMAI
WAS A SKILLED SEAMAN.
I NEVER SAW HIM LOSE HIS TEMPER
DURING THE MONTHS
I SERVED UNDER HIM.
I ALWAYS SAW HIM
JUDGE THINGS CALMLY,
WITH ABILITY AND GOOD SENSE.
Narrator: CALAMAI HAD BEEN
GROOMED FOR LIFE AT SEA
SINCE HIS BOYHOOD IN GENOA.
HE HAD RECEIVED MEDALS OF VALOR
DURING BOTH WORLD WARS,
SERVED ON 27 MERCHANT SHIPS,
AND ON MANY GREAT OCEAN LINERS.
ON JULY 17, 1956,
CAPTAIN CALAMAI
WAS NEARING RETIREMENT.
HE FIGURED THIS VOYAGE
MIGHT BE HIS LAST
ABOARD THE "ANDREA DORIA."
LITTLE DID HE KNOW HOW PROPHETIC
THOSE THOUGHTS WOULD BECOME.
THE DAY THE "DORIA" SET SAIL FOR
NEW YORK WAS TYPICALLY HECTIC.
AS USUAL, THE SHIP
WAS ALMOST FULLY BOOKED.
PASSENGERS CAME FROM ALL ENDS
OF THE CLASS SPECTRUM...
FROM EUROPEANS FLEEING POVERTY
FOR AMERICA
TO UPPER-CLASS TOURISTS
ON LUXURY VACATIONS.
IN HER CARGO HOLD,
SHE EVEN HAULED
A $150,000 EXPERIMENTAL CAR
MADE BY ITALIAN AUTOMAKER GHIA
FOR CHRYSLER.
DANTE GALLINARI AND HIS BROTHER
WERE HEADING TO AMERICA
WITH THEIR MOTHER.
THEY WERE FOLLOWING
THEIR FATHER,
WHO HAD IMMIGRATED
AHEAD OF THEM.
Gallinari:
FOR ME AS A 10-YEAR-OLD,
I WAS WIDE-EYED.
AND LOOKING AT IT,
IT WAS VERY IMPRESSIVE...
A LARGE SHIP,
A VERY NEW LIGHT SHIP.
AND IT WAS JUST MARVELOUS.
Narrator: JEROME REINERT,
AN AMERICAN STUDENT IN ROME,
HAD EXPECTED TO FLY HOME
BUT HAD CHANGED HIS PLANS
BECAUSE OF A GIRL.
SHE WAS COMING BACK TO NEW YORK
ON THE "ANDREA DORIA."
SO I CASHED IN MY TICKET
AND USED THE MONEY TO BUY
A CABIN ON THE "ANDREA DORIA."
Narrator: PAT MASTRINCOLA
WAS WITH HIS MOTHER
AND 9-YEAR-OLD SISTER ARLENE.
Mastrincola:
I WAS ON THE "ANDREA DORIA"
BECAUSE MY MOTHER
WAS AN ITALIAN WAR BRIDE
AND THIS WAS HER FIRST TRIP BACK
IN ORDER FOR US TO MEET
OUR GRANDFATHER, AUNTS,
AND UNCLES
AND THE REST OF OUR FAMILY.
Narrator: LILIANA DOONER
WAS IN TOURIST CLASS
WITH HER 3-YEAR-OLD DAUGHTER,
MARIA.
WE WERE GOING TO NEW JERSEY
TO RAISE OUR FAMILY.
Narrator:
GIOVANNA AND LEONARDO PALADINO,
LIKE SO MANY OTHERS,
WERE SIMPLY OUT TO
TRY THEIR LUCK IN AMERICA.
I HAD A SHOP IN ITALY.
I WAS INDEPENDENT,
WITH TWO PEOPLE
WORKING FOR ME.
BUT ONE DAY,
SOMEONE SAID,
"COME TO AMERICA.
YOU'LL GET RICH."
Narrator:
THE PALADINOS HAD BROUGHT
THEIR 3 DAUGHTERS WITH THEM,
HOPING TO MAKE IT
IN THE LAND OF OPPORTUNITY.
IT WAS A SHIP
BRIMMING WITH HOPES,
WHICH QUITE OFTEN
BECAME REALITY.
IT WAS THE BEGINNING OF THE LIFE
OF A CITY ON THE SEA.
Narrator:
BUT THE DIVERSE PASSENGER LIST
AND MELTING POT APPEARANCE
ONLY WENT SO FAR.
FACILITIES, INCLUDING POOLS,
SLEEPING QUARTERS,
AND DINING ROOMS,
WERE STRICTLY SEGREGATED
BY CLASS.
Mastrincola: WELL,
YOU WERE SUPPOSED TO
STAY IN TOURIST CLASS.
AND I WOULD GO
INTO THE ENGINE ROOM,
CABIN CLASS, FIRST CLASS.
AND I'D ALWAYS BE CAUGHT.
EVERY TIME I WOULD
SNEAK OUT OF TOURIST,
SOMEBODY WOULD SAY, "YOU,
BACK DOWN WHERE YOU BELONG."
IT'S LIKE THEY KNEW,
THEY WAITED FOR ME.
Narrator:
SOON AFTER SHE SET SAIL,
THE "DORIA" PASSED
THE ROCK OF GIBRALTAR,
LEAVING THE MEDITERRANEAN BEHIND
AND HEADING INTO THE ATLANTIC.
ALMOST IMMEDIATELY,
SECOND ENGINE OFFICER
GIOVANNI CORDERA
SPOTTED FOG IN THEIR PATH.
ALTHOUGH IT WAS JULY,
A FAVORABLE SEASON,
AFTER CROSSING GIBRALTAR,
WE HAD FOG QUITE OFTEN...
A CALM SEA, BUT A LOT OF FOG.
Narrator: EARLY IN THE CRUISE,
LILIANA DOONER
HAD A PREMONITION.
Dooner: ONCE I DREAMT
THAT MY DAUGHTER AND
WERE NOT ON THE "ANDREA DORIA,"
BUT ON THE "CAPE ANN,"
AND I SAW MYSELF
BOARD "THE CAPE ANN"...
BECAUSE THE "ANDREA DORIA"
WAS SINKING.
WHEN I WENT TO BREAKFAST,
I TOLD MY FRIENDS
AND PEOPLE AT THE TABLE,
"I DON'T FEEL LIKE EATING,
BECAUSE I DREAMT OF THE SINKING
OF THE "ANDREA DORIA."
THEY LAUGHED AND SAID, "THINGS
LIKE THAT DON'T HAPPEN ANYMORE."
Narrator: DOONER'S DREAM
WAS GIVEN LITTLE THOUGHT.
FOR MOST PASSENGERS, THE JOURNEY
WAS CAREFREE AND RELAXING,
AS THE SHIP STEAMED
ACROSS THE OPEN ATLANTIC.
JUST LIKE ON TODAY'S CRUISES,
LAVISH MEALS
WERE A "DORIA" HIGHLIGHT.
Gallinari: BESIDES GOING TO
ALL THE DIFFERENT MEALS,
ON DECK, IN THE BACK,
THERE WAS ALWAYS...
WE PLAYED HIDE AND GO SEEK,
WE PLAYED TAG.
IT WAS FUN WATCHING,
PEOPLE-WATCHING.
Narrator: BY JULY 25,
THE SHIP HAD CROSSED
THE ATLANTIC
AND WAS NEARING THE END
OF HER VOYAGE.
THE NEXT MORNING, NEW YORK CITY.
PASSENGERS WERE ENJOYING
THE LAST FEW HOURS OF DAYLIGHT
AND PREPARING FOR
THEIR FINAL EVENING AT SEA.
ON THE BRIDGE, CAPTAIN CALAMAI
WAS SCANNING THE HORIZON FOR FOG
AS THE SHIP APPROACHED
THE BUSY SHIPPING LANES
OFF THE EAST COAST.
IT WAS JULY,
AND SO FAR IT HAD BEEN
A NICE JOURNEY,
APART FROM THE FOG,
BUT IT WAS PRETTY NORMAL
TO HAVE FOG APPROACHING
THE CONTINENTAL SHELF.
THAT DAY, WE ENCOUNTERED IT
AT 3:00 IN THE AFTERNOON.
Narrator: CALAMAI ORDERED
THE FOG SIGNAL TURNED ON
AS A SAFETY MEASURE.
Cordera: THAT FAMOUS AFTERNOON,
WE WERE SAILING UNDER FOG ALERT.
THIS MEANT EXTRA GUARDS,
REDUCING BOILER PRESSURE,
AND BEING READY
TO MAKE A SUDDEN STOP
SHOULD WE GET THE ORDER
TO STOP OR REDUCE SPEED.
Narrator:
WHETHER TO SLOW DOWN IN FOG
IS A DILEMMA MANY MARINERS FACE.
SAFETY DEMANDS IT,
BUT CAPTAINS FACE ENORMOUS
PRESSURE FROM THEIR COMPANIES
TO DELIVER THEIR CARGOS
TO PORT ON TIME.
DELAYS CAN BE COSTLY
AND BAD FOR PUBLICITY.
ANY SKIPPER THAT IS GOING TO BE
LATE TO A LARGE DEGREE
ON ANY CONSISTENT BASIS IS
PROBABLY GOING TO LOSE HIS JOB.
WE'D BEEN SAILING THROUGH FOG
ALL AFTERNOON.
ON THE BRIDGE,
I MET COMMANDER CALAMAI.
HE'D BEEN ON THE BRIDGE
SINCE WE'D ENCOUNTERED FOG,
AS WAS USUAL.
HE NEVER ABANDONED IT.
Narrator: CALAMAI WAS PRUDENT
TO STAY ON THE BRIDGE,
BUT HE ALSO MADE
A LESS CAUTIOUS DECISION
THAT WOULD HAUNT HIM
FOR THE REST OF HIS LIFE.
Goldstein: THE CAPTAIN
OF THE "ANDREA DORIA,"
A VETERAN OF MANY YEARS AT SEA,
SLOWED DOWN ONLY SLIGHTLY,
FROM 23 KNOTS TO 21.8 KNOTS.
Narrator: THE RULE OF THUMB
IS THAT A SHIP SHOULD
NEVER GO FAST ENOUGH
THAT SHE CAN'T STOP
IN HALF THE DISTANCE
VISIBLE FROM THE BRIDGE.
IN HEAVY FOG THAT EVENING,
VISIBILITY
WAS EXTREMELY LIMITED.
BY 10:00 P.M.,
NEW YORK CITY,
THE SHIP'S FINAL DESTINATION,
WAS WRAPPED IN DARKNESS.
THAT MORNING,
A SWEDISH CRUISE LINER
NAMED THE "STOCKHOLM"
HAD LEFT MANHATTAN'S
57th STREET DOCK.
SHE WAS STEAMING TOWARD
GOTHENBURG, SWEDEN,
ON A BEARING ROUGHLY PARALLEL
TO THE "ANDREA DORIA'S."
THE "STOCKHOLM'S" COMMANDER
WAS HARRY GUNNAR NORDENSON.
HE WAS BORN IN AMERICA
TO SWEDISH PARENTS
AND WAS A 46-YEAR VETERAN
OF LIFE ON THE SEA.
UNLIKE THE SLEEK "ANDREA DORIA,"
THE "STOCKHOLM"
WAS A STURDY WORKHORSE,
SHORN OF THE TRIMMINGS
THAT GRACED THE "DORIA"
AND WEIGHING LESS THAN HALF
OF THE ITALIAN SHIP.
HER REINFORCED BOW
MADE HER IDEAL FOR FOLLOWING
NORTH SEA ICE-BREAKERS
AND GAVE HER UNUSUAL MIGHT
FOR A CRUISE LINER.
LIKE THE "DORIA,"
THE "STOCKHOLM" WAS FITTED WITH
UP-TO-DATE SAFETY FEATURES,
INCLUDING RADAR.
RADAR TECHNOLOGY
WAS STILL IN ITS INFANCY,
BUT IT GAVE CREWS THE ABILITY
TO DETECT OTHER SHIPS
FROM MILES AWAY.
PERHAPS BECAUSE HE HAD RADAR,
NORDENSON CHOSE A COURSE
FOR THE "STOCKHOLM"
THAT WOULD TAKE HER 20 MILES
NORTH OF HER USUAL ROUTE.
THE SHORTCUT WOULD SAVE TIME.
IT WOULD ALSO PUT HER
INTO ONE OF THE WORLD'S
BUSIEST SHIPPING LANES.
THE AREA WAS ACTUALLY CALLED
THE TIMES SQUARE OF THE ATLANTIC
BECAUSE IT WAS
SO HEAVILY TRAVELED.
ON ANY GIVEN DAY,
THERE MIGHT HAVE BEEN
50 OR 60 SHIPS
COMING INTO AND OUT OF
NEW YORK HARBOR,
MANY OF THEM OCEAN LINERS.
THEY WOULD ALL BE GOING IN
THIS AREA SOUTH OF NANTUCKET.
Narrator: KEEPING WATCH
ON THE "STOCKHOLM'S" BRIDGE
WAS 26-YEAR-OLD THIRD OFFICER
JOHAN CARSTENS-JOHANNSEN.
CARSTENS WAS KNOWN
AS A GENIAL SHIPMATE
AND A RELIABLE HELMSMAN,
AND THIS WAS HIS FOURTH VOYAGE
ON THE "STOCKHOLM."
THE CAPTAIN GAVE CARSTENS
CLEAR INSTRUCTIONS...
STAY AT LEAST ONE MILE AWAY
FROM PASSING SHIPS
AND ALERT HIM IMMEDIATELY
IF THEY ENCOUNTERED FOG.
BUT DESPITE WEATHER BULLETINS
REPORTING THICK FOG
NEAR THE "NANTUCKET" LIGHTSHIP,
CARSTENS WOULD LATER CLAIM
HE SAW NO FOG
AS THE "STOCKHOLM"
APPROACHED THE AREA.
THE "ANDREA DORIA" CREW,
ON THE OTHER HAND,
NOTED HEAVY FOG,
BUT FELT THEY WERE TAKING
THE APPROPRIATE PRECAUTIONS.
JUST AFTER 10:00 P.M.,
CARSTENS REALIZES THAT HIS SHIP
IS TWO MILES FARTHER NORTH
THAN HE'D THOUGHT
AND CLOSER TO THE NOTORIOUSLY
HAZARDOUS AREA
AROUND THE "NANTUCKET"
LIGHTSHIP.
AT EXACTLY 22:45,
WE SPOTTED A RADAR SIGNAL AT
17 MILES, 4 DEGREES STARBOARD.
IT WAS CLEAR THE SHIP
WAS COMING TOWARDS US
ON A PARALLEL
AND OPPOSITE COURSE...
AND THAT IT WOULD
PASS US TO STARBOARD
AT A DISTANCE OF
ABOUT 1.2 OR 1.3 MILES,
A CONSIDERABLE DISTANCE.
Narrator: THE APPROACHING SHIP
IS THE "STOCKHOLM,"
AND SHE HAS ALSO SPOTTED
THE "ANDREA DORIA" ON HER RADAR.
BUT TO CARSTENS,
THE "DORIA" LOOKS LIKE
SHE IS APPROACHING
ON HIS PORT, OR LEFT, SIDE...
NOT THE STARBOARD.
SO HE PREPARES
TO LET THE "DORIA" PASS
ON HIS LEFT.
THIS PORT-TO-PORT PASSING
IS A GENERAL RULE OF THE ROAD.
BUT SINCE THE RADAR READINGS ON
THE TWO SHIPS DO NOT MATCH UP,
THEY ARE HEADING TOWARDS
A PERILOUS CONFRONTATION...
AND BOTH SHIPS
ARE STILL SAILING AT HIGH SPEED.
HEEDING HIS CAPTAIN'S
INSTRUCTIONS
NEVER TO PASS A SHIP
AT LESS THAN A MILE DISTANCE,
CARSTENS ORDERS
A SHARP TURN TO STARBOARD,
THINKING HE WILL
INCREASE THE DISTANCE
BETWEEN THE "STOCKHOLM"
AND THE OTHER SHIP
BEFORE THEY PASS.
THE "DORIA" IS TAKING
OTHER PRECAUTIONS.
I WENT TO THE SIDE OF THE BRIDGE
TO TRY TO HEAR THE FOG SIGNALS
THAT A SHIP SAILING IN FOG
HAD TO EMIT.
Narrator: BUT CARSTENS,
WHO LATER CLAIMS
THERE WAS NO FOG,
DOES NOT SEND A SIGNAL
OR ALERT HIS CAPTAIN.
HE DECIDED NOT TO CALL HIM,
FELT HE COULD HANDLE IT
ON HIS OWN.
Narrator: MEANWHILE,
EACH SHIP CONTINUES TO OPERATE
UNDER DIFFERENT ASSUMPTIONS
ABOUT THE ROUTE AND LOCATION
OF THE OTHER.
SURPRISINGLY,
THEY DON'T HAVE THE TECHNOLOGY
TO TALK TO EACH OTHER
SHIP-TO-SHIP,
AND THEIR OPPOSITE
RADAR READINGS
HAVE PUT THEM
ON A COLLISION COURSE.
SUDDENLY, CAPTAIN CALAMAI
CATCHES A GLIMPSE
OF THE "STOCKHOLM"
THROUGH THE FOG.
IT'S DIRECTLY IN THEIR PATH
AND CLOSING FAST.
COMMANDER,
IT'S VEERING CLOSER!
IT'S GOING TO
HIT US!
Narrator: THE STOCKHOLM IS NOW
ONLY A MILE AND A HALF AWAY.
IT WAS A MATTER OF SECONDS.
DECISIONS HAD TO BE TAKEN
IMMEDIATELY.
Narrator:
THE HELMSMAN TURNS SHARPLY,
DRIVING HARD TO THE LEFT TO
AVOID THE ONCOMING "STOCKHOLM."
WE HAD TO COUNT ON OUR SPEED
TO AVOID COLLISION.
Narrator: ON THE "STOCKHOLM,"
CARSTENS LOSES PRECIOUS SECONDS
TAKING A PHONE CALL
FROM THE LOOKOUT
BEFORE FINALLY REALIZING
THAT THE "DORIA" IS NOW
DIRECTLY AHEAD.
STILL ASSUMING
SHE WILL PASS ON HIS LEFT,
HE VEERS HARD TO HIS RIGHT.
AT THIS MOMENT,
THE SHIPS HAVE ABOUT 100 SECONDS
TO PREVENT A COLLISION.
WE WERE IN OUR CABIN.
Narrator: 60 SECONDS.
I WAS SITTING IN A BIG LOUNGE
CHAIR, AROUND A COCKTAIL TABLE.
Narrator: 40.
I WAS BORED WITH THE MOVIE.
IT WAS A LOVE STORY.
Narrator: 30 SECONDS
TO PREVENT A CATASTROPHE.
IN A FINAL, DESPERATE MOVE,
CARSTENS GIVES THE ORDER
FOR FULL REVERSE.
BUT TIME QUICKLY RUNS OUT.
THE REINFORCED BOW
OF THE "STOCKHOLM"
SMASHES INTO THE SIDE
OF THE "ANDREA DORIA"
WITH THE FORCE
OF A MASSIVE TORPEDO.
THE 13,000-TON VESSEL
SLICES DIRECTLY INTO
THE ANDREA DORIA'S SIDE,
HER REINFORCED BOW
TEARING STRAIGHT INTO
THE ITALIAN SHIP'S LOWER CABINS,
PEELING THEM OPEN
LIKE A CAN OPENER.
THE ROOM ACTUALLY ROCKED.
AND EVERYBODY STARTED
TO SLIDE ACROSS THE ROOM
AGAINST THE WALL.
MY MOM GRABBING ME IN THE ARM
AND TELLING ME
TO "WAKE UP, WAKE UP,"
AND GRABBED ME BY THE ARM
AND OUT THE DOOR OF THE CABIN,
BECAUSE SHE HEARD
ALL THIS COMMOTION
AND THIS SCREAMING GOING ON.
Narrator: THE IMPACT LASTS
JUST A FEW SECONDS
BUT CATCHES THE "DORIA"
AT HER MOST VULNERABLE SPOT.
THE DAMAGE IS HORRIFIC.
HER SUPPOSEDLY
WATERTIGHT COMPARTMENTS
IMMEDIATELY BEGIN
TAKING ON WATER.
Goldstein: IT WAS HIT
IN THE AREA OF THE FUEL TANKS.
THE TANKS WERE ALL
VIRTUALLY EMPTY
BECAUSE IT WAS ONLY A FEW HOURS
FROM ITS ARRIVAL IN NEW YORK.
WHAT HAPPENED IS,
YOU HAVE SEAWATER
NOW RUSHING INTO
THE EMPTY STARBOARD TANKS.
IT WENT BACK AND FORTH,
AND THEN IT SETTLED
ON THE STARBOARD SIDE.
Narrator: INSTANT FLOODING
SETS THE SHIP LISTING
22 DEGREES TO STARBOARD.
INSIDE, PANIC AND CHAOS ERUPT.
PAT MASTRINCOLA RUNS DOWN
TO THE LOWER DECKS
LOOKING FOR HIS SISTER.
SO AS I STARTED TO GO
INTO THE CORRIDOR,
PEOPLE WERE RUNNING OUT,
AND THESE PEOPLE WERE
IN THEIR NIGHTCLOTHES,
THEY WERE COVERED WITH OIL,
THEY WERE SCREAMING,
THEY WERE PANICKY.
Leonardo Paladino:
WE COULD HEAR SCREAMING
EVERYWHERE.
THOSE WHO
HAD BEEN SLEEPING
CAME OUT OF THE CABINS
ALMOST NAKED.
Gallinari:
AND ONE OF THE OFFICERS
WAS SAYING,
"CALM, CALM.
EVERYTHING SEEMS TO BE FINE."
BUT PEOPLE WERE STILL GOING
AS FAR UP AS THEY COULD GO.
Narrator: UNAWARE OF WHAT
THEY WILL FIND ABOVE,
LOWER-CLASS PASSENGERS
ARE DESPERATE TO GET
AS FAR AS POSSIBLE
FROM THE RISING WATER.
BUT I WAS LUCKY BECAUSE,
BEING A BOY,
I COULD SNEAK RIGHT
BETWEEN THE DOOR
IN A PILE OF PEOPLE,
AND I GOT OUT.
WHEN I GOT NEAR THE CABIN AREA,
I COULD HEAR THE PEOPLE BELOW ME
SCREAMING...
ON "B" AND "C" DECK HAD DROWNED,
AND YOU COULD HEAR THEM
SCREAMING.
Narrator:
THE CRASH KILLS 43 PEOPLE
ON IMPACT,
MOST OF THEM FROM "C" DECK,
WHERE MANY OF THE POOREST
PASSENGERS HAVE CABINS.
THE SERGIO FAMILY,
MOVING TO AMERICA FROM
A SMALL VILLAGE NEAR NAPLES,
ARE ALL KILLED.
FERDINAND AND FRANCES THERIOT
ALSO DIE THAT NIGHT,
BUT THEIR SON PETER,
JUST A FEW CABINS AWAY,
IS UNHURT.
THE "NEW YORK TIMES"
CORRESPONDENT FROM SPAIN,
CAMILLE CINFARRA,
AND HIS DAUGHTER JOAN
ARE KILLED.
BUT HIS STEPDAUGHTER,
14-YEAR-OLD LINDA MORGAN,
BECOMES KNOWN AS
THE "MIRACLE GIRL"
OF THE "ANDREA DORIA"
WHEN, INCREDIBLY,
SHE IS FLUNG FROM HER CABIN ONTO
THE PROW OF THE "STOCKHOLM"...
AND SURVIVES.
AS PASSENGERS BELOW DECKS
SCRAMBLE FOR SAFETY,
CAPTAIN CALAMAI SENDS OUT
AN S-O-S TO SHIPS IN THE AREA
AND HAS TO MAKE
A MOMENTOUS DECISION.
DO I SAVE THE SHIP?
OR DO I SAVE THE PASSENGERS?
NOW, WHAT HE COULD HAVE DONE
IS ESSENTIALLY
GET THE SHIP UNDERWAY
AND TAKE IT INTO THE SHALLOWS
OF THE NANTUCKET SOUND AREA
AND THEREFORE TRY
TO BEACH HIS SHIP.
Narrator: BUT CALAMAI KNOWS
THAT STEERING THE SHIP
INTO SHALLOW WATER
IS A RISKY MANEUVER.
GETTING HER UNDERWAY WOULD
MAKE HER TAKE ON WATER FASTER,
AND PUTTING HER
INTO THE SHALLOWS
WOULD MAKE IT MORE DANGEROUS
FOR THE RESCUE SHIPS
TO GET CLOSE.
HE ESSENTIALLY GAVE UP HIS SHIP
FOR THE RIGHT TO SAVE PEOPLE.
Narrator:
THE "DORIA'S" CREW BEGIN
PREPARING TO EVACUATE,
BUT WHEN THEY GO
FOR THE LIFEBOATS,
THEY REALIZE THE ANGLE
OF THE TILTING DECK
HAS MADE HALF OF THEM
INACCESSIBLE.
HAUNTED BY MEMORIES
OF THE "TITANIC,"
THE PASSENGERS BEGIN TO DESPAIR.
IF THE SURVIVORS CAN'T EVACUATE
THE SHIP, THE DEATH TOLL, TOO,
WILL BE REMINISCENT
OF THAT EARLIER DISASTER.
BUT THIS TIME,
HELP IS ON THE WAY.
THE FRENCH OCEAN LINER
"ILE DE FRANCE"
IS HEADED TO EUROPE
BUT QUICKLY CHECKS IN
TO SEE IF SHE IS NEEDED.
VIA TELEGRAPH,
HER CAPTAIN TELLS CALAMAI
IT WILL BE AT LEAST TWO HOURS
BEFORE HE ARRIVES.
"PLEASE COME,
WITH ALL LIFEBOATS READY."
MEANWHILE, SURVIVORS
ON THE LOWER DECKS
CONTINUE TO SCRAMBLE HIGHER
TO AVOID THE RISING WATER.
OTHERS SCUTTLE THE OPPOSITE WAY
TO FIND MISSING LOVED ONES.
PAT MASTRINCOLA FINALLY REACHES
HIS FAMILY'S CABIN,
BUT HIS SISTER'S BED IS EMPTY.
OUR CABIN WAS PROBABLY
WITHIN 20 FEET OF THE HOLE.
WHEN I GOT TO THE CABIN,
MY SISTER, SHE HAD ROLLED
OUT OF THE BED,
AND SHE WAS SLEEPING
ON THE WALL.
I WOKE HER UP.
I SAID, "ARLENE, GET UP.
THE SHIP IS SINKING."
IF THE COLLISION HAD HAPPENED
ONE SECOND LATER,
MY SISTER
WOULD HAVE BEEN KILLED.
AND HOW SHE SLEPT THROUGH IT,
I HAVE NO IDEA.
Narrator: FOR THE PASSENGERS
WHO MAKE IT TO THE UPPER DECKS,
CONFUSION AND FEAR TAKE ROOT.
THEN CAME, I GUESS,
THE SCARY PART,
WAITING FOR RESCUE SHIPS.
BECAUSE EVERY TIME
THE SHIP MADE A NOISE,
YOU THOUGHT IT WAS GOING TO
TURN OVER AND THAT'S IT.
Narrator: THE "DORIA"
CONTINUES TO LIST.
PASSENGERS AND CREW SOON REALIZE
IT'S NOW NOT A QUESTION OF
WHETHER THE SHIP WILL SINK,
BUT WHEN.
THE MERCHANT SHIP
"CAPE ANN" ARRIVES
WITH TWO SMALL RESCUE BOATS.
LILIANA DOONER, WHO HAD DREAMT
ABOUT THE "CAPE ANN,"
JUMPS INTO ONE
WITH HER DAUGHTER MARIA.
WE COULDN'T BOARD
THE "CAPE ANN."
THE LADDER DIDN'T
REACH THE LIFEBOAT.
THE WAVES FLUNG US
AGAINST THE "CAPE ANN,"
AND I SAID TO MYSELF,
"GOOD HEAVENS, I DIDN'T DIE
ON THE ANDREA DORIA,
AND I'M GOING TO DIE HERE?"
BUT THE CREW WERE SKILLED
AND KNEW HOW TO GET US ON BOARD.
Narrator: 5 PEOPLE DIED
ON THE "STOCKHOLM"
DURING THE COLLISION,
BUT SHE REMAINS
STRUCTURALLY SOUND.
SHE SENDS LIFEBOATS,
BUT THERE ARE STILL NOT ENOUGH.
FINALLY, CHEERS ERUPT
FROM THE "ANDREA DORIA"
WHEN THE GIANT "ILE DE FRANCE"
APPEARS OUT OF THE FOG,
EARLIER THAN EXPECTED.
SHE IMMEDIATELY
THROWS DOWN HER LIFEBOATS
AND BEGINS MAKING RESCUES.
BUT NOT ALL GOES SMOOTHLY.
ONE YOUNG GIRL, NORMA DI SANDRO,
SMASHES HER HEAD
WHEN HER ANXIOUS FATHER
DROPS HER OVER THE SIDE
INTO A LIFEBOAT.
STORIES OF BOTH HEROISM
AND COWARDICE SPREAD
AMONG THE SURVIVORS.
SOME HEAR THAT "DORIA" SEAMEN
ARE TAKING PRECIOUS LIFEBOAT
BERTHS FOR THEMSELVES.
OTHERS REPORT SELFLESS
CREW MEMBERS SAVING LIVES.
BY DAWN, NEWS OF THE COLLISION
REACHES NEW YORK
AND THE REST OF THE WORLD.
THE "ANDREA DORIA" IS SINKING.
UNKNOWN.
REPORTERS AND CAMERA CREWS
FLOCK TO THE SCENE
TO FILM THE MOST BEAUTIFUL SHIP
IN THE WORLD LYING ON HER SIDE,
BEING SWALLOWED BY THE ATLANTIC.
THE "STOCKHOLM,"
HER BOW AMPUTATED
BUT HER DECKS FULL,
HEADS FOR NEW YORK WITH
MORE THAN 500 SURVIVORS.
THE OPERATION BECOMES ONE OF
THE BIGGEST MARITIME RESCUES
IN HISTORY.
48 DEAD ON BOTH SHIPS,
BUT MORE THAN 1,600
"DORIA" PASSENGERS SAVED.
ABOARD THE "ANDREA DORIA",
CAPTAIN CALAMAI AND HIS TOP
OFFICERS REMAIN ON THE BRIDGE,
HANGING ON EVEN AS THE SHIP
LISTS TO 40 DEGREES.
THE CAPTAIN REFUSES
TO ABANDON HIS VESSEL.
WE CLIMBED DOWN TO THE LIFEBOAT,
AND CAPTAIN CALAMAI
REMAINED ON BOARD.
HE SAID, "MOVE AWAY,
REMAIN CLOSE BY,
AND AT THE LAST MOMENT,
I WILL COME WITH YOU."
SO WE ALL CAME BACK.
AND WHEN HE SAW
OUR DETERMINATION,
BECAUSE WE'D ALREADY
STARTED TO CLIMB BACK,
HE SAID, "OK, I'LL GO WITH YOU."
Narrator: FINALLY, EARLY
IN THE MORNING OF THE 26th,
CAPTAIN CALAMAI
GETS INTO A LIFEBOAT
AND ROWS AWAY
FROM HIS BELOVED "DORIA."
AT A FEW MINUTES PAST 10:00,
THE ICONIC SHIP BEGINS
HER FINAL DEATH "THROES".
I DIDN'T BELIEVE
THAT SHIP WOULD SINK.
THERE WAS A WEAK SUN,
AND THE SHIP SPARKLED
AS SHE SANK.
Narrator:
THE PORTSIDE LIFEBOATS,
FREE AT LAST,
FINALLY HIT THE SEA,
JUST BEFORE THE LAST
PIECE OF THE SHIP
DISAPPEARS BENEATH THE WAVES.
I LOOKED AT MY WATCH
AND WROTE ON A PIECE OF PAPER,
"10:15, SUNK."
Narrator: LATER THAT DAY,
THE ILE DE FRANCE
REACHES NEW YORK
WITH OVER 750 SURVIVORS,
MANY AMAZED TO BE ALIVE.
IMMEDIATELY, THE BODIES
OF THE DEAD ARE TENDED TO,
AND THE SEARCH FOR
MISSING SURVIVORS BEGINS.
WITH THOUSANDS CONVERGING
ON THE DOCKS,
THE SCENE IS CHAOTIC.
LILIANA DOONER DISEMBARKS
FROM THE "CAPE ANN"
CARRYING HER DAUGHTER MARIA.
ELSEWHERE, A COAST GUARD
HELICOPTER EVACUATES
THE MOST SERIOUSLY INJURED.
AMONG THEM IS LITTLE
NORMA DI SANDRO,
WHO IS TRANSFERRED
TO A BOSTON HOSPITAL
WITH A FRACTURED SKULL
FROM HER FALL INTO THE LIFEBOAT.
FOR THE PALADINOS, TOO,
THE NIGHTMARE CONTINUES.
ONE OF THEIR DAUGHTERS
IS MISSING.
ON BOARD
THE "ILE DE FRANCE,"
I FOUND
TWO OF MY CHILDREN.
I DIDN'T FIND THE THIRD.
Narrator:
THE FAMILY IS IN SHOCK.
IT WAS TERRIBLE.
I DISEMBARKED
WITH TWO CHILDREN,
BUT I HAD 3.
I THOUGHT THAT
THE OTHER ONE WAS...
Narrator: GRIEF-STRICKEN,
THEY ARE TAKEN IN BY A RELATIVE.
WE WERE WATCHING
THE TELEVISION
IN THE EVENING,
AT AROUND 11:30, 12:00,
AND I SAW MY LITTLE GIRL
WITH THE RED CROSS.
Narrator: THEIR THIRD DAUGHTER
IS IN THE ARMS OF A NURSE,
RESCUED BY ANOTHER SHIP.
REUNITED, THE WHOLE FAMILY
VISITS A NEARBY CHURCH
TO GIVE THANKS.
NORMA DI SANDRO IS NOT SO LUCKY.
DESPITE DOCTORS' BEST EFFORTS,
SHE DIES FROM HER INJURIES.
WITHIN DAYS OF
THE EPIC CRASH AND RESCUE,
STUNNED SURVIVORS, MOURNERS,
AND MUCH OF THE WORLD
BEGIN ASKING
THE DIFFICULT QUESTIONS.
HOW COULD THIS TRAGEDY
HAVE HAPPENED?
WHO WAS RESPONSIBLE?
AND HOW CAN THE VICTIMS
EVER BE COMPENSATED?
HUGE INTERESTS ARE AT STAKE.
IMMEDIATELY, ARMIES OF LAWYERS,
PUBLICISTS, AND STRATEGISTS
BEGIN CIRCLING.
THE STAGE IS SET
FOR A P.R. BATTLE BETWEEN
COUNTRIES AND COMPANIES.
Man: FROM A MEDIA POINT OF VIEW,
THE SWEDES WERE MORE SHREWD,
MANAGING TO ATTRACT
GREATER POPULARITY
THAN THE ITALIAN LINE.
THERE IS NO DOUBT ABOUT THAT.
Narrator: RIGHT FROM THE START,
THE "DORIA'S" OWNERS
ORDER HER MEN TO BE SILENT,
A STRATEGY THAT PROVES
DISASTROUS.
NEWSPAPERS PUBLISH PHOTOS
OF THE ITALIANS LOOKING AWKWARD,
EVEN GUILT-RIDDEN.
THE SWEDES, ON THE OTHER HAND,
ORGANIZE PRESS EVENTS
TO EXPLAIN WHAT HAD HAPPENED.
SOME EVEN CLAIM
THE "ANDREA DORIA" SANK
BECAUSE SHE WAS BADLY BUILT.
THE SWEDISH PUBLICITY CAMPAIGN,
COMBINED WITH LINGERING
RACISM AND HOSTILITY
AFTER WORLD WAR II,
PUT THE ITALIANS
AT A DISADVANTAGE
FROM THE START.
IT SEEMED TO BE KIND OF
A PREJUDICIAL ATTITUDE
THAT PERHAPS ITALIANS
WERE LESS TRUSTWORTHY,
WERE MORE TEMPERAMENTAL;
AND THAT THE SWEDISH CAME FROM,
SAY, A MORE EFFICIENT STOCK.
Narrator: EACH SIDE ACCUSES
THE OTHER OF CAUSING THE CRASH.
BUT THE INSURANCE COMPANIES
AREN'T AS INTERESTED
IN POINTING FINGERS
AS THEY ARE
IN LIMITING LIABILITY
TO MATERIAL DAMAGES...
THE VALUE OF THE SHIPS
AFTER THE ACCIDENT.
THE "STOCKHOLM,"
AFLOAT BUT WITH NO BOW,
IS DEEMED TO BE WORTH
ABOUT $3 MILLION.
THE "ANDREA DORIA"
HAS BEEN REDUCED TO
THE VALUE OF HER LIFEBOATS
AND COMPENSATION
FOR THE PASSENGERS' TICKETS...
ONLY ABOUT $400,000.
HEARINGS BEGIN ON SEPTEMBER 19
IN FOLEY SQUARE, MANHATTAN.
THE PRESS AND PUBLIC
ARE RIVETED.
THE CASE WILL HINGE ON
A FEW CENTRAL QUESTIONS:
HAD THE "STOCKHOLM"
RAMMED THE "DORIA"
WITH A SUDDEN
AND DANGEROUS MANEUVER,
AS CLAIMED BY THE ITALIANS?
OR WAS IT THE "DORIA"
THAT HAD CUT ACROSS
THE SWEDISH SHIP'S PATH?
WHICH OFFICER
HAD MISREAD HIS RADAR,
CAUSING HIM TO MISJUDGE
THE DISTANCE BETWEEN THE SHIPS
AND THE DIRECTION
THEY WERE HEADING?
HAD THE SHIPS
BEEN TRAVELING TOO FAST?
AND HAD THERE REALLY BEEN FOG
THAT NIGHT OFF NANTUCKET?
THE "ANDREA DORIA'S" LAWYER,
EUGENE UNDERWOOD,
SEEN HERE WITH CAPTAIN CALAMAI,
IS ONE OF NEW YORK'S MOST FAMOUS
MARITIME ATTORNEYS.
BELIEVING NEITHER SIDE CAN PROVE
THE OTHER IS ENTIRELY AT FAULT,
HE OFFERS A SETTLEMENT
TO THE "STOCKHOLM'S" LAWYER,
CHARLES HAIGHT.
HAIGHT REJECTS THE OFFER,
STICKING BY THIRD OFFICER
CARSTEN'S CLAIM
THAT HE HAD SEEN NO FOG,
AND SO HAD NO REASON
TO REDUCE SPEED
OR SOUND THE FOG WHISTLE.
QUESTIONING ON BOTH SIDES
GETS AGGRESSIVE.
AT ONE ESPECIALLY
GRUELING POINT,
CAPTAIN NORDENSON
OF THE "STOCKHOLM" FAINTS
AND IS TAKEN TO THE HOSPITAL.
TENSIONS REACH A BOILING POINT
WHEN CARSTENS TAKES THE STAND.
MY NAME IS
JOHAN CARSTENS-JOHANNSEN.
I AM 76 YEARS OLD,
AND I WAS THE MATE ON BRIDGE,
OFFICER ON BRIDGE
ON THE "STOCKHOLM"
IN THE COLLISION
WITH THE "ANDREA DORIA".
Narrator: HALF A CENTURY LATER,
CARSTENS STANDS BY HIS STATEMENT
FROM THE HEARING...
THE ITALIANS HAD STEERED
DIRECTLY INTO HIS PATH.
BUT THE "DORIA" CAPTAIN,
CALAMAI,
HE MADE THIS TURN TO PORT,
AND THAT'S...
I CAN'T UNDERSTAND IT.
YOU NEVER MAKE A MANEUVER
LIKE THAT.
Narrator: TO THIS DAY,
HE STILL INSISTS THERE WAS
NO FOG IN THE AREA THAT NIGHT.
SURE, SURE.
I GET CONTINUOUS REPORTS
FROM THE RADIO OPERATORS
ABOUT THE CONDITIONS,
AND THERE WAS NO FOG
IN THE AREA.
INDEED, THERE WAS FOG.
THE "NANTUCKET" LIGHTSHIP
CONFIRMED THAT THERE WAS FOG.
ALL THE OTHER VESSELS
THAT WERE IN THE AREA
WE NOW KNOW
CONFIRMED THERE WAS FOG.
THERE WERE 60 CASES
IN THE LOG BOOKS
OF THE "STOCKHOLM"
SHOWING THAT SHE HAD ENCOUNTERED
FOG AND NEVER REDUCED SPEED.
Narrator: THIS WAS...
AND STILL IS...
COMMON PRACTICE IN SHIPPING.
WITH TIGHT SCHEDULES
AND HIGH-PAID
DOCK WORKERS WAITING,
DELAYS CAN BE COSTLY.
THOUGH THE "ANDREA DORIA'S"
LOG BOOK WENT DOWN
WITH THE SHIP,
IT, TOO, WAS LIKELY
FILLED WITH ENTRIES
ABOUT HIGH-SPEED TRAVEL
DURING FOG.
THE NIGHT OF THE COLLISION
WAS NO EXCEPTION.
Volk: THE "ANDREA DORIA'S" FAULT
WAS PRIMARILY HER EXCESS
OF SPEED IN FOG.
SHE REDUCED SPEED SLIGHTLY
BY REDUCING THE PRESSURE
ON THE TURBINES.
THE COURTS MOST CERTAINLY
WOULD HAVE FELT THAT
THAT WAS NOT SUFFICIENT.
Narrator:
BUT WHAT ABOUT THE RADAR?
IT SHOULD HAVE PREVENTED
THE COLLISION,
EVEN IN FOGGY CONDITIONS.
EACH SIDE BLAMED THE OTHER
ON THIS FRONT.
CAPTAIN CALAMAI WAS GRILLED
ABOUT HIS DECISION
TO SIMPLY EYEBALL THE READINGS
INSTEAD OF PLOTTING THEM
ON A CHART FOR GREATER ACCURACY.
THE "STOCKHOLM'S" LAWYER
MADE THE ARGUMENT
THAT THIS OVERSIGHT COULD
HAVE PUT THE "ANDREA DORIA"
INTO THE PATH
OF THE "STOCKHOLM."
CARSTENS, ON THE OTHER HAND,
CLAIMED HE HAD PLOTTED
HIS READINGS,
THOUGH HIS CHARTS WENT MISSING
AFTER THE COLLISION.
QUESTIONS WERE RAISED
ABOUT WHETHER HE HAD READ
HIS EQUIPMENT CORRECTLY,
BUT IN THE END,
NEITHER SIDE WAS ABLE
TO GET MUCH TRACTION,
EVEN THOUGH THERE WAS NO WAY
BOTH MEN COULD HAVE BEEN RIGHT.
THE READINGS
WERE NOT PRECISELY ACCURATE
IN TERMS OF HOW THEY READ
THEIR RADAR SCREENS.
THE "ANDREA DORIA" FELT THAT
THE "STOCKHOLM" WAS APPROACHING
TO ITS RIGHT.
CARSTENS-JOHANNSEN FELT
THE "DORIA" WAS APPROACHING
TO ITS LEFT.
AND THAT WAS INCOMPATIBLE.
THAT COULDN'T BE.
Narrator: THE RADAR ARGUMENT
ENDED IN A STALEMATE,
AND THE INCREASINGLY TESTY
HEARINGS
BECAME A PUBLIC RELATIONS
NIGHTMARE FOR BOTH SIDES.
TESTIMONY REVEALED FAULTS
AND MISTAKES ALL AROUND,
OPENING THE DOOR FOR HUGE
INDIVIDUAL CLAIMS BY PASSENGERS.
SO, FEARING A VERDICT THAT
WOULD FORCE BIG PAYOUTS,
LLOYD'S OF LONDON,
WHICH HAD AN INSURANCE STAKE
IN BOTH SHIPS,
FORCED A SETTLEMENT BEFORE
A RULING COULD BE MADE.
BOTH SIDES AGREED TO IGNORE
QUESTIONS OF BLAME,
FORGO A TRIAL,
PAY OUT AS LITTLE AS POSSIBLE,
AND MOVE ON.
A FUND OF $6 MILLION
WAS SET UP TO BE DIVIDED
AMONG THE SURVIVORS.
MOST RECEIVED A PITTANCE...
A MERE 7 CENTS
ON EVERY DOLLAR CLAIMED.
TYPICAL PAYOUTS RANGED FROM
ONLY $10,000-$30,000.
Giannini:
EVERYTHING WAS HUSHED UP.
IT ALL SANK INTO OBLIVION.
THE SINKING OF
THE "ANDREA DORIA"
WAS A CHAPTER
THAT HAD TO BE CLOSED.
Narrator: THE SWEDES ENDED
THEIR PART IN THE AFFAIR
BY REWARDING CARSTENS
AND CAPTAIN NORDENSON
WITH LAVISH PROMOTIONS TO
A FLAGSHIP SWEDISH VESSEL.
THE "STOCKHOLM,"
HER BOW REPAIRED,
WAS PUT BACK INTO SERVICE.
TODAY, SHE CRUISES THE WATERS
OF THE CARIBBEAN.
THE SWEDES FOUND IT EASY
TO MOVE ON,
BUT FOR THE PASSENGERS AND CREW
OF THE "ANDREA DORIA,"
LETTING GO WAS NOT SO SIMPLE.
CAPTAIN CALAMAI
NEVER SAILED AGAIN,
AND SOON RETIRED A BROKEN MAN.
HE TOLD FRIENDS AFTER THE CRASH,
"ALL MY LIFE, I LOVED THE SEA.
NOW I HATE IT."
WITH EMOTIONS STILL RAW
AND SO MUCH LEFT UNANSWERED
AFTER THE SETTLEMENT,
THE ITALIAN NAVAL MINISTRY
DECIDED TO CONDUCT
ITS OWN INQUIRY
ONE YEAR AFTER THE DISASTER.
THE REPORT EXONERATED
THE "ANDREA DORIA" OFFICERS
FOR THE FACT THAT THE SHIP SANK
AND DISMISSED ACCOUNTS OF
SELFISH BEHAVIOR BY HER CREW
DURING THE RESCUE.
BUT IT SPARED NEITHER SIDE
CRITICISM
OVER CAUSING THE CRASH
IN THE FIRST PLACE.
WORRIED THAT THE FINDINGS
WOULD JEOPARDIZE THE BLAME-FREE
TERMS OF THE SETTLEMENT,
ITALY DECIDED NOT
TO RELEASE THE REPORT.
BUT IN OTHER PARTS OF THE WORLD,
THE COLLISION CONTINUED
TO DRAW INTEREST.
AT THE U.S. MERCHANT MARINE
ACADEMY IN NEW YORK,
THE INVESTIGATION
WAS REOPENED IN 1971.
A CURIOUS NAVAL EXPERT
NAMED JOHN CARROTHERS
CONDUCTED A STUDY USING
BOTH SHIPS' COURSE RECORDS.
WORKING BACKWARDS
FROM THE POINT OF IMPACT,
HE CONCLUDED THAT
THE "STOCKHOLM"
HAD CAUSED THE COLLISION.
HE CLAIMED CARSTENS
HAD MISREAD HIS RADAR,
THINKING THE "ANDREA DORIA"
WAS 3 TIMES FARTHER AWAY
THAN SHE ACTUALLY WAS.
BY THE TIME
HE REALIZED HIS MISTAKE,
IT WAS TOO LATE
TO CHANGE COURSE.
CARROTHERS' FINDINGS ARE STILL
TAUGHT TODAY AT THE ACADEMY.
Man: THERE IS NO DOUBT
IN MY MIND.
I BELIEVE THAT
CARSTENS JOHANNSEN
MISINTERPRETED THE RADAR.
IT'S THE ONLY
LOGICAL CONCLUSION
THAT I CAN DRAW
FROM THE COLLISION.
Narrator: MEURN HANGS A PHOTO
OF CAPTAIN CALAMAI
IN HIS CLASSROOM.
I THINK IT WAS EXEMPLARY.
I FELT SORRY FOR THE MAN.
I THINK HE WAS UNFAIRLY BLAMED
I THINK WHAT HE DID
WAS EXTRAORDINARY.
Narrator: IN MARCH OF 1972,
CARROTHERS SENT CALAMAI
THE RESULTS OF HIS STUDY,
HOPING TO RELEASE THE BROKEN
CAPTAIN FROM HIS GUILT.
HE ENDED WITH THESE WORDS:
"REST ASSURED, CAPTAIN CALAMAI,
"THERE ARE MANY OF US
WHO WOULD BE MORE THAN WILLING
TO SERVE UNDER YOUR COMMAND
AT ANYTIME."
BUT CALAMAI DIDN'T HAVE
THE HEART TO OPEN THE LETTER.
HE KEPT IT IN A DRAWER
AND DIED A MONTH LATER.
ACCORDING TO HIS DAUGHTERS,
HIS FINAL WORDS WERE,
"ARE THE PASSENGERS SAVED?"
CARSTENS-JOHANNSEN, MEANWHILE,
SPENT THE REST OF HIS CAREER
AT SEA
AND NOW LIVES A LIFE OF
QUIET RETIREMENT IN SWEDEN.
HE IS AT PEACE
WITH THE DECISIONS
HE MADE THAT JULY NIGHT.
Carstens-Johannsen:
BUT IT'S NOT THAT I'M THINKING,
"SHOULD I DO SO AND SO?"
I DID WHAT I DID,
AND I KNOW IT'S RIGHT.
SO I HAVE NO PROBLEM WITH IT,
BUT IT IS SOMETHING
YOU NEVER FORGET,
AND I HAVE TO LIVE WITH IT
ALL OF MY LIFE.
Narrator: EVEN TODAY,
HE MAINTAINS THAT
HE SAW NO FOG.
Carstens-Johannsen:
THE HORIZON WAS
A LITTLE BIT NOT CLEAR,
BUT NO FOG.
THAT NIGHT, IT WAS CLEAR.
AND WHEN YOU ARE GOING
IN THESE WATERS,
YOU ALWAYS HAVE A VERY GOOD LOOK
FOR THE FOG,
BUT THERE WAS NO FOG.
Narrator:
CARSTENS' ITALIAN COUNTERPARTS
STILL DON'T BELIEVE HIM.
HE KNOWS HE COMMITTED AN ERROR.
BETTER FOR HIM
TRYING TO FORGET,
BECAUSE CARRYING THE WEIGHT
OF SUCH A RESPONSIBILITY
IS HARD FOR ANYONE, EVEN FOR
THE STRONGEST MAN IN THE WORLD.
Narrator:
THE "ANDREA DORIA" HERSELF
LIES 250 FEET BELOW
THE SURFACE OF THE ATLANTIC.
FOR 50 YEARS,
SHE HAS BEEN A POWERFUL LURE
FOR TREASURE HUNTERS
AND HISTORIANS ALIKE.
STRONG AND UNPREDICTABLE
CURRENTS AND COLD, MURKY WATER
HAVE MADE HER
A DANGEROUS PLACE TO DIVE.
HER DISINTEGRATING HULL
HAS ALLOWED FEW TO EXPLORE
THE NATURE OF HER WOUND.
BUT ONE EXPEDITION IN 1988
ENJOYED A CONFLUENCE
OF FAVORABLE CONDITIONS
AND SHED SOME LIGHT
ON ONE OF THE "ANDREA DORIA'S"
LINGERING MYSTERIES.
DIVER AND HISTORIAN DAVID BRIGHT
LED THE TEAM.
FROM A DIVER'S PERSPECTIVE,
THE "ANDREA DORIA" REPRESENTED
THE MOUNT EVEREST OF DIVING.
IT WAS IN THE MIDDLE-TO-LATTER
PART OF AUGUST,
WHICH WAS MUCH LATER
THAN WE HAD NORMALLY
EVER BEEN OUT THERE,
AND WHEN WE GOT
TO THE SHIPWRECK SITE,
THE WATER WAS CRYSTAL BLUE,
JUST ABSOLUTELY BEAUTIFUL.
Narrator: BRIGHT WAS AMAZED
AS THE PROFILE OF THE SHIP
SLOWLY APPEARED.
SHE WAS LYING ON HER RIGHT SIDE,
AND AS HE APPROACHED,
HE SAW THE AFT FIN,
A SMALL TERRACE
AT THE REAR OF THE VESSEL.
IT WAS COVERED WITH NETS,
LIKELY USED BY PASSENGERS AS
THEY ATTEMPTED TO ABANDON SHIP.
BRIGHT SAW THE HUGE
LEFT PROPELLER...
THE LAST VISIBLE PIECE
OF THE "DORIA"
AS SHE SLIPPED INTO THE SEA.
THEN THE SPACIOUS DECKS,
WHERE PASSENGERS
HAD SPENT THEIR TIME
WALKING IN THE OCEAN BREEZE.
BELOW THE DECKS, A SIGHT
THAT TOOK BRIGHT BY SURPRISE.
Bright:
THE VISIBILITY WAS TREMENDOUS,
AND WE HAD AN OPPORTUNITY
TO SEE PARTS OF THE SHIP
IN TOTAL,
WHEREAS BEFORE,
YOU WERE ONLY ABLE TO SEE
10 AND 15 FEET OF THE SHIP
AT ANY ONE TIME.
BUT BY DIVING THE SHIP,
AND THIS IS VERY IMPORTANT,
WE WERE ABLE TO FIND OUT
THAT THE "STOCKHOLM"
HAD INFLICTED MUCH MORE DAMAGE
THAN ANYBODY HAD ACTUALLY KNOWN.
IN OTHER WORDS,
PORTIONS OF THE "STOCKHOLM"
SLICED INTO THE KEEL
OR THE BOTTOM LEVEL OF THE SHIP.
BY DOING SO,
WATER WAS ACTUALLY ENTERING IN
IN A MUCH BIGGER HOLE
THAN WHAT WAS EVER
THOUGHT INITIALLY
DURING THAT PERIOD OF TIME.
IT'S MORE OF A REMARKABLE STORY
OF HOW THE "ANDREA DORIA"
WAS ABLE TO SURVIVE 11 HOURS
WITH SUCH A TREMENDOUS WOUND
IN ITS SIDE.
Narrator: THIS FINDING WOULD
RESTORE THE "ANDREA DORIA'S"
DAMAGED IMAGE,
REFUTING CRITICS WHO CLAIMED
THAT LESS ATTENTION HAD BEEN
PAID TO HER SEAWORTHINESS
THAN TO HER LAVISH APPEARANCE.
BUT THE "ANDREA DORIA'S" DEMISE
WOULD SIGNAL THE END OF AN ERA
FOR TRANSATLANTIC OCEAN TRAVEL.
ESSENTIALLY,
IT WAS THE FIRST SHIP
THAT PERISHED IN FRONT OF
THE TELEVISION SET.
IT WAS A FLOATING ART MUSEUM
THAT EMBODIED ALL OF
THE HERITAGE AND CULTURE
OF ITALY.
IT WAS THE TWILIGHT OF
TRANSATLANTIC CROSSING.
IN THE NEXT YEAR,
THE JET CAME AVAILABLE.
Narrator: AND JUST AS
IN THE WAKE OF
THE "TITANIC" DISASTER,
NEW SAFETY STANDARDS WERE
INITIATED AFTER THE CRASH.
RADAR UPGRADES WERE INSTALLED,
AND ADDITIONAL LOOKOUTS
WERE MANDATED
WHEN VISIBILITY WAS POOR.
BUT FOR THE "DORIA,"
THESE CHANGES CAME TOO LATE.
HER DEMISE WAS THE RESULT
OF MISTAKES ON BOTH SIDES
AND THE CAUSE OF
HALF A CENTURY OF EXAMINATION,
ARGUMENT, AND DEBATE.
SHE SANK BEFORE
THE EYES OF THE WORLD
AND TOOK MANY OF HER SECRETS
WITH HER TO THE DEPTHS.
"ALL MY LIFE, I LOVED THE SEA.
NOW■I HATE IT."
"ALL MY LIFE, I LoVÑD THE SEAn
NOW I HATE IT."
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HISTORY IS REVEALING
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CAPTIONING MADE POSSIBLE BY
U.S. DEPARTMENT OF EDUCATION
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