Disastrous Indifference: The Loss of SS El Faro

On October 1st, 2015 the Ro-Con ship El Faro plunged directly into Hurricane Joaquin, a Category 4 storm near the bahamas. This tragedy was the result of long-term negligence, poor decision making, complacency & indifference.
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Hey, I'm Sam! Child of the 80s turned Parent, Traveler, & Bumbling/Stumbling Nostalgic, Sentimental Creator. With a background in Logistics & Supply Chain Management, Industrial Robotics and a passion for Workplace Safety... half the time I know about 50% what I'm doing!
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[@katherynedarrah4245]

I (finally) just took a peek at the tiers of your patreon. TYSM for having single digit amounts! I don't usually have the money every month for more than a few bucks extra to come out. When I get paid I'm definitely becoming a supporter!

[@thejudgmentalcat]

Sry, I already tossed all my coins to my Witcher

[@jamesm3471]

Absolutely, you more than earned it this time! So much detail, I cannot imagine the work that went into it! Thank you again for your remarkable content!

[@genericalfishtycoon3853]

Congrats on breaking 100k Sam! You'll probably get stuck between 400k-600k with how the algorithm works for awhile, but I know with your quality you'll cruise through a million someday soon. Rock on man!

[@ripwednesdayadams]

Thank you for covering the sinking of the El Faro. This case has haunted me since I first heard of it. I read the entire NTSB report and it haunts me to this day. I think about Danielle Randolph and the rest of the crew often. They saw Hurricane Joaquin coming for them like a slow motion car crash but the captain had the final say. The captain was clearly under a lot of pressure himself to stick to a strict timeline set by the company. The transcript is heartbreaking. They should all be alive today.

[@6winstoncupfan]

My cousin Dylan was on this ship, it was his first job soon after graduating from Maine maritime academy. Rest In Peace

[@nickyblue4866]

Damn... sorry for your loss....

[@redtops5160]

So sorry for your loss. Kings Point '84

[@sylvaingilbert6296]

That is so sad 😞 sorry for your lost

[@madness5205]

Sorry for your loss from a fellow mariner

[@josepablolunasanchez1283]

Sorry to hear that. I once almost work for a ship company but got hired elsewhere. And I am the kind of guy who would advocate for safety, always. Had it been in my hands while in the backoffice of the company it would not have happened.

[@honzahalamka1639]

Hearing how much the other officers were concerned, it makes you think that there are times when mutiny is perfectly acceptable

[@taras3702]

indeed!

[@ripn929707]

I spent this entire video wondering how these people could allow this one inept man put their lives in danger. I don't understand the group think here. Maybe it's just my personality,but I would have called corporate, or the coast guard, and taken control of that ship, and turned east. They can fire me when we reach port.

[@mitchwood6609]

​@ripn929707 you mean west...

[@YourAverageExJunkie]

@@ripn929707lol yea ok bud

[@bombomos]

​@@ripn929707youve never had a manager give a wrong call. Yet no one speaks up?

[@kolsen6330]

Worked on this ship in Tacoma when she was the Northern Lights. Every time it hit port in Tacoma, the ship repair crew (20 of us or more) I was on were waiting. We worked like mad right up to the time of departure to fix the biggest problems. She was a rusty tub that none of us shipyarders would even think of going off shore on. When she got too scary to run to Anchorage, they sent her to the Caribbean instead of the scrap yard to get a few more years of revenue out of her. Corporate greed at its finest. Ship is heavily insured, crew is replaceable.

[@Itraininthebogs]

Well said.

[@G1R2TS]

That’s a horrid view. Dollars over lives. All to common I imagine.

[@TheFaveteLinguis]

BS. Captain is responsible.

[@aladine926]

@@TheFaveteLinguis Both are responsible. The captain absolutely was a problem, and was the main reason it went out how it did. But the company was also a problem, since instead of retiring the ship (which as stated above was well-known as a rusting piece of garbage). Tote Maritime decided to keep running this death trap of a ship instead of retiring it because they knew it would be cheaper to deal with the fatalities that could potentially arise rather than to retire it and start running their newer line of ships. Also Tote Maritime hired the captain - they knew of the problems he had and still chose to keep him on the payroll as captain of the El Faro. IMO Tote Maritime is more at fault than the captain, simply by letting him continue to captain the El Faro.

[@Vanayr]

@@TheFaveteLinguis agreed, but he’s an extension of management and policies both good and bad. I would take note that in everything we’ve learned, you never once hear Tote take any interest or action to question why her captain was sailing that ship directly into the middle of a category 4 hurricane. At the end of the day though, no one can argue that the safety of the ship and crew was Davidsons’ responsibility 100%.

[@FinalFinishDetailGarage]

My Sister was 2nd mate Danielle Randolph, thank you for this great video, gave me some closure. To the entire 33 crewmembers, you are still missed loved and heald dear in our hearts and minds. NBR.

[@washedupwarvet2027]

Wow, I’m so sorry for your loss. She seemed like a very intelligent woman, I wish your family peace and great memories of your sister.

[@dogboyauckland]

I am so sorry for you loss. If it can be of any comfort I would like to share this with you. I work for a UK construction company and we use this story as an in depth case study to help promote the right safety culture in our business. This involves having actors play some of the people involved using actual words spoken that were recovered from the black box. This helps us look at the way words and actions made people feel and act in a difficult and pressured situation and how a leader involving and engaging with the expertise around them can help to drive a better and safer outcome. I would stress that this is done very respectfully and we allow a minutes silence to consider and remember those who were on board. People who have been through this (myself included) are visibly moved by this story and can only begin to imagine what you must have been through. I hope and strongly believe that the lessons learned here will make a difference to how we operate and ultimately this will save someone somewheres life or limb and I hope that this may offer some small crumb of comfort to you.

[@FinalFinishDetailGarage]

@@dogboyauckland thank you very much for you and everyone else's kind words and thoughts. I could spend days telling lovely stories of Danielle, I love the fact you are trying to teach and learn from mistakes, that's how we all learn. It is just incredibly unfortunate it took such a tragic experience for some to understand. I have spent many years in marine construction myself, I've seen the good bad and the ugly and experienced some scary things. So if you can teach people some great life lessons that may save someone else please do. Thank you all for your kind words, thoughts and prayers. May you all have fair winds and following seas GOD BLESS. NBR.

[@VelvetYeti]

I am so sorry for your loss.

[@luttes72]

I hate speaking Ill of the dead but your sister was more prepared and acted more captain like than the captain. As with any accident he was not the sole reason for the sinking but part of the link. The actions of your sister though need to be recognized. Truly sorry for your loss and those of the remaining crew.

[@Operngeist1]

That the 2nd mate knew what would happen but the Captain didn't take her seriously always seemed like the most tragic part of this story. Her messages to her loved ones are heartbreaking.

[@dannileigh6426]

Every time I heard a survival suit was spotted i hoped it was her...

[@Dana_at_LAX]

I think she knew 100%! and she probably told the others not to tell her about the weather because that would make it seem more real to her. The other officers just completely played it off. Had they just taken the original suggested alternative route none of this would have happened. As a storm chaser you NEVER know what's going to happen with mother nature and the risk is not worth it AT ALL. Her messages broke my heart the most too. "Hope to talk to you on Friday" was indicative that she knew she might not make it out of this.

[@ryandraper6894]

No matter how competent we become at something. One’s ego is always looming as their potential undoing.

[@bogtrotter17]

@@ryandraper6894 iv stood many watches and you are absolutely right

[@knowsmebyname]

@@frankmiller95 disagree. There's no way to "know" what would happen but the 2nd suspected what could happen. People take the path of least resistance pretty regularly. They do what others expect them to do.

[@Jame5man]

“It was like this every day in Alaska” I’m fairly confident it was not Category 3 hurricane every single day

[@miniena7774]

"PFFT! ONLY 30+ foot swells? ONLY 115 MPH winds? ONLY torrential rain?! That's nothing! When I was your age, that was our daily trip to school!"

[@daydev2599]

Or course not, it was category 5, dodging huge icebergs, uphill, both ways!

[@MongooseTacticool]

The captain sounded like a "1 upper". If you've been to Tenerife, they've been to Eleven-rife

[@lunaequinox7333]

@@MongooseTacticool Ok that was a good one

[@MongooseTacticool]

@@lunaequinox7333 Not an original of mine but it's a good one 👌

[@z00mer]

It’s really hard not to be incredibly angry at that captain. He was betting on people’s lives and pretty much killed everyone on board. Plenty of times there was opportunity to avoid disaster. RIP to the crew.

[@Argumemnon]

Let's not let the company off the hook. If the ship had been properly maintained, this probably wouldn't have happened.

[@williamwoolhouse5018]

@@Argumemnon I agree, but the bulk of the blame has to be on the captain, here. With recklessness like that, it was only a matter of time until he got he and his crew killed.

[@recessional5560]

@@williamwoolhouse5018 Uhmm…it explained how he was normally cautious in the past and that he was most likely under pressure due to the promotion he didn’t receive.

[@maryhadda8420]

Yes, he was the proximate cause, but the fault doesn't lie with him alone. The company gave their ships several years of poor maintenance and their crews several years of poor training. Should have been fixed long before. The situation was a disaster waiting to happen, if not at this time with this ship, then another.

[@mr.amsterdam2063]

@@tesom9965 we see this im all industry. In one of the biggest shoppingmall our country asking the woman for a longsleeve and need her to explain what I am talking about, the restaurants and bars hire students (nothing wrong IF YOU PAY THEM GOOD) and many times the orders didnt end right.

[@Bpilot89]

I sailed as a cadet on the El. Morro. I have never seen such a flagrant disregard for safety in my entire life. One instance I remember we were being audited by ABS. The chief mate kept trying to distract the inspector from the rusted out fire mains. We were required to test the fire system. The fire main would blow out and we had to fix the holes. The strange thing was that it looked freshly painted but had big blisters every few feet. These blisters were wraps of duct tape over rust spots that were painted over that would blow out when the water was turned on. During that event, the cargo door to the aft hold was closed. Not only did the fire main not work, as the water rushed out on deck, it flowed freely down to the aft cargo hold even though it was closed. The aft cargo hold has a passage way to the engine room on tbe port side. Here we are sitting at the dock with water from a busted fire main leaking though the cargo hold door, running down and into the engine room. I can’t image what green water would have been like flowing into the engine room. This was just a minor thing I witnessed during my time on the ship. Sea star should be liable for everything. Yes, you can blame the crew as I did the chief mate in my experience, but it is the company that is responsible for the safety culture. Precious lives lost.

[@jugo1944]

That's outrageous. I work in the design and fabrication side of this industry, specifically on piping systems, and of all the systems to be nonchalant about, the firemain?! Not only does that system perform the obvious damage control functions, but it's usually connected to the bilge system in some place too, and tell me a single piping system on a boat more important than the one that removes water from your ship

[@taralocastro3742]

My friend's Cousin was lost at sea in the El Faro disaster. He had only been a crew member employed with Tote less than 3 months. He left behind a fiancee and two children, under 6 years old. He mentioned Capt. Davidson was full of himself, stubborn and prideful. His selfishness (and corporate greed) cost lives and irreparably tore families apart. RIP to all who perished and the families dealing with unfathomable loss.

[@DayvanCowboy195]

Holland?

[@cpujol9420]

So sad.

[@montanamtngirl]

I'm so sorry for your friend's cousins family. So very sad. 🙏❤️😥

[@o0o-jd-o0o95]

Some people may be surprised at how many lives have been lost in airplane accidents and in ships at sea that sank, over the arrogance and ego of 1 captain. it is disturbing when you think about it. ( i know alot about most airline accidents that have occured also, a large number of them can be attributed to similar behaviors and reactions... although much much less so nowadays)

[@brettrobinson2901]

​@@o0o-jd-o0o95Some might be...but I'M sure as HELL not!....jes' walk and talk around this mother..you'll find that lots of leaders who WOULD rather die than admit they don't know or don't understand... or dare to be second guessed....

[@alissamarquardt]

I work for a Marine supply company in Jacksonville. The owner was discussing this disaster the other day and talked about Danielle Randolph and other crew members she had worked with over the years. To those of you in the comments who had family on board, please know that your loved ones are still mourned by people in the industry and remembered by those who occasionally worked with them.

[@last-chance_]

I wish those commenting on losing loved ones in this tragedy had seen your comment what an amazing remembrance of the crew!

[@rodneyjessop3398]

Such a tragedy, just so sad. God bless.

[@ArthurX-eg8bc]

Our storyteller here did such a fantastic job relating the humanity of this story, I turned off the video at first sight of the Keel. RIP to all souls lost at sea, and our deepest gratitude to sailors the world over who make our daily lives livable.

[@ripwednesdayadams]

I think about Danielle all the time. Didn’t know her at all, but she seemed like she would have made a great captain. Her focus on safety was evident through this entire ordeal. She didn’t deserve this- none of them did. RIP 💔

[@paddy160160]

What a beautiful post, not connected by family, connected by livelihood, brothers and sisters who call the sea they're home, must always protect one another, this captain is shamed,God help him

[@Rick_Hoppe]

I remember following the El Faro incident in real time, as it was happening, and thinking, “Why in the heck are they heading straight toward the hurricane? This is insane!”

[@gorpim]

How did you follow it during real time? You mean like on the news?

[@velox__]

​@@gorpim maybe on MarineTraffic?

[@gamerd9271]

@@gorpimI lived in st marys georgia at the time, I remember el faro being on the news before this hurricane came through. The coverage placed blame on the company mainly, Im so sorry that this ended up happening tho

[@nocturnalg7891]

The fact that the captain didn't know that his ship is on point with an eye of a hurricane is beyond words to describe the pure fear of being lost at sea.

[@Gamepak]

this ship was not on point in a lot of other things, beeing in the worst place at the worst time is only one

[@speedman69420]

he wasnt always the best man but is at the very end he was a good man and he was trying to help his crew until the last moments of his life. I think i would have just ignored him and just turned the ship around

[@ChadGGolf]

@@speedman69420the ship didn’t have life boats?

[@LivingxPrime]

​@ChadGGolf It had 2 old style poorly suited life boats, and neither could have been deployed safely by the time the ship lost self propulsion, or practically at all by just 1 person.

[@anthonyscott5407]

The Capitain did know he's was heading towards a hurricane , He chose nit change course!!! If you paided attention to the video, a passing ship told the Capitain to change course.

[@mikedebear]

I worked at the terminal in Tacoma when this ship was named Northern Lights. It took so much damage during one Alaskan storm that almost the entire crew quit the moment it returned to port. Apparently the 65' swells resulted in 60% of the ship being out of the water as it fell down the backside of each wave. It would accelerate to 36 knots and then bury itself into the front of the next wave driving it nearly to a halt as the steel screamed and twisted enough to put a 45 foot crack laterally along the spar deck and 30 foot vertically. The ship was rolling laterally within a half degree of capsizing for 36 hours and the crew had to remain strapped into their bunks listening to the ship shriek as the roll on containers were breaking free and slamming around on all decks. No one blamed the crew for walking after the details came out about the crossing.

[@4325air]

The Faro falling down the backside of the swells and then accelerating, and then burying into the front of the next swell reminds me so much of the Edmund Fitzgerald--and we know what happened to the "Fitz" and her crew.

[@bunberrier]

Fkg terrifying

[@teebosaurusyou]

@@4325air Mmmmm No. No where near....

[@tommcglone2867]

I was lucky to have a commander who listened to the crew when i worked on one of the larger Coasters in and around Western Europe. When i say larger i mean we were a 26 strong crew. She was an older container ship relegated to work as a Coaster because larger ships had forced her away from ocean crossing routes.

[@circusshizshow]

@@nutsackmania Do you even have a job? Stupid question.

[@christianhedegaard8810]

As a container ship captain myself, this is a very thorough explanation to what most likely happened to this unfortunate crew. From lacking bridge resource management to insufficient maintenance and even to explaining the possible reasons the captain may have had to choose this perilous voyage execution. Well done! Excellent investigation report.

[@connorissexy4209]

Cool! So did you learn anything?

[@circusshizshow]

Thanks, it's always good to know if these channels are for real or not.

[@shable1436]

The pressure on the Capt to get the cargo through at any cost on that time frame is what killed them, that and his use of outdated weather forecasts on bon voyage system that confused the Capt and thus put in near the eye of the storm

[@danstewart2770]

Question: Could the ship's First Officer, under maritime law and with the support of the other ship's officers, given the captain an ultimatum: Either (1) change course or (2) we will relieve you of command and find you to your cabin, and take him into the ship?

[@noramcloughlin-docherty3537]

@@danstewart2770 exc question. What can a serviceperson do with a rusty hulk that has cargo chained to rust and an ignorant captain? Do the services just say “you should die if your captain says so?” I liked the narrator saying “you are important and your safety matters”. Anyone considering a seaman’s life or a military life needs to discuss this with their non military family member prior to service. You may be stuck under a psychopath’s command.

[@banjoman483]

My good friend and engineering Mentor was the Chief engineer of this trip, he was an incredibly competent engineer i know he did everything he could to get that steam plant back online again. I miss him and I hope he and the other 32 crew on board have found peace! He will be remembered for the incredible person he was.

[@woodnbikes]

I get infuriated this time of year. Danielle was my friend from Rockland, Maine. A few weeks or so before this happened she was telling us what a d!ck this "captain" was. I wish she would have just turned the ship to the safe route while he was sleeping and dealt with it afterwards. But she respected the chain of command too much.... RIP Danielle Randolph, Dylan Meklin and the rest... Gone but never forgotten 💔

[@cunard61]

I was with the US Army's Transportation Corp during this vessels service in the Iraq war, when it was named the Northern Lights. It came over to Kuwait many times bringing Army equipment, and I was onboard the ship when that equipment was being unloaded. I remember how poor the ships condition was even then, many referring to it as a "rust bucket". They were using the same tie-down method mention in the video, that is, laying down tie-down chains along the deck to serve as tie-down points for vehicles, because there weren't enough D-rings in the deck itself. The cargo decks themselves actually sagged because the weight limits for vehicles being carried, exceeded the registered capacity. The rubber seals around the cargo hatch in the ships side were pretty much mangled from dry rot and constant opening and closing. The ships government contract ended around 2008, and then it began it's long periods of lay-up. I honestly thought it would be scrapped when it ended it's military contract, it really was in horrible shape.

[@cleasanna05]

Interesting. This thing was destined to sink it seems

[@cunard61]

@@LastAvailableAlias I talked to a crew member from the engine room about the condition of the ship, and he said the only thing Tote worried about were the engines, as long as they were working everything else was secondary. They didn't seem to concerned about anything that was viewed as secondary.

[@DreamsAreLies]

Thank you for your service!

[@AcesnEights698]

@@cleasanna05 Driving it straight into a hurricane certainly helped. Plenty of rust buckets live long enough to see the ship-breakers.

[@cunard61]

@@AcesnEights698 Absolutely, this seems to be a combination of human error, and the ship's deterioration coming together to form a perfect storm. No pun intended.

[@00jyjsarang]

Anybody who's watched a few analyses of plane crashes knows that CRM is REALLY important. Subordinate crew members have literally allowed their captain to fly into the side of a mountain rather than take corrective action. And disasters have been averted by good CRM where captain and crew are able to cooperate.

[@lordbaal4371]

I was told when I started flying 'don't sit there in silence if I'm going to kill us both.' I think this is good advice.

[@Le_Comte_de_Monte_Felin]

Yep. Everyone fears the guy/gal who signs their paycheck... can't piss them off by pointing out something they are doing that is stupid!

[@glennrishton5679]

In the overall scheme of things aviation is relatively a new mode compared of the several thousand year history of a vessel captain being lord and master. Even the word "Master" implies the total control they had over ships. I think a few captains I worked with who were still bitter a captain could no longer order flogging. My point is there is a more entrenched mindset among captain and crew that the captain knows all sees all and is not to be questioned. That mindset is gradually changing and BRM is slowly advancing.

[@jamesm3471]

Really good comment. CRM done right is one of the biggest reasons commercial aviation is so safe today. Bridge Resource Management can sometimes be a harder sell, as man has been sailing just a tad bit longer than man has flown, & the maritime tradition of the-captain-of-the-ship-calls-all-the-shots full stop, is still very much followed. The fact that proper BRM aboard El Faro would’ve saved 33 lives is heartbreaking.

[@foxracing8973]

I was thinking the same thing! After watching countless episodes of Mayday, CRM really has helped the industry move past the old ways of hierarchy in a crew of: I don't care what the rest of my crew thinks, I'm the captain and I know best.

[@arturopusey8972]

Hearing that Captain's voice and saying "everybody's safe" knowing that he knew they were all but safe is upsetting. He must have known they were past the point of no return and decided to keep trying to salvage the ship. Terrible tragedy.

[@Gantradies]

that...assumes he was competent enough, or far out of denial enough, to recognize this...

[@dangerouseducation40]

"Red at night, sailor's delight, red light at morning, sailor's take warning." I've experienced as anecdotally 100% true in my 30 years on the water

[@RM-pg4js]

Glad you alive bro..🎉🎉🎉

[@jameson1239]

I live near the water and can say anecdotally it has been fairly accurate

[@joemars41]

Yes sir. I live by it. Some think it's not true but it is.

[@joemars41]

I live by it ,land or sea

[@justforthis3208]

There's an almost identical one for shepherds. "Red at night, shepherds' delight. Red in the morning, shepherds' warning"

[@Mandy7D7]

Danielle had more brains and forethought than the Captain. I can only imagine how hard this has been for her family knowing she screamed warnings and alarms only for her to lose her life while the Captain blathered away about Alaska. This is a seriously sad and frustrating situation that never should've happened.

[@zakelwe]

As the NTSB said, the rest of the crew should have done more BRM, rather than just sending texts. There was a first and third mate as well involved of course. One issue here is that crew do shifts and hand overs in 8 hour periods, so only one person in charge at a time. Seems that that all the crew were overworked and the 2nd mate was on sleeping medication at the time etc etc. Main issue is the company. They didn't even know where the ship was when it started sinking. The NTSB report needs to be read in full before any comments on "who is to blame" on youtube. Even then it is not clear cut as that storm was highly unusual, as NOAA even said. Intensified much more than expected and went to the south rather than swing westwards. There was a dispute from ship and dockworkers side on who lashed the cars down. They skimped on that. The main cause of failure seems to be a vehicle coming loose and smashing into the sea intake for the fire suppression system, so from that point onwards they just could not pump enough water out. The sea intake should have been protected by a bollard in hind sight. The NTSB report is about 200 pages long I think and 500 pages of transcript. Shows how complex this is. And even the members disagreed on their findings on BRM.

[@captainmikehamby5893]

I Went to School with Danielle She was a hell of a great person. She was in one hell of a situation. I have sailed with captains that don't listen to their crews and it usually doesn't work out well for them. She should have called the company herself!

[@hauntedshadowslegacy2826]

@@captainmikehamby5893 Out of curiosity, what would the consequences be nowadays if a crew mutinied against their captain? Additionally, what would the consequences be if they mutinied for reasons of safety? Ultimately, if there's only one person stubbornly making dangerous decisions, it wouldn't take much duct tape to rectify the situation (a bit to bind the hands, a bit to secure 'em to something sturdy, and possibly a bit more to cover the mouth). I'm wondering all this because too-harsh of consequences for a mutiny would discourage potentially-life-saving actions.

[@janchovanec8624]

This is one of the reasons why competent and hardworking women get overshadowed by less competent men with bigger mouth and larger ego. It's also one of the reasons for the wage gap. They are not loud enough, they don't fight enough. That women should have kicked a fuss and threaten, straight up disobey the captain, not just complain.

[@douglasmarshall5904]

She had a correct gut feeling about this voyage. Sadly, on the money. The string of bad decisions and neglect that led to this disaster is not unlike the Miami Towers collapse. Some parallels there. Innocent people died and the payout to the mariner's families was paltry by comparison.

[@laughingram7287]

I sailed on this ship in 1996 as the SS Northern Lights from Tacoma to Anchorage. My previous ship was a super tanker, so this ship was nice and compact. The most dangerous thing on this ship for me was walking on the cargo deck as the longshoremen raced the tractors around the decks loading containers. Watching this video was so sad and at the same time so frustrating! As a former merchant mariner, one tends to put their trust in the captain in the ship to make wise decisions. Your safety is in their hands. Ram Chief Engineer (retired)

[@xxRamD3yruxx]

Currently studying marine engineering at the Texas A&M Maritime academy. I go by Ram so from one Ram to another, hello 👋

[@jimmydesouza4375]

They use tractors to move the containers around the deck? I thought they just used a crane and pulleys. How big are the tractors?

[@karlgharst5420]

I did Crowley's Jax/Lake Charles to San Juan run for years as CE, also a year or so hauling containers Norfolk to Keflavik. I don't miss it...!

[@chuckhulbert8643]

@@jimmydesouza4375 It (was) a RO-RO when it was in service between Tacoma and Anchorage. The trailers were driven up ramps from the dock using hustlers (yard tractors.)

[@chuckhulbert8643]

@@ctdieselnut When in Alaska service containers were not stacked on deck, they were driven up dockside ramps using yard tractors. I'm a longshoreman in Tacoma and one of my first jobs was lashing the trailers to the deck using very heavy chains.

[@hjt091]

Captain steers into the middle of a major hurricane whilst wondering why his bosses didn't promote him

[@procesgnilny]

Not really... he was safe before and didn't get promotion, so tried to be brave... 😞

[@amessman]

This is always a hard watch for me. I can only imagine the terror the crew felt being effectively lead to their deaths. To see the written records of the crew's awareness of the situation is heartbreaking to me. The captain's poor decision making, both in the long and short term, directly lead to the deaths of many innocent people who, by the time they realized, were too far in with nowhere else to go on a boat on stormy seas. My most sincere condolences to those of you saying "my loved one was on that boat" and may all who were lost rest in peace.

[@JDsVarietyChannel]

"Disastrous Indifference" A very fitting title, and good food for thought about how indifference in our own lives can cause problems for others.

[@1701what]

Well said

[@generalharness8266]

Indifference or complacency is the single most common link between all major and minor accidents. Just not caring or treating something as acceptable are the things that will kill you.

[@jaykay8144]

The fact that we have voice records of all these correspondence, AND NO ONE ON EITHER SIDE SOUNDED THE LEAST BIT CONCERNED, is the obvious problem……..it’s like a 911 call where the operating is like “but what kind of pets; and what color are they, are in the house” when there’s people with guns doing a home invasion

[@jazzmanny02]

Yup exactly but this should be called Corp Greed, i mean if you work for a company like that i'd sure heck want to know every single thing on how to avoid a thing like that and the procedures, this is why people need to know the whole company structure .

[@thehomelessconsultant9949]

Agreed. On my Homeless Consultant Channel here I have said for years that the opposite of love is not hatred - it is indifference. Four million homeless Americans are not necessarily "hated". But they are not loved, and they are ignored as if they don't exist and don't matter. From that apathy arises the mindless stereotypes of homelessness that prevent anyone from even wanting to learn the truth anymore. Hence, I have 250 subscribers after six years of enormous effort while living in a car, while KZbin is busy promoting self-serving "philanthropists" like Mr. Beast or murderers like McSkillet instead. That is indifference, and it is deadly.

[@Sacosniper]

The 3rd engineer was brand new and on one of his first ships out of college. He was one of my upperclassman mentors at the college when I there and he was a great guy was bound for a fantastic shipping career. This tragedy will always be close to me and you did a great job telling it correctly.

[@aaronrocs]

Dylan

[@matthewmosier8439]

Out of curiosity, was there any explanation for why the oil level was so low? I assume that the list contributing to the loss of the main propulsion was simply caused by the captain being unaware of the mechanical properties of the engine and the situation with the oil level when he chose that particular maneuver. I'm just curious why nobody seemed to communicate on the ship? I wanted to make a career out of it, but that doesn't seem likely, so I have to fall back on some limited experience as a deckhand/ ships carpenter (now being phased out to some other title, I hear) to give me clues in stories like these.

[@dipswewon4701]

@@matthewmosier8439 As an ship engineer myself, although on vastly different types of ship, its fair to assume they simply did not follow up on routine maintenance. Proper routine involves every day meassuring the oil sump levels and refilling as necessary. Most likely not even the engineers at the time thought that listing a certain way could have this fatal outcome, because if the sump is porperly filled listing should not cause this issue.

[@ED-es2qv]

@@dipswewon4701 I’ve been Off-roading for literally half a century, and I just recently had my first experience with the fuel pickup going dry when I had 1/4 tank but sat too long in a steep angle. I hadn’t thought about the oil pickup having the same problem until that happened. I’m guessing you could run a ship a long time and never see what happens when you lean that far for that long. It seems like a perfect storm of incompetence, ignorance, and arrogance in the entire crew. It seems like nobody took their job seriously or took responsibility for their own life (like locating a survival suit and a life raft). I was an airborne ranger, and I can assure you my men and I knew where fire extinguishers, exits, floatation equipment, how to deploy emergency rafts, etc., were on everything we stepped foot in. I considered it part of my job. I can’t imagine having a person work for me, yet not learning the safety equipment that person needs.

[@wmluna381]

@@garetheckley7018 I just had a conversation with my boss about our workplace safety. He was complaining about how staff were making decisions on recent jobs not to wear their safety harnesses or hard hats while doing high-level work on lifts. I've worked there over 10 years and have seen how things roll and periodically mentioned the supplying and reinforcement of safety gear/protocols in varying levels of assertion or observational commentary. I am not a manager of anybody. At some point I just quit making references. It all more centers on getting the job done, getting the invoice paid, and getting more jobs. I decided I wasn't going to worry about this more than he and his partner wife were going to. And I also wasn't going to cover if something does happen and someone official asks me historical questions. During that recent convo I told him that I was honestly shocked something worse hasn't happened in all this time and people do what they want because they do not reinforce safety. There is no official safety protocol policy in place to refer to either, much less have people sign off on. I think that it's more clicking because he's had to do some of this work while we are short staffed so the potential dangers are more apparent. Also, over the summer, someone slipped and fell on a job and broke her arm. I don't know if this affected their workers comp rates in some way as well or what. The contrast in the active concern now vs. before was interesting though.

[@Declan4253]

As a second mate myself and knowing a member of their crew I have thought a lot about El Faro. I read the full transcrip from the recorder. As second mate I am responsible for pulling the most up to date weather (where the captain has access to a prettier version that has more predictive traits, but is not as up to date). One take away for me is you MUST make the captain understand in situations like this. He will thank you for it later. This is a second career for me so I was older in school and I saw how the young guys and gals were far less likely to speak up than they should in my view. Chain of command is important, but you can not have good bridge resource management if you are afraid to speak your mind to the captain when it counts.

[@BasementBubbatunde]

I've never held any kind of position on a sea vessel and this isn't a comment particularly about this instance but just in general but wouldn't you, pretty much regardless of the field or topic *always* want someone that does just that? Point out things you can't see or view differently.. however you want to put it? I'm not saying to the point they're just doing it for the sake of being contrarian but yeah. I can't see a situation pretty much anywhere given all humans are prone to error and mistakes where having someone willing to speak out to help set you straight or correct you is a bad thing

[@mayatate2793]

@@BasementBubbatunde the ego and desperation of a person to basically "prove their mental model right" can be impossible to penetrate, and may devolve into outright verbal aggression. Especially when the culture you've worked in has been one of stringent vertical organization, speaking out may be risky for many reasons. People who are 1) in power and 2) in distress often don't want to hear that they're doing anything wrong. :(

[@JoDo777]

@@mayatate2793 those types of gutless cowards are better known as narcissists/sociopaths. They're very common in men or women. Main red flags are anger issues and they cannot handle constructive criticism.

[@donramanayake1505]

@@mayatate2793 Issue is, that an officer on a vessel is not a corporate post. Similar to command presense in the military the aggression needs to be dealt with as often in roles the existence of aggression is not de facto a part of the personality but rather the situation .

[@maryhadda8420]

@@BasementBubbatunde True in any field, whether physical like ships, aircraft, and construction, or mental like legal, medicine, and management.

[@hungrymoose7627]

As a truck driver I'd be interested to know more about what kind of trailers were on the ship and what their cargo was. As you said early in the video one of the biggest cargoes to Puerto Rico is refrigerated or 'reefer' freight. Reefer trailers handle a bit differently because their center of gravity is a bit higher with the large reefer unit up at the top front of the trailer. This is offset a little bit by the reefer fuel tank down under the frame of the trailer, but thats 50 gallons of diesel sloshing around, and the rule with reefers is that if you're dropping them off at a customer, you drop them off with at least 3/4 of a tank in them. All of the extra insulation in the walls of the trailer doesn't help the top heaviness either. Another problem with reefers is the kind of freight they haul. Reefer freight its notoriously, on average, the heaviest shit you'll haul in a standard double axle 53' trailer. With dry van you'll get loads like potato chips or insulation thats very light, and your whole gross weight is only like 25k. But with reefer, its ALWAYS heavy shit like meat, produce, beer. I don't think I've ever hauled a reefer load where my gross weight was under 75k, 80k being your max weight. Meat and beer isn't too bad because its so dense that you can only single stack it on the floor, so it helps keep you pretty stable. But produce? That stuff is juuuuust light enough that you can usually double stack it. One of the sketchiest loads I've ever hauled was apples. Apples are just light enough that you can stack them double wide, double high, and front to back. Its one of the only loads I've ever hauled where you're grossed out and cubed out. Cubed out meaning that all of the space in the trailer is being utilized. I had to haul them from Osoyoos, BC to Calgary AB over highway 3, the most southern BC/AB mountain pass, which the most windy one. With those apples stacked so high and being so heavy, that trailer wanted to roll over on every turn, and it doesn't help that almost all reefer trailers are air ride, therefore trading some stability for a smoother ride. And this is all doubly compounded if some of the trailers were containers on chassis. Container trailers are hands down the roughest things to haul. The fact that the container is separate from the trailer frame means that their even more top heavy, especially with how beefed up container frames have to be compared to a regular trailer body. Reefer containers compound this more, as the reefer unit and its fuel tank needs to be contained within the body of the container. And with how long containers will have to sit on ships and trains, their fuel tanks are even bigger, I think something in the neighborhood of 150 gallons. And the thing that would hurt container haulers the most in this situation is that they nearly universally have spring ride suspension as opposed to air ride. With air ride you can dump all of the air out of the trailer and make them sit stiff to the ground. With spring ride you can't do this, and the trailer is always riding on the suspension. This means that in a ship list, a reefer container hauler would be straining insanely hard against any securement. I don't really know anything about loading trailers on ships, so someone who is actually a ship yard shunter or a ship rigger might know more about this, the concerns I've listed might already be well known. But with how poorly it sounds like El Faro was loaded, known safety concerns might have been ignored. All I know is that all semi trailers aren't all created equal and can all be their own animals depending on how they're speced.

[@Volvo_EG]

That was really interesting to be read. As a fanatic simtrucker that were great insights. Love your profile pic and name as well :)

[@peterjensen9852]

About the best thing I've read on Quora. In fact it's about ready for print. no better than "about ready for print". Every bit as well written as a memorable article I read in the New Yorker Magazine about cargo boats twenty years ago. What you write about seems like something that could go many ways. How about a book? .

[@chayannecastellano7221]

They use the typical 45 reefers attached to the chassis and they get delivered like that to PR Trailer Bridge and Crowley are famous for that since they cut down cost of labor down

[@Erakius323]

That is an incredible amount of information to do with trailers. Thank you for your insights. I did not know trailers could be so different depending on their load and setup.

[@nancyjones6780]

This is the longest comment I've ever seen and read all the way through. Interesting! ❤

[@Dancingonthesun]

Given his behavior during this tragedy, I understand why he was passed over for command of a new ship.

[@joshdoeseverything4575]

well he died so

[@bobbyrayofthefamilysmith24]

Nah greedy fat cat CEO and corporate higher ups would fully encourage this and love this behaviour. He was doing this to impress them

[@user-gs8jv4oq6w]

Thought the same

[@HobbyOrganist]

too bad he wasnt sacked before this voyage

[@sanseverything900]

Ship listing at 18 degrees. Captain is like "This is fine."

[@jamesm3471]

I’ve read that being forced to abandon ship in the eye-wall of such a powerful storm can easily become an “unsurvivable event” even in a survival suit, as there may be no clear break between the surface of the sea and the air one needs to breathe. It’s horrifying to think about what this crew was forced to experience in the final moments of their lives.

[@planescaped]

Bobbing in the water like you're in a giant washing machine with massive sheets of more water towering overhead and dropping down constantly... Must've been nightmarish.

[@EpicJoshua314]

The book Run The Storm suggested that because of the very late mustering of the crew that some may have entered the water WITHOUT their survival suits on because they had no time to put them on 😭

[@TracyA123]

Terrifying thought

[@baubau1584]

Can you clarify what you mean by “no clear break between…” please?

[@dawsondetrana5496]

@@baubau1584 boy your a smart one

[@Hurricane355]

Wow! The Northern Lights! I was the tactical supervisor in charge of protecting this vessel from Greece to the Persian Gulf and 2005. We were never given any type of tour notification or anything regarding to lifeboats, etc. I remember buying a lawnchair and bringing it with me and suntanning on superstructure starboard side, top deck. The military equipment lashed to the decks look no different with the chains than it did in the video from five years later

[@PetstoUwU]

This is a prime example of sometimes you have to take your Supervisor, lock him up in a room, and make your own orders....

[@cletusvandamme6262]

Submarine veteran here. Excellent presentation with innumerable Lessons Learned. I can't imagine what the last moments were like for the crew when they realized that their deaths were imminent. Capt. Davidson, had he survived, would certainly have been brought up on criminal charges, convicted, and punished not only for his gross negligence, but the deaths of so many who relied on his experience, expertise, and seafaring judgement. Command at Sea carries with it the terrible burden of responsibility that few people can understand. He certainly failed in his duties, and he and his crew paid the ultimate price for his denial, arrogance, and misplaced sense of invincibility. Tragic and sad. RIP.

[@stuglife5514]

Utmost respect to you submariner. I couldn’t imagine I’d have the nerves to do that, although I greatly enjoy sailing. Can I ask what your job was like?

[@TheJuan72]

The company should be held responsible too.

[@vm-snss4910]

@Cletus VanDamme: Nuclear or diesel boat? I don't know about nukes which stay submerged most of their time at sea, but riding out a storm on an old WWII fleet-type diesel is not much different than any other 300ft vessel that has to ride it out on the surface. We rode out a hurricane on the surface off Hatteras in the 1950s. Being a lookout hanging in the ring on the side of the conning tower at night, all you saw were walls of water, three times higher than yourself, illuminated by the running light, crashing down on you. It was a scary experience for a naive 17year old kid who had total trust in the US Navy and the officers in charge. I loved the sea and was in awe of it's power and destructive potential.

[@AcesnEights698]

@@vm-snss4910 Sound absolutely terrifying. I rode out Typhoon Paka off Guam but that was at a few hundred feet below and the gentle roll down there just made me sleep like a baby.

[@bearkawiboy6246]

From what I’ve heard there was a 6 hour difference in the weather forecast that was receiving! Seems like the majority of this tragedy doesn’t fall on him! I’m certain he wasn’t on a murder suicide mission! I think that in the year 2022 the weather forecast for any marine vessel should have ZERO delay or difference in real time and tracking speed of storms!

[@Big_Bag_of_Pus]

I've seen several videos on this tragedy; but this video is definitely the most impressive. So well done. Every time I think about this loss, I get angry. Between the Captain's attitude and the company's negligence, this just should not have happened. Even with the Captain's poor decision-making, people from the company should have gone to jail. The fact that responsible individuals in major companies never have to suffer criminal penalties for their companies' negligence guarantees that horrors like this will happen again, and again, and again.

[@Brecconable]

Unless all the most egregious offenders who have caused death by corporate/bureaucratic mismanagement are subject to death by a 1,000 cuts from all the victims' relatives. Or used as *target practice* by the navy or the coast guard.

[@RichardSenn98]

Go watch the Well There's Your Problem podcast about this. They go much more in depth.

[@thanatomaggot9585]

First of all, awesome username. Absolutely agree, there's no excuse for all the negligence that went on and the series of bad decisions that were taken. I haven't felt this upset over a past tragedy since I looked into the Challenger space mission which was also a series of negligent, bad decisions from all kinds of people that lead to untimely deaths.

[@bbigjohnson069]

@@thanatomaggot9585 What did you think of NASA's risk assessment methodology?

[@ShmooyShmoo]

I worked for this company. Nothings changed.

[@retrotony4119]

Me and my family were on a Disney Cruise literally a week after this ship sank in and around the area of where the ship sank. The Disney Cruise Captain sent out a message for all of us to hear aboard. He explained that the El Faro had sunk a week before and had asked if all could have a moment of silence. I till this day have the utmost respect for that Captain. As far as the El Faro sinking, I remember when the story broke about the ship and rescue crews looking for survivors, Al Roker on the Today show was furious that a company would sail a ship through a storm like that. Awful.

[@SergeantExtreme]

It technically wasn't the company's fault. It was the Captain's fault. For this specific incident, I'd say that the blame goes 90% to the Captain, 10% to the company.

[@masterdynamo6457]

@@SergeantExtreme The company provided the rustbucket that became their tomb. It's more like 70% to the Captain, 30% to the company.

[@flamingfoxx]

Please tell me that you mean that you respect the captain of the disney cruise rather than the El Faro captain

[@ryanvickery5491]

I only have one complaint about this video, which is you saying the video is getting too long. I could watch/listen to these reports for hours on end. I have binged every video and will be watching every new release! This content is among the best I’ve seen on KZbin, up there with mentour pilot. Thorough, insightful, respectful, and thought provoking. Keep up the good work sir!

[@Trashkantai]

We have similar tastes you would like Green Dot Aviation

[@ryanvickery5491]

@@Trashkantai I will check that one out! Another lesser subbed channel is Mini Air Crash Investigation. His are a little less in depth but he seems to cover a lot more of them, and a lot of lesser known crashes and incidents. Definitely worth a watch!

[@Trashkantai]

@@ryanvickery5491 Thank you i will check the out

[@dukx3986]

Mentour pilot is for commercial aviation what this channel is for maritime. Both the best in what they cover, imo.

[@LouieNJ]

It never ceases to amaze me how someone with such responsibility can still become complacent even when people's lives depend on you like that. Absolutely incredible and a sad situation all around.

[@ripwednesdayadams]

I think people are ignoring the pressure from the company to stick to a quick timeline. The captain had already been reprimanded for being deemed “too cautious” when diverting course on a previous storm. This is in the report. I’m not saying he’s totally innocent but the company is just as responsible.

[@BasementBubbatunde]

@@ripwednesdayadams It's sad too when you know that exact thing (company/outside influence) has caused these accidents for at least 200 years now and across multiple forms of transport. Same thing happened to the SS Arctic in the *1850s* and on the modern end the 05 Amagasaki train disaster

[@skivvy3565]

A lot of people want to act like an Admiral or king of a castle, without any of the responsibility it seems. Such a needless tragedy all from negligence and human arrogance

[@kolsen6330]

The captain isnt really a captain any more, he has to obey corporate. I mean any real captain with full authority would have changed to a safe course and when in trouble call the Coast Guard, not the company help line.

[@baubau1584]

This is what people mean when they say KZbin is better than TV. Thanks for the high effort content.

[@SpecialKeiz]

RIP Keith Griffin... My cousins husband. My cousin pregnant with twins that never got meet their father.

[@ericking3117]

RIP... I Wish the family peace and comfort

[@jasonboisseau409]

It’s kind of ironic that when everyone was telling the captain that they needed to change course to avoid the hurricane he didn’t listen. Then when he tried calling in the emergency no one would listen to him. This all on him. He’s the captain. He steered them right into a hurricane that should’ve been easy to avoid. I feel so bad for everyone who was lost on that ship cause they tried to do everything to get him to change course. Not only did he ignore them, he ended up killing all of them.

[@pax6833]

They didn't try everything. Nobody mutinied despite captain giving such insane orders.

[@Vespyr_]

He should have lost his command a long time ago. I don't understand why corporate holds these captains for so long. There are plenty of young, capable men and women ready to take his place that understand how to avoid a damn storm.

[@rosalie3585]

@@Vespyr_ they said he was normally careful, and was likey acting risky because of his pending promotion

[@danbev9313]

They should have thrown him overboard and charted a new course.

[@Gantradies]

@@Vespyr_ given he was on a literally rusted-out shitbox, my guess is he was really, really cheap to hire...

[@lifeoft8436]

I’m currently sailing on the marlin class ship “perla caribe”. even though this ship is fairly new, I’m still very cautious since we carry 2x 900m3 tanks of LNG which is enough to crack the entire back of the ship if they decide to crack . Wish us safe seas as we go into 2022 hurricane season

[@qveendiiana6741]

You will be ok ❤️🙏🏾

[@stuglife5514]

Fair seas and flowing winds friend

[@rverro8478]

Be well and safe.

[@104thDIVTimberwolf]

Fair winds and following seas!

[@_Maelgon_]

Good luck, seamen. 🙏

[@cydkriletich6538]

What an avoidable tragedy, caused by the negligence of the company and the captain, who seemed full of hubris. So sad. The youngest person lost, Dylan Meklin, was just 23 years old. And we will never know who was the person who managed to get into an immersion suit, only to be left adrift to die because of the weather. May all of them Rest In Peace.

[@rsfarris86]

I wonder who that person was too. And if they were alone, how long they were able to survive, what actually caused their death. Very sad.

[@washedupwarvet2027]

@@rsfarris86 if they were alone? They were found floating alone on a vast vast ocean. Wtf…

[@jo-eo9ld]

I don’t understand your bewilderment at this comment. One could assume that most were still alive when the ship went under and therefore trying to swim/survive. So the person in the suit would not have been alone, for a while at least.

[@Generik97]

@@washedupwarvet2027 What they probably mean was if they we're with someone when they abandoned ship and only separated when the person in the suit died or if they were all alone from the very beginning.

[@ripwednesdayadams]

@@jo-eo9ld I take it you don’t know much about shipwrecks. As soon as people go into the water, if they aren’t able to get into a life boat quickly the sea will carry them away. It’s extremely hard to stay together, let alone in the middle of a cat 3 hurricane.

[@signofastorm]

Coastal and inland skipper and instructor here, this was an utterly stunning account, an universial lesson on safety and responsibility, as well as a life-changing experience for me. Thank you -- and may those 33 souls find peace!

[@davidtwliew616]

As usual, safety manuals and guidelines are always written with the blood and lives lost on all tragedies before they are implemented.

[@lunaticfade4044]

I'm completely off of true crime channels after discovering Brick Immortar, which I find to be the finest in its genre. The details and real world knowledge one can learn from this work makes for fine documentary...but the tone and style makes it superior from any documentary you'd see on broadcast TV, finally the comment section always restores some faith in my fellow citizens. The story of El Faro's last voyage and her crew is such a tragedy, as you point out a chain of decisions and events that sealed the fate of innocent lives. I feel like this content itself serves as a dignified memorial to their memories. Thank you.

[@75willo]

I read a transcript of the VDR Bridge Audio Files a few years ago and was shocked how bad the situation was handled. The VDR records the last 24 hours before overwriting the data. There had been so many missed opportunities to avoid this desaster in this last 24 hours. I work in the martime industry for over 30 years, the past 15 as a Chief engineer and I have never seen such a disfunctional chain of command. I can't understand, why the officers where not able to stop the captain from killing them all. I really sad to watch...

[@Bkings7]

I mean I know it's easy to say this but lock his ass in his stateroom and move the ship better to lose your job then die

[@crowboy0666]

it's not even that the opportunities were missed- they were ignored & dismissed by the person ultimately responsible for the lives of 33 people. and it's not an issue in the industry itself per say , it's in the economy that allows promotion and deadlines to be so readily placed above human life , and in the chains of command so eagerly ready to bury the story and walk away with some crocodile tears and empty promises to improve.

[@mikeleo5990]

Captains fault all the way

[@teutonalex]

I rode out three days of 90 ft seas aboard USS Kearsarge back in 1996. It was like riding a 820 ft canoe up and down these valleys. We walked on bulkheads, almost lost aircraft and ate sandwiches until it blew out. When it was over we found fish and seaweed on the 50ft flight deck. God rest their souls.

[@lars7935]

I hope you ate the fish.

[@MS-37]

Do you still work on ships?

[@bekaemery2918]

The Captain's indifference and blind confidence got 32 people and himself killed. Truly a tragedy...

[@PatrickPierceBateman]

But if he had successfully sailed through the hurricane, he would have become a legend. Sometimes you gotta take risks if you want good stories to tell at the bar.

[@gorpim]

@@PatrickPierceBateman Can't argue that homey lol

[@josephayers7395]

@Patrick Bateman This is so stupid I can't even believe you posted it. You never sail through a cat fucking 4 cane.

[@SoJoever]

@@PatrickPierceBateman real legends don’t kill 32 people with them

[@advena996]

@@SoJoever exactly! legends don't risk the lives they are responsible for, simply for bragging rights at a bar.

[@asmrmess]

I can hardly sit through 5 min long videos but this was so interesting, I couldn't stop watching. No unnecessary dramatic music, no stupid story manipulations, no cheap attempts to make it more intriguing. I felt genuine interest in the story and I love how detailed it was. An incredible step-by-step investigation of what had and also might have happened. The industry/company was abusive and exploitative and the captain was exactly the same. The crew didn't just die. They suffered abuse, negligence and likely total panic hours before the ship sank. And the death at sea itself must've been horrible. I wonder how long it took. Minutes? Hours? Days?...

[@humanbeing2420]

In the open sea in a hurricane and not in an immersion suit? Minutes. Definitely not days, and almost certainly not hours.

[@ChristofferKeizer]

A young kid from my area, fresh from Maine Maritime was on the El Faro. This was his first trip, I believe. Crazy to see how this all likely played out. Thank you for this presentation, sir.

[@CallofDutyBlackOps28]

One of my best friends' little brothers best friend was that kid. honestly a horrible experience to go all that length to get a degree; and die because the corperation you work for didn't give a shit about the ship you were planning on sailing on.

[@Kaidhicksii]

He wasn't on this particular voyage when it went down, right? I was actually going to attend Maine Maritime for this past fall semester before some unexpected,... _"changes,..."_ occurred literally a week before class was supposed to start. Crazy.

[@crotonrivernet]

My son is a Maine Maritime graduate and knew the guy you're talking about. FIVE graduates of the Academy across a span of many years died aboard the El Faro, and Maine Maritime Academy was grief-stricken after this disaster. Both the captain and 2nd Mate, Danielle Randolph were graduates. See video of memorial ceremony: kzbin.info/www/bejne/o5C8aId4Z7SDgMk

[@LITTLEJon4321]

I went to high school with Mike, he was a good friend. I was devastated when this happened.

[@MyZk089]

@Indra's Vajra You do understand that people that are already familiar with this topic are going to watch this video and comment on it, right?

[@mackjsm7105]

My Father served as the 1st officer on the Sister ship, the (Sea Star)SS EL YUNQUE.. he knew one of the guys on this ship.. this was horrible.. My dad was contacted by Sea Star, was asked to write a letter in Polish about the loss of Polish crew that were on this ship.. this was send out to the Polish families.. so sad. "This could of been avoided 100%" - My Dad

[@gdhse3]

Ohhhhh my heart breaks every time I read a comment like this.

[@gayprepperz6862]

Wow! I thought I worked for unethical companies, and incompetent management, but this puts my experiences into perspective. I've been injured on the job, needed surgery, and fought money grubbing employers who responsible for my injuries and treatment, but at least I'm alive and able to get justice and then move on. This is a whole different level. Mistakes are catastrophic, and the whole work crew loses their life. The company collects the insurance, and the families are lucky if they get enough to bury their dead without going into financially crippling debt while they try to survive the tragic loss.

[@safety5005]

I was apart of the USCGC Northland crew during this incident. The search and rescue operations for the El Faro is very vivid. We were south of Cuba during this storm for hurricane avoidance, it was a very long few days. Once we were tasked with SAR for El Faro, it was remarkable the amount of people involved with searching for survivors. I've never seen so many crew members out on deck just looking out and hoping for some sort sighting. The seas were eerily calm during this search. It was remarkable working this case and seeing how dedicated our crew and the other units were in trying to locate any and all crew members. May the rest in peace.

[@davidgilhousen8191]

As a retired National Weather Service marine meteorologist, I offer several observations: 1) Timeliness of weather observations and forecasts paid a critical role here. Aviators and mariners need to know how long it takes for this information to arrive. Aviators have met their deaths trying to cut around a thunderstorm too closely because they were relying on radar data that they didn't know was 5 minutes old. Here, six hour old forecasts at a critical time contributed to the wrong decision. 2) Ship routing companies have meteorologists who can not only help route ships to save fuel, but serve as valuable consultants in storm avoidance situations. Very few small companies pay for these services, but they should. 3) The lack of a working anemometer was not a factor. Most ships report winds by observing sea state. 4) The capt. was counting on the official forecast to be absolutely perfect. Instead, he needed to account for a margin of error even if it meant several diversionary routes that later proved to be unwarranted. 5) Joaguin needed a larger than normal margin of error during this event because the storm had just formed and it was drifting into an abrupt change of steering currents. On the other hand, for powerful storms that are moving at a steady clip in a straight or broadly curved line, the margin of error can be smaller. Surprisingly, this isn't accounted for in the official NHC cone, but it should be.

[@TillyOrifice]

Good observations.

[@stuglife5514]

Thanks for your insights! The thing that sticks with me is the margin or error. I grew up sailing with my grandpa and that’s one of the things he always taught me. Always account for the margin of error, and never assume anything to be perfect when sailing. Although, it was a 40 foot sailboat so we had to be a bit more careful since our motor was only for emergencies or for navigating the canals and getting out of the bay

[@mikemalloy1681]

Yes I agree. I am a former Radio Officer, and taught GMDSS for a number of years. The Captain did not follow his STCW training at all. It was as if he were sailing back in the 1800's. He seemed to rely on some third party weather service for up-dates, which by their own admission were hours old. Based on the fact this ship had to have been a GMDSS compliant vessel, or it would not have been allowed to leave port, he had: NAVTEX receiver, receiving data via the USCG, but coming directly from the NWS, and he also had his Sat C, EGC (enhanced Group Call), SafetyNET marine weather up-dates coming directly from the NWS, on current weather conditions in a specific maritime region, plus he had a a calibrated barometer on the bridge. All of which anyone with normal ability could see that there was a major disaster about to unfold. It also appears that his frame of reference to sea conditions was based on extremely low pressures coming across the Aleutian Island chain, which can be very dangerous, but do not generate the tightly compressed kinetic energy of a rotating hurricane. A receipt for disaster.

[@floridaraccoon1018]

Can't begin to imagine the fear the crew was going through. Scrambling to get a life vest/survival suit while looking out at those massive waves and fierce winds, fighting against the list, seeing the containers fall into the sea... Absolutely terrifying.

[@MongooseTacticool]

Horrifying :(

[@lulzjeffy1337]

It's really difficult to comprehend the terror. The crew never stood a chance. In those final moments I'm sure they knew they weren't going to survive. Jumping into an open ocean with no survival equipment in the middle of a hurricane with 120mph+ winds. Absolute horror. Death is merciful in those conditions.

[@zoneundertop]

Bit by bit fear growing then knowing ur done by solely by captain lack of ability to encompass a bad situation growing bit by bit.

[@VeilingSun]

I feel like when the captain went to bed and the storm was upgraded to a category 3, the officer who phoned the captain on what to do should have just lied to the bridge crew. Just straight up told them that the captain changed his mind and told everyone to steer the ship to safe waters, instead of telling the bridge the truth that the captain wants them to sail into a category 3 storm. Insubordination? Yes. Dismissal? Very likely. Legal action? Not off the table. Career ending move? Probably. Very ugly situation when the captain returns? Absolutely. But you and your colleagues would be alive and that is precious beyond all worth.

[@MrBao-yt7bk]

Hindsight's 20/20, it's very hard to come up with this choice on the spot. Specially with your career at stake, if they had altered their course they probably wouldn't have known they avoided death, and the Captain being as prideful as he was would've made them responsible for the delay.

[@PsychoMike21000]

Imagine how different the captain's actions, decisions, and motivations would have been had he known he was no longer in consideration for the captaincy position he wanted. Had he known that, he almost certainly would have been far more cautious.

[@jamponyexpress7956]

if that was an underlying motivation, then its the Same as in war, officers looking at senior level politics and promotion will make choices that can cost unnecessary/unwarranted loss of life.

[@NotSoGoldenAfterAll]

“It’s time to come this way.” Haunting that the only option the AS had was to put on a life vest and walk into a hurricane after following the orders of a Captain who put him there in the first place. Truly a nightmare scenario for the crew.

[@Madhouse_Media]

Even the way he handled that pisses me off. Its like he wasn't physically trying to help the AS, just coax him off the bridge like you'd try to coax a scared toddler. I mean I understand that maybe the captain couldn't get to him due to a severe list or something, but given the captains actions and attitude up to that time it's just too easy for me to imagine him leaning against the door jamb watching the AS panic.

[@scottieeasley4907]

That's because he wanted to make sure that everything written on record had is on record at his best future intentions and what was best for him in mind I thought he acted like that when he was telling that lady on the phone El faro Tryin to blame the help. Stupid ship master

[@mygirlsadie1]

Exactly.. come this way like straight out the door and jump out into the ocean in the ferocious hurricane. My God the thought of it makes me sick. I can’t even fathom how it went for them. 😔

[@Teverell]

When you said 'this video's already really long' I had absolutely no idea I'd already been watching for an hour. This was an incredible in-depth look at a tragedy I'd never heard of, that should never have happened. Confirmation of bias at its absolute best. Or worst. That second mate should have been able to lay the facts out and been listened to - she would have made far better leader and captain than the actual captain, whose apathy is just astounding. Even to not really making clear to the onshore personnel how bad the situation was (and their calm collectedness seems to show that they didn't really understand how bad the situation was - if anyone in that conversation had mentioned 'hurricane' it would have gone differently, although I'm honestly not sure what help someone hundreds of miles away could be when there was no oil in the engine, nor any, seemingly, to put in the engine!) How anyone could have classed that vessel as seaworthy in the first place is mind-boggling never mind the fact that the captain decided to take it out to sea with a known hurricane somewhere in his path, even if he did think it was miles from where he'd be. The area a hurricane covers can be hundreds of miles and there are gale-force winds even when you're nowhere near the eye of the storm!

[@planescaped]

His level of moronic complacency was truly astounding.

[@ibeatyoutubecircumventingy6344]

Money friend that industry is very very shonky at best when you start involving corporate ideals like profit margins etc

[@mystic_galaxies9832]

Apparently the _El Faro_ was actually a solid ship, only superficially rusty. Though, the crew was mainly relying on its speed to outrun the storm.

[@Teverell]

@@ibeatyoutubecircumventingy6344 Profits get put first over human lives far far too often, in all industries, which a horrible indictment on the world we live in.

[@thehoodedteddy1335]

There are times where I look at a situation and go “yeah, a mutiny would be justified here”

[@kellergie2602]

This is heartbreaking... I can't imagine being stuck on a ship that was knowingly sailing into a hurricane without being able to do anything about it. How scary

[@Sectionmillionaire-fg8mm]

That’s my thought too. Complete nightmare.

[@keirangrant1607]

14 months in Iraq with Marine infantry and almost every time something bad happened, complacency was a major contributing factor. We even had a saying, "complacency kills."

[@gorpim]

Can you give some examples of complacency you witnessed that led to something bad happening over there?

[@Jadegreif]

As said on Patreon, that was really amazing. The amount of detail provided for every part, from the maps, the animation, the pictures was perfect. It made it so easy to follow what was happinng, and where and why. Along with your great storytelling skills this was a great watch. So good in fact, when you mentioned "the video already got so long", I just noticed that already an hour has past, so captivating was it. Well done.

[@amys500]

Yes, I realised I'd been watching for an hour and thought it had only been 15 minutes. So good.

[@rubirunner8487]

Over a year ago I watched another doc on this ships sinking. I guessed this was another doc on the same ship. I was completely blown away at how in-depth your doc was compared to the other one. I have been binge watching your videos for the last couple days. Keep up the good work! Short videos, long ones. You're doing a great job. Subscribed.

[@TheNightWatcher1385]

CRM is crucial. We learned about it in university, going over so many disasters where a crew member had concerns but was ignored or held their tongue because the captain’s word was law.

[@thehellezell]

I’ve worked at a company that had a similar work culture: everyone scared to tell an insecure idiot that he was flushing everything down the toilet. thankful that I didn’t work at a place where my boss’s idiocy and cowardice could get me killed. Yeah, there were a lotta problems with that ship and the company but there are a lot of junk ships and greedy companies out there - the difference is they are not being sailed into hurricanes.

[@Ghostshadows306]

That’s exactly right.

[@WillBilly.]

If you don't mind me asking how much do yall earn on ships as a normal sailor.

[@vernwallen4246]

@@WillBilly. Not near enough.

[@that90skid72]

I also happened to be working for a company which made tons of questionable decisions, all very dangerous for its continuity of operations (such as for ex. laying off 5 people out of a team of 7 and expecting the remaining two to bear the whole operations on themselves, etc etc). There's only one thing to do in this case: look for another job opportunity and get the hell away as fast as you can. Arguing with idiotic managers is not going to save anything whatsoever. Plus you're at risk of getting yourself sick (or injured or killed depending on the company).

[@wolfbyte3171]

For further insight into the sinking, a good amount of crew details and voyage data recorder transcript, and other details of the ship and her life, I recommend reading the book "Run the Storm" by George Michelsen Foy. That being said, I do have a few comments I'd like to state/ask. For starters, the grandfathering of obsolete safety equipment is infuriating. Open topped lifeboats are useless in harsh conditions (even if modern lifeboats wouldn't survive the storm, they'd have a better chance and protect the crew inside). How these ships can be handwaved through inspections to the point they're literally falling apart is beyond me. Also about the Coast Guard, what exactly qualifies "risk of sinking/distress phase"?? The ship has been reported as flooding with a heavy list. Yes, the captain is downplaying the situation, but shouldn't "distress phase" mean any serious problem aboard ship? And on the subject of communication: why was it so hard for the captain to say the three most critical words when the situation become untenable: Mayday, mayday, mayday.

[@CharlesFreck]

Regarding the coast guard, a ship in distress phase puts their personnel and equipment at great risk. Trying to muster a rescue during a hurricane isn't exactly safe. So unless they know for a fact the ship is going to sink, they're not going out there. If this ship hadn't suffered a plant failure, it would've survived in all likelihood. So the coast guard was waiting until your last point; the captain had to declare they were sinking/at great risk of being unrecoverable. Why didn't he? Well, for the same reason most of them never do. He didn't want to admit that the situation was unrecoverable, despite that truth being obvious. Because I truly believe he thought the conditions weren't that bad and everything was going to be fine. "It was like this in Alaska all the time!". He truly believed he hadn't made any decisions that were catastrophic, so when everything went that badly, he was unable to grasp how this had happened. He was unable to grasp the seriousness of the situation. His brain believed that there must be more margins, or a solution for recovery. Because in his mind, right up until disaster struck, everything was okay. So he was completely unable to say those three words. His brain wasn't capable of comprehending that the situation could be that bad. That's why disasters happen, people will continue to believe everything is okay and stick to a "keep calm and carry on mentality" right up until the ship rolls over or the plane crashes into the mountain. It's a failing in the usual mentality. "Don't panic" is the usual advice for emergencies, but a lot of people in these high stress positions turn that into "never panic, just keep doing your job, and everything will work out". And worse yet, sometimes they actually do save a near-disaster with that mentality, they do make it through an almost certain death situation, and that reinforces their belief that their mentality is all you need to survive.

[@wolfbyte3171]

@@CharlesFreck Thank you for the detailed reply!

[@Veldtian1]

@@CharlesFreck four simple words; captain was a narcissist.

[@danielbordeianu5841]

Why do you believe the registry was puertorican? Lighter requirements, meaning less money spent. I guess the captain got grilled on performance metrics on the last run and, not to loose the promotion out of this rust bucket, chose to not avoid the next storm..

[@josepablolunasanchez1283]

The captain confused familiarity with risk. The past is not apredictor of the future. Else people would never die, since they had not died in the past. It seems the captain also was more concerned about reputation and not losing his job and was unthinkably optimistic. If I was second in command I would have ordered people to get their safety gear nearby or just put it on.

[@lelia660]

I'm still trying to wrap my head around this as I watch more of the video. They were so organized when it came time to search and rescue; but the captain couldn't even get in touch with someone who could help him before the boat sunk? He had to leave a voicemail? This is absolutely unbelievable.

[@skivvy3565]

He didn’t Want to get in touch with anyone. I think that’s what you’re missing. He only contacted his own company to keep from publicity or leaks and to keep from being scolded or losing face. He had every chance and opportunity and the tools to do so. But he wanted to be promoted. And thought he could just salvage it himself without letting anyone know. That’s what cost everyone their lives.

[@R4002]

The captain only sent distress calls via the GMDSS (DSC digital distress calls via regular old HF radio and the ship’s satellite terminal) and SASS systems at the last moment. He did not make a voice radio Mayday call. The satphone calls were the only voice communications made during that time, and they could hardly be considered “distress calls”. The captain is downplaying the severity of the emergency until the very end, you can hear it on the recording.

[@yanan3681]

He waited until they were in the position in which search and rescue would of been impossible anyway.

[@trish1344]

Man I love your videos. I have literally zero interest in ships, but your videos are so captivating and so well done, I can’t help but watch. You also do an amazing job making complex information digestible for laypersons. RIP to those lost, wishing their loved ones the best.

[@Liamv4696]

So, basically, the captain inadvertently tried his hardest to sink a (relatively) perfectly seaworthy ship, and unfortunately none of the bystanders felt comfortable disagreeing and potentially saving lives. Unfortunate.. ineptitude at it's finest.

[@jamesm3471]

Captain is ultimately responsible for this tragedy, but he’s dead, and the best way to prevent something like this happening again, is to fully investigate who or what was pushing down on the captain from the top, holding them accountable, and making real change.

[@arizona_anime_fan]

considering the conditions of it's sister ship, it's highly unlikely the ship was particularly seaworthy; but you're correct, it does appear the captain misread the situation badly, got in too deep and allowed his ego to get in the way of rational decision making, leading to a loss of all hands. that said, even if there was an orderly evacuation, in those conditions it's highly unlikely anyone would have survived even with a raft until help came. sinking a few KM from the eye of a cat4 hurricane that then would linger about 20km from the sinking spot for a day, pretty much doomed everyone regardless how the evacuation went.

[@jamesbelbin6343]

This ship was not seaworthy, it was skating by and in no way with in the standards set the the ABS and the USCG. This ship should have been scrapped years prior.

[@robg9236]

@@jamesbelbin6343 The USCG inspects these ships on a regular basis. They allowed it to sail with all the deficiencies mentioned, rust everywhere, obsolete lifeboats, minimal electronics, minimal lube oil in the supply tanks, lack of training etc. They will overlook almost any defect to save the ship owners money.

[@Liamv4696]

@@jamesbelbin6343 that's why I said relatively. The thing still floated at least, that was about as seaworthy as she got.

[@svgranma7203]

Former crew of the USS Nimitz, solo sailboat captain, and private pilot here. Thank you for this video. I often think back to situations like this to see if I too am making an error in judgment. Sometimes our ambition and balls are bigger than our abilities. Thanks for creating this content.

[@Flyingmsdaisy]

Get your instrument rating if you don’t have it yet. ATP here and the instrument rating will save you when nothing else can.

[@bk-lx6cb]

Have you ever seen a u.f.o. ?

[@maryhadda8420]

That's the point of videos like this. It's better (and safer!) to learn from the mistakes of others than from your own.

[@Seeker0fTruth]

Sweet. Nimitz was in some aerial photos my husband snagged while aboard the USS Olympia. Every Naval vessel plus I believe every aircraft convened for a photo shoot somewhere in the Pacific Ocean. Impressive. Amazing how many chapters in one’s life there are. If we are to be so lucky.

[@DeputyBurbank]

Captain in denial until his lungs filled with sea water. Ridiculous.

[@sukisuzuki10]

The captain’s stupidity knew no bounds , Even when a crew member states “I’m a goner” the captain still has faith in his own capabilities “No you’re not, time to come this way” as if he’s saving people like a hero What an absolute fool of a man

[@wj8003]

2:30 the ships "El Morro" and "El Yunque" actually stand for two landmarks in Puerto Rico, not the nose nor the anvil. "El Morro" is the historic fort in Old San Juan, Puerto Rico and "El Yunque" is the national rainforest - one of the few if not the only tropical rainforests in the National Parks System.

[@CaptainColdyron222]

I was gonna post this. My wife is Puerto Rican and we visit the island often.

[@bobberttv8565]

Does el Faro have any special meaning besides lighthouse?

[@rfcdgaf]

im surprised this comment hasnt been acknowledged by the video maker jesus

[@mybrotherisnotapig6750]

Almost the same thing happened to an 18yr old bulk carrier I'm was in 2015-2016, 1997 MV Polyneos, Panamax 7 hatch Bulk Carrier w/out cranes. We were anchored outside the Yangtze after drydock & loading heavy steel rolls(bound for Ravena, Salerno, & Venice Italy) on a old ship usually carrying grains & bauxite. A freak Typhoon was heading toward our anchorage spot, as we surrounded by 20 or more ships we hunkered down. As the typhoon hit every ship around us started leaving, some lost their achors due to the strong winds. We were last to leave the anchorage spot, the Master finally made the right decision that save our lives. As we were underway to hide in Taiwan, the ship had to make two 90 degree turns to make the u-turn needed to head towards Taiwan. Midway to the 2nd turn the Main Engine died, and as we sat dead in the water, me & the engine crew scrambling to restart the main engine. We were hit by 3 huge freak waves portside almost capsizing the ship, Everything that were not bolted down, tables, chairs, personal items, everything fell. It was a some sort of a miracle that the ship's engine was able to restart and we didn't died in that catastrophe. Edit: I'm dumb didn't proof read before posting. It was two 90 degree turns from what I remembered from 3rd mate's retelling of the events. Lastly our Carriage style overhead provision crane was left hanging on the edge of it's rails stbd side, after bosun tried "securing it" when all of that was happening.

[@bookkeeper1995]

If you should know any single thing about bauxite it should be that it is mad dangerous to transport. Kudos on the seamanship

[@mz00956]

What is a 90 degree U-Turn?

[@FFM0594]

If you are a mariner you would know a u-turn is 180°. I smell BS!

[@Balmy_Jones]

@@mz00956 Haha, yeah.

[@FuckYouWhosNext]

90 degrees is a right turn

[@pauchiari927]

So you are on a ship in the middle of the ocean and the captain wants to ride a hurricane, AND YOU DON'T HAVE A SAY? That... that's.... UH????????

[@mikem.s.1183]

@Brick Immortar, Very, very good work. Objective, solemn, respectful. You have given some comfort to those who have lost loved ones to this tragedy and came here to comment. I can't think of a better service and task. 🙏🖖

[@smontone]

My heart breaks for the crew. Especially the woman who was emailing her family. What a tragedy.

[@jamesbelbin6343]

Failures at all levels allowed this to occur, a series of small insignificant events let this happpen, this was 100% an avoidable tragedy

[@jamesm3471]

Each and every little link in the chain to complete disaster, cliché but true!

[@grmpEqweer]

@@jamesm3471 IIRC, Swiss cheese theory of disasters-all the holes line up.

[@rogerweaver7686]

As a retired mariner, I can attest that the vast majority of emergencies at sea are because of a series of events. I was trained to think ahead and be prepared to the worst case scenario for each event. Also vessel maintenance is crucial, I have refused to leave port if deficiencies weren't corrected. Even though I was accused of being a little to 'by the book' I was able to retire without a single loss of life or loss of vessel. There is far more to being a Captain than getting a vessel from point A to point B on time.

[@CharlesFreck]

@@grmpEqweer Yep, swiss cheese model rather then theory. Making just one good decision, even with only a margin of a minute until the point of no return, is often all that is required to avoid a catastrophic disaster. It's not about how many mistakes you make, it's about your ability to make one right decision before everyone dies.

[@grmpEqweer]

@@CharlesFreck Model, not theory. Copy. 👍

[@justinedoehring1372]

I have been binging your content all morning and your research and knowledge is extremely refreshing and impressive. I can no longer watch or waste my time with the average disaster compilation or countdown videos of "this disaster happened". You've produced elite content in the disaster category that answers/explains the 5 W's behind the disaster and you should be proud. Keep up the great work!

[@armstronglaviola]

This was an excellent documentary. I knew a Merchant Marine with over 20 years of experience sailing all the seas of the Earth. He said that he was close to death many times when he was at sea. "It always came down to what the sea had in store for the vessel. At some point you would be at the ocean's mercy, and nothing else could determine the outcome." He said this to me after recalling a tragedy at sea where a ship that was not more than 10 miles away from his vessel sank. Same conditions, same size ships, but only one ship survived. They saved many lives, but some sailors were lost.

[@ChristoFreeze]

I had no idea the danger of this industry until now. What I do know is incompetence, laziness, pressure to skip over safety precautions is absolutely unacceptable. If you’re a restaurant manager, a pilot or a captain of a ship, you have the responsibility to keep your team and customers safe at all cost. You don’t skip checklist, maintenance issues, or suggestions from your team out of ego. If you’re in charge you go above and beyond for the safety of everyone. What a tragedy.

[@JNDlego57]

Can’t forget than unlike calling 911 or even experiencing an emergency in an airplane, you don’t have Fire/EMS/LEO minutes away, or even an airport in worst case scenarios a few hours away, when you’re on a ship in the middle of the ocean. It can take days for anyone to reach you

[@calmwins]

Sometimes productivity trumps safety.

[@DieNextInLINE]

I had this thought about pilots and captions after binging so many disaster videos that they should be doing much more stringent testing and psychological qualifications to get these positions. I realized later that I shouldn't be judging without knowing what actually goes into the hiring of these individuals but even now it bugs me. Especially in the case of the Costa Concordia. Like the captain went from head of security to captain and he completely abandoned the ship along with the passengers onboard. It would be beyond distressing to find out that these people who have hundreds of lives in their hands aren't tested in some way to find out how they'll react to disaster or them knowing that the people's lives onboard are their responsibility snd they should act accordingly.

[@grmpEqweer]

Man, this captain was _terrible!_ He was responsible for everyone's lives on that boat, and he half-assed it.

[@WindTurbineSyndrome]

Money he was pressured to keep the ship moving.

[@yellekc]

@@WindTurbineSyndrome The emails shown seem to indicate that the company management for all their faults maintenance wise, never objected to any weather diversions. The captain failed to get current weather reports and failed to take a safer route. I do not buy that this was all due to pressure. His mental model and crew resource management was was lacking and he is the most responsible for what happened.

[@steven95N]

@@WindTurbineSyndrome Money has nothing to do with the captain disregarding warnings from other captains and thea NOAA reports. This captain was a moron, plain and simple.

[@robertwolcott215]

@@yellekc well said! I agree wholeheartedly

[@Obregon-]

@@yellekc it's definitely possible to be pressured with it not leaving evidence in emails or other official communications. I remember I once led my shift leave early during a bad snow storm. Officially I was given leeway to let them leave if I thought conditions could be dangerous. Unofficially it was hinted to me in numerous ways that they definitely didn't want me to let them leave early for the rest of that winter. I still agree that the captain is responsible, but I don't think the emails are the be all end all.

[@Puzzoozoo]

A lethal combination of an aging vessel, bad weather, and command hubris led to this tragedy. RIP the El Faro crew.

[@TheNelly77]

I've been doing documentation for a local NVOCC (non vessel owning carrier company) for a little more than a year now, mainly working with Maersk, MSC, and CMA. I have to say that your videos are teaching me a lot about the shipping industry (outside of paperwork) and it may very well end up being useful at work. Much appreciated!

[@michelleashleigh]

As a mariner in the CMA-CGM fleet, thank you. Seriously, the disconnect between the guys in the office and the mariners is HUGE... if the crew is asking for support, there is a reason. I'm contracted with another company right now, and my biggest desire is to tell them how glad I am they reworked their crewing/HR department. It's going to take YEARS to rebuild trust, but it matters.

[@EpochDesigns]

As someone from Puerto Rico, this hit hard knowing all those men died in order to keep the way of life we are used to normal. I used to work at a restaurant and remember the chaos because the shipment got lost, some people got mad blaming bad planning, not realizing the truth until it was informed on the news. Watching this makes me even more upset and mad at all the bad decisions taken by management and responders.

[@genecoppedge5972]

This captain acted like the captain of the Titanic, ignoring warning signs. But the difference is management of SS EL FARO would accept any course change without hesitation but the captain ran straight into the storm.

[@vaffangool9196]

*I must be missing something,* what more could the responders have done in this case?

[@weskrill8241]

@@lcfflc3887 they were in a hurricane….

[@fortunekader9121]

@@vaffangool9196 They could have ensured their buoy was transmitting properly before leaving that poor person in the immersion suit, that was waving their arms to rescuers, to die in the ocean.

[@nineteen8122]

@@fortunekader9121 Yes! This hit me the most. Why isn’t this discussed more in the comment section? They literally had a survivor and left him/her. Can you imagine what that poor soul was thinking?

[@leopardone2386]

Yes just YES. Been patiently waiting for this since your Ocean Ranger video. You are awesome and your documentary style vids blow those terrible part live action docu dramas from cable TV out of the water. I would gladly wait to see you cover the Deepwater Horizon or heck even an older disaster such as the Sinking of the Lusitania or Empress of Ireland. Any of those being covered by you would be awesome! I'd patiently wait years because I know you'd do a fantastic job. Great work as always. Also respect and condolences to the crew lost, one of the crew members was from my home town as well as another's widow was on the news a few years back reflecting while looking on at the Golden Ray that capsized in St. Simmons Sound.

[@bowtiejess80]

I absolutely agree, the quality of his videos is through the roof! Simply amazing.

[@NeoclassicalRadagast]

@@bowtiejess80 My cousin's husband was lost on the Ocean Ranger. Her two sons grew up not knowing their father. Very sad time in the history of Newfoundland.

[@TheMouseAvenger]

Hey, don't knock docudramas! :-( I've seen many good ones!

[@andyreynolds6194]

I’ve been interested in the loss of the El Faro for some time, and have to say this is an absolutely excellent documentary on her demise and the events leading up to it. Astonishing how complacency allied to management seemingly wilfully ignorant of the state of the vessels they operate could lead to such a loss. You honour the crew with telling their story fully and accurately, without hyperbole or sensationalism. Fantastic work, liked and subscribed.

[@Djiehh]

Sounds like the second mate would have been a better choice for captain, she had better awareness of the overall situation and was prepared in advance for her duties. It is a tragedy that 32 people lost their lives due to the 33rd person not understanding that being the boss is not about having privileges and advancing ones career, but more than anything else being responsible for the well-being of those you're in charge of. 😔

[@TracyA123]

Wow! Just wow! After the Sewol videos I remember clearly thinking "Thank God nothing so crazy and reckless could happen in the US". I was so wrong. I thought I knew the El Faro story. It was shocking to see how all of those little things added up to this tragedy. Even though I knew the end result, I could still feel my heart racing as the storm intensified in the video! The VDR voice data was something I had very little knowledge of and was very difficult to hear. Also, great analogy with the Tornado warnings! I've been looking forward to this video and he didn't disappoint!! Well done!👍👍☺

[@wezacker6482]

I read the transcripts of the in-bridge communications shortly after they were released, and this tragedy always struck me as so haunting. Between the inwardly paranoid & outwardly confident Ship's Master, to the observant 2nd Mate, to the terrified helmsman, to the silent Polish Nationals to the franticly working Engineering crew, these felt like real people to me, not just words on a page, and their preventable death was a tragedy a million small mistakes in the making, as most great tragedies are. It's easy to look at some nitpicky regulation and say 'who cares' or 'why are we wasting time on this?' but all those little neglected things can lead to a very big problem. Sometimes, you have to sweat the small stuff. RIP to the crew of the El Faro.

[@tuunaes]

It wasn't mistakes which kept such rust bucket in use and at sea at time when even properly maintained ships should have made different course choises. It was greed which lead to this disaster. And as usual those people truly behind this chain of events never get their neck put on line. At least in aviation companies with unsafe practises get fined and eventually banned! Until that happens, there's always next El Faro waiting to happen.

[@sse_weston4138]

Same here. I’ve always loved maritime history, and this was the first disaster I payed attention to in real time (in first year of high school in 2015). It was a heart pulling read, particularly near the end as the AB (I assumed was Frank Hamm) struggled to leave the bridge, brought me to tears. It is something that will always stay with me, as have other horrendous tragedies. Those that most come to mind are the Conception diveboat fire, Stellar Daisy’s break up, and the fiery loss of the tanker Sanchi.

[@iananderson5050]

You said it with regard to regulations/company rules. I'm a bit more familiar with railroads, and the PRR from roughly 1935-1955 was considered one of if not the safest railroads in North America. Maintenance crews and engineers enforced rules very strictly because in most cases they knew such rules were written in blood.

[@Halinspark]

I'm no mariner, but phoning a corporate office helpline in an emergency seems batshit to me. Is there a good reason they're the first choice, or is it just bureaucratic overreach at work again? I fully admit I may just be biased against office workers.

[@bishopsix1628]

The fact they thought they saw someone waving and then couldn't find them is terrifying, imagine being that person thinking rescue was on the way but then it never arrives.

[@johnbaker8625]

Sad to think about, but the likelyhood is that the person was not waving. Perhaps an arm was flailing in the wind and waves, or more likely the observation was just wrong. It is difficult to see things accurately under those conditions. It is very unlikely that anyone would have survived several days under those conditions. Recall that the body they found in the imersion suit was heavily decomposed.

[@MesosphericAttitude]

@@johnbaker8625 Most likely true.

[@danbev9313]

More than likely that arm was just the movement of the body being consumed by a sea creature from beneath the water line.

[@rfcdgaf]

if u read the report there was no one actually waving, false sighting

[@JuniperJadePR]

I remember this incident quite clearly since it was covered in the local PR news for a whole month since on top of the loss of life, it wrecked the island's supply chain in a way that wasn't seen again until 2017 when Hurricane Maria happened. People were so angry & heartbroken because all of this could have been avoided. Look forward to seeing part 2 since so many things changed after this disaster but it's unfortunate that it had to come at the cost of 33 lives.

[@america6545]

True. Puerto Rico only had two ships supplying goods to the island, after the loss of El Faro, it was down to only one. Such a tragedy. May their souls rest.

[@tulayamalavenapi4028]

Hence the common sense of researching and implementation of how to live as humans in a self-sufficient manner.

[@M2ofEMMM]

This reminds me of when Amazon told all those warehouse workers to stay put and keep working during a tornado. If you read some of the final messages those workers sent to loved ones before the tornado tore through the building, you can see that they also knew they were in danger but were afraid to disobey and protect themselves because then they would lose their jobs and potentially be unable to afford living expenses for themselves and their loved ones afterwards anyway. I have to wonder if that was a factor in why the crew of the El Faro didn't mutiny despite knowing that they were headed into the heart of a hurricane.

[@Blatsen]

I live close to the Amazon warehouse in Edwardsville, IL that was damaged by that tornado. The unnecessary loss of life was abhorrent and sad. They tore down the remains of the damaged part of the warehouse, which was about 3/4 of the warehouse, and plan on rebuilding it.

[@j.whiteoak6408]

I would say that's exactly the situation on this Bridge, Maria. Say anything within hearing of the Captain and there'd be hell to pay - and you'd be picking up your final pay cheque. Unfortunately none of these poor souls got to pick up their final anything. Everyone feared him by the sounds of things.

[@EdyAlbertoMSGT3]

The fact that we live in a world where people have to pick between their life or their job at some point.

[@jacqemmet1764]

And the fire at the Triangle Shirtwaist Factory.

[@jacksyoutubechannel4045]

I genuinely don't think these things are as much about not losing one's job as they are about a ingrained deference to authority. There are lots of tales of non-commercial sinkings where the passengers just sat around watching the ship flood without attempting to get themselves to safety. Passengers of hijacked planes almost never try to take back control of the plane. In situations like these, we're just so used to waiting for authoritative instructions, and once we get them, following them.

[@lmswilsons4659]

We lost our dear friend Sylvester on this, He is missed everyday

[@gagemcmahon9485]

Brick immortar makes the best maritime accident reports out of any channel hands down. You do these people justice and pull no punches. Based off the other comments from people personally involved you can tell this is the case as well. Thanks for making this and your maritime accident reports are my favorite videos. Keep up the good work brother

[@thecoon3193]

You know you're a great creator when I didn't realize this was damn near a feature length film until you said "this video has gotten extremely long" and I checked the timestamp

[@bsidegirl9069]

my thoughts exactly!!

[@bustyrandit]

My wife was a "purchaser" for parts n supplies with Sea Star for several years before moving on to BAE Systems. The El Farro was one of the 3 ships she procured for. It hit the people with Sea Star pretty hard. All the people involved in the marine industry here in Jax are a pretty tight group.

[@JustJohn505]

man this video is so good i keep rewatching it every single time it pops up on my recommendation. you outdid yourself on this one, including the beautifully made ending