In 1972 I painted a house for a retired merchant sailor. I showed up late one day and apologized. He told me a story about how he was supposed to get up at 4 am to sign on to a ship in New York. His mother let him sleep and was too late to sign on. Later that day he found out about the ship he was supposed to sail in. He said that he never ever got mad about someone being late to anything since by being late himself he avoided burning to death on the Morro Castle.
@@cellpat7392 • So I’ve read. Lifelong Tennessean here - because we’re landlocked (save our western border the mighty Mississippi) - this is a first I’m hearing about this - how tragic!
When I was a child we'd go to a seafood restaurant that had several large model ships on display. The largest and most impressive model was of the Morro Castle. I never forgot seeing it, and looked up the name of the ship years later when the internet was a thing - I was surprised to learn of its grisly end. Another lesser-known disaster you might find worth talking about is that of the sinking of the Vestris. Infamously incompetent crew and captain, and the last moments of the ship captured on film by a crewman with a vest pocket Kodak camera.
@@gomphrena-beautifulflower-8043 en.wikipedia.org/wiki/SS_Vestris "At 09:56 Vestris sent an SOS message giving her position as latitude 37° 35' N. and longitude 71° 81' [sic] W., which was incorrect by about 37 miles (60 km)."
@@andrewdock7288 The wikipedia page only scratches the surface. The results of the U.S. investigation were entered into the congressional record in 1929, and make for some pretty baffling reading. The lifeboat inspections had been faked, and the life vests had apparently never been inspected at all! The layers of incompetence involved are almost too much to believe.
Another excellent video and one close to home. I was raised in New Jersey and old enough that Morro Castle was still well remembered as a child. My Father would tell us the story as he took us to the spot where she grounded in Asbury Park, a very popular seaside holiday area. The lesson was to get off at the mention of fire at sea, with cowardly crew if need be,. I may have seemed a bit harsh on the last video but truly respect your work, you really should set up a Patreon and I will be glad to contribute.
A number of years ago, I was at a flea market and on a gentleman's table was a box filled with black and white photos, marked 25 cents each. I could not believe my luck when I quickly found an original picture of the Moro beached and smoldering. which I still have in my posession.
I saw a HBO documentary on the Morro Castle in the 1980's. In it they said a passenger had slipped on deck after a fire drill so the Ward Line had shut off the fire hoses on a previous voyage. So when the fire broke out on the ship's last voyage the crew couldn't use all the fire hoses.
“... was paroled in order to fight in WWII, however the military decided they didn’t want him.” So... put him back? Or at least find out before releasing him?
True - but the gaols were probably under pressure from the government to not only release prisoners to fight, but also to cut costs associated with housing them.
Very nice editorial on the subject! Speaking of ships ablaze, may I suggest a similar incident in the burning and sinking of the SS Yarmouth Castle? She was another ocean liner (turned Caribbean cruise ship) that had the same problem with flammable materials on her decks.
These videos serve two purposes for me. First, they are fascinating and I enjoy them all. Second, if my kids ever struggle to sleep I put these on and bang, they are gone. One day they will appreciate them.
To the narrator. Just wanted to let you know, of a few 'miss-facts', in the doc.. A 'Noreaster', doesn't take place in September, that would be a 'tropical storm'. These take place from June trough October, and are 73 miles an hour winds, or less. November starting the 'Noreaster' season 'till June. But both of these don't possess 'Hurricane Force Winds' which begins at 74 miles an hour, and only during the 'Tropical Storm' season. There's no 'Hurricane Force' or higher, in the winter. I know 'cause I've been through many, many of these, as I live right on the southern N.J. coast, by the Cape May you mentioned in the documentary. I also read some books on the 'MORRO CASTLE', the fire supposedly started in one of the writing rooms. The ship ended off Asbury Park, 'cause the towline, (as it was already being towed) snapped, then the ship drifted to shore. Besides this, you're documentary was good. Also there's not many documentaries about the MORRO CASTLE. Well done!!!!
Another very SMALL cruise ship was The YARMOUTH CASTILE which 🔥🔥🔥🔥BURNED and sank off of MIAMI , FLA . In Around 1963 I was about 5yrs old , This VERY VERY OLD SHIP was Launched around 1947 or so . And the safety standards were The WORST 😱😱😱😱and by NO MEANS up To CODE !!!! The Captain Left the Ship 😪😨😰😓😭PASSENGERS STILL on Bored , and was Told to GO BACK to his Ship ! A TRUE COWARD 😔🙁☹️😣 !!!! Over 90 Passengers Died From my Home Town POMPANO BEACH , FLA .
@@jamescrab4110 Arson, fraud, attempted murder of a policeman, use of incendiaries, murder (later of a friend who owed him money). That's just what they caught him on.
The Morro Castle was not "Health and safety gone mad". The Owner was a penny pincher. The crew were incompetents', it was a disaster waiting for a place to happen.
At least one of the employees of the scrapping company felt free to pilfer China and silverware from the ship. I recall that back in the 1960’s a box of China and flatware marked “NY & CM Steamship Company” was offered to my father, who ran an antiques business. It was all well scorched and blackened.
The radio operator was a psychopathic serial killer. He just wasn't good at it and was caught. Someone should do a documentary about him in one of the crime documentaries. You don't say what happened to the crew members who made off with the lifeboats. Did any of them face criminal penalties for their cowardice and deliberate stranding of the helpless passengers?
There may have been flammable materials used but it didn't help that the crew ran off with most of the lifeboats to save themselves this means that none of them were probably even half full
I know, right? Even a seaman with little training, should service to others somehow kick in the very dullest of minds. Having butchered the previous sentence, allow me to put it rather succinctly: This crew SUCKED.
Yeah I noticed all the Swedish ships. Kinda weird, since it’s hard to find good footage of them but hey, not gonna complain about seeing my favorite ocean liners actually out at sea.
She had fire doors but nobody thought to try to close them! It is believed that Rogers set the fire in a closet used to store bed coverings such as sheets and blankets. I had to do a report in college and chose this ship as my subject. She really was a good looking ship at the time. The death of her Captain always left some doubt that Rogers may have poisoned him.
My Grad dad was the editor of the newspaper in Trenton and took a very famous picture of the ship. The traffic to see the ship from the beach was so great that the police chief turned 2 streets into one-way streets. and that was the first recorded one way street.
One the main reasons why American liners couldn't compete with the European ones is that American liners were subject to prohibition. Hence the exemption.
I'm pretty sure that it was during the search for the Indianapolis in WWII that a PBY Pilot landed in heavy swells. He knew he would never be able to take off but the plane provided refuge for the sailors suffering from exposure and shark attacks.
Dear, I've got interesting topic for Motion history regarding trains. Accumulator train cars such as german Wittfeld accumulator train unit or ETA150, which last been used on 1995.
"Its exemption from the oppressive rules of Prohibition" there was no such exemption, it's suggested on Wikipedia, but as with many things found there, it ain't true The destination, Cuba, was where the passengers got liquored up. This was an American ship, and American ships were "dry" during Prohibition. Liquor consumed on board would have come from the passengers' luggage; or Cuba, The ship wasn't serving any until Prohibition ended with calendar year 1933 - months before the Morro Castle burned.
Makes you wonder about the Captains death when you consider the suspicion around Rodgers, with the Captain dead and the far less experienced man assuming command it was very convenient, perhaps he was poisoned.
Greed and neglect have claimed so many lives in this way...and it continues to happen. 'Rush rush rush!...no time for maintenance...patch 'er up and slap on some paint...stuff human lives!'
I HATE TO SEE A FIRE ON THESE MODERN CRUISE SHIPS OF TODAY. I FEAR THAT THE RESULTS WILL NOT BE MUCH DIFFERENT. LACK OF CREW TRAINING IS EVEIDENT, AND AS FAR AS FLAMMABLE MATERIALS, TAKE YOUR PICK.
No need to shout. I'm certain you'd find that there is less flammable material than you think... given modern construction requirements...add to that effective fire doors, automatic sprinkler systems and so on... and "lack of crew training is evident"...well...depends on the line and ship I'd suggest.
You'd think more ships would'vs gone up in flame when they burn coal and coal fire was fairly common. These accidents were few and far between then when half of the ships' structure was made out of wood. Most fire at sea are the result of improper maintenance, improper refit and arson
@@kai990 The ship made its reputation during prohibition as a good time cruise. So I guess "Made popular during the Prohibition years" would have been a little more accurate.
In 1972 I painted a house for a retired merchant sailor. I showed up late one day and apologized. He told me a story about how he was supposed to get up at 4 am to sign on to a ship in New York. His mother let him sleep and was too late to sign on. Later that day he found out about the ship he was supposed to sail in. He said that he never ever got mad about someone being late to anything since by being late himself he avoided burning to death on the Morro Castle.
HOLY SHIT!
Who knows, maybe he would have survived, even possibly having saved someone's life in the process, but yet they died as a result. Ya never know
moral of the story always be late
@@doorsfan48 "On time" is when I get there.
DANG
This is one I hadn't heard of before. Thanks!
Same
ditto
Same
I came across a book about the Moro Castle in the school library when I was in eighth grade. I had just read 'A Night To Remember' about the Titanic.
@@cellpat7392 • So I’ve read. Lifelong Tennessean here - because we’re landlocked (save our western border the mighty Mississippi) - this is a first I’m hearing about this - how tragic!
When I was a child we'd go to a seafood restaurant that had several large model ships on display. The largest and most impressive model was of the Morro Castle. I never forgot seeing it, and looked up the name of the ship years later when the internet was a thing - I was surprised to learn of its grisly end.
Another lesser-known disaster you might find worth talking about is that of the sinking of the Vestris. Infamously incompetent crew and captain, and the last moments of the ship captured on film by a crewman with a vest pocket Kodak camera.
Can you provide a link? I’ll Google it and see what happens. When an incompetent crew is in the mix, disaster seems to soon follow.
@@gomphrena-beautifulflower-8043 en.wikipedia.org/wiki/SS_Vestris "At 09:56 Vestris sent an SOS message giving her position as latitude 37° 35' N. and longitude 71° 81' [sic] W., which was incorrect by about 37 miles (60 km)."
@@furripupau Thank you.
@@furripupau great read thanks.
@@andrewdock7288 The wikipedia page only scratches the surface. The results of the U.S. investigation were entered into the congressional record in 1929, and make for some pretty baffling reading. The lifeboat inspections had been faked, and the life vests had apparently never been inspected at all! The layers of incompetence involved are almost too much to believe.
And this was why Mr. Gibbs set out to build the SS United States to be as fire proof as possible.
Yes indeed
Another excellent video and one close to home. I was raised in New Jersey and old enough that Morro Castle was still well remembered as a child. My Father would tell us the story as he took us to the spot where she grounded in Asbury Park, a very popular seaside holiday area. The lesson was to get off at the mention of fire at sea, with cowardly crew if need be,. I may have seemed a bit harsh on the last video but truly respect your work, you really should set up a Patreon and I will be glad to contribute.
What I particularly like about this incident was how all along the coast, word traveled and people went out to look for survivors.
A number of years ago, I was at a flea market and on a gentleman's table was a box filled with black and white photos, marked
25 cents each. I could not believe my luck when I quickly found an original picture of the Moro beached and smoldering. which I
still have in my posession.
I saw a HBO documentary on the Morro Castle in the 1980's. In it they said a passenger had slipped on deck after a fire drill so the Ward Line had shut off the fire hoses on a previous voyage. So when the fire broke out on the ship's last voyage the crew couldn't use all the fire hoses.
Well done, production crew, Narrator, whoever else involved in getting this uploaded. I had never heard of this before. So tragic for so many.
Incredibly well put together as ever. You always pull great stories out of the bag from nowhere!
An informative video, I don't recall hearing this story before. Incidents like this need to be remembered so that past mistakes are not repeated.
RIP to the victims and condolences to the families. Nice work Ruairidh.
In the 1950's my parents and I used to vacation at Asbury Park. I can remember " old timers" talking about the Moro Castle
“... was paroled in order to fight in WWII, however the military decided they didn’t want him.”
So... put him back? Or at least find out before releasing him?
True - but the gaols were probably under pressure from the government to not only release prisoners to fight, but also to cut costs associated with housing them.
Very nice editorial on the subject! Speaking of ships ablaze, may I suggest a similar incident in the burning and sinking of the SS Yarmouth Castle? She was another ocean liner (turned Caribbean cruise ship) that had the same problem with flammable materials on her decks.
Note to self: Never go on a ship named after a castle.
I'd never heard of that, I'm quite surprised.
What a horrible tragedy.
Passengers burned alive just offshore
Brilliant video, keep up the good work.
These videos serve two purposes for me. First, they are fascinating and I enjoy them all. Second, if my kids ever struggle to sleep I put these on and bang, they are gone. One day they will appreciate them.
To the narrator. Just wanted to let you know, of a few 'miss-facts', in the doc.. A 'Noreaster', doesn't take place in September, that would be a 'tropical storm'. These take place from June trough October, and are 73 miles an hour winds, or less. November starting the 'Noreaster' season 'till June. But both of these don't possess 'Hurricane Force Winds' which begins at 74 miles an hour, and only during the 'Tropical Storm' season. There's no 'Hurricane Force' or higher, in the winter. I know 'cause I've been through many, many of these, as I live right on the southern N.J. coast, by the Cape May you mentioned in the documentary. I also read some books on the 'MORRO CASTLE', the fire supposedly started in one of the writing rooms. The ship ended off Asbury Park, 'cause the towline, (as it was already being towed) snapped, then the ship drifted to shore. Besides this, you're documentary was good. Also there's not many documentaries about the MORRO CASTLE. Well done!!!!
Thank you for sharing (:
One of those occasions were it might have been safer to stay on deck on the windward side as the ship never sank.
It‘s all fun and games till your captain suddenly has a stomach ache...
And there are no fire doors...
That's never a good sign.
Thanks for this excellent video. I spent most of my summers on Long Beach Island. There is a museum in Beach Haven with some Morro Castle Memorabilia.
Another very SMALL cruise ship was The YARMOUTH CASTILE which 🔥🔥🔥🔥BURNED and sank off of MIAMI , FLA . In Around 1963 I was about 5yrs old , This VERY VERY OLD SHIP was Launched around 1947 or so . And the safety standards were The WORST 😱😱😱😱and by NO MEANS up To CODE !!!! The Captain Left the Ship 😪😨😰😓😭PASSENGERS STILL on Bored , and was Told to GO BACK to his Ship ! A TRUE COWARD 😔🙁☹️😣 !!!! Over 90 Passengers Died From my Home Town POMPANO BEACH , FLA .
Very well presented....clear and concise narration. Just subscribed !!
Holy crap! They let that radio operator go on killing for years and years!
@@jamescrab4110 Arson, fraud, attempted murder of a policeman, use of incendiaries, murder (later of a friend who owed him money). That's just what they caught him on.
@@Einwetok He even said he set the ship on fire And had set stuff on fire before!
@@jamescrab4110 ...also the daughter of the first victim.
Your best yet! Congrats!!!
"Health and safety gone mad"
The Morro Castle was not "Health and safety gone mad". The Owner was a penny pincher. The crew were incompetents', it was a disaster waiting for a place to happen.
@@benwilson6145 correct.
Fascinating.
At least one of the employees of the scrapping company felt free to pilfer China and silverware from the ship. I recall that back in the 1960’s a box of China and flatware marked “NY & CM Steamship Company” was offered to my father, who ran an antiques business. It was all well scorched and blackened.
0:42 Why does that ship look like an Olympic-class but with only one funnel?
The radio operator was a psychopathic serial killer. He just wasn't good at it and was caught. Someone should do a documentary about him in one of the crime documentaries. You don't say what happened to the crew members who made off with the lifeboats. Did any of them face criminal penalties for their cowardice and deliberate stranding of the helpless passengers?
Love your videos, very educational
There may have been flammable materials used but it didn't help that the crew ran off with most of the lifeboats to save themselves this means that none of them were probably even half full
Maybe the crew should have been firefighting instead of running away
I know, right? Even a seaman with little training, should service to others somehow kick in the very dullest of minds. Having butchered the previous sentence, allow me to put it rather succinctly: This crew SUCKED.
Great story, good video. Lots of filler footage of Swedish ships, but still well paced. I believe she was eventually broken up in Baltimore.
Yeah I noticed all the Swedish ships. Kinda weird, since it’s hard to find good footage of them but hey, not gonna complain about seeing my favorite ocean liners actually out at sea.
She had fire doors but nobody thought to try to close them! It is believed that Rogers set the fire in a closet used to store bed coverings such as sheets and blankets. I had to do a report in college and chose this ship as my subject. She really was a good looking ship at the time. The death of her Captain always left some doubt that Rogers may have poisoned him.
An excellent book about it from first hand witnesses, etc.: “When the Dancing Stopped” by Brian Hicks. Very intriguing story.
My Grad dad was the editor of the newspaper in Trenton and took a very famous picture of the ship. The traffic to see the ship from the beach was so great that the police chief turned 2 streets into one-way streets. and that was the first recorded one way street.
Ocean Av and Kingsley St in Asbury Park NJ...
My father went to see the ship, with his family, after it had beached at Asbury Park...
Mysteries at the Museum did an episode on this vessel - what a sad way to go out
Well done.
One the main reasons why American liners couldn't compete with the European ones is that American liners were subject to prohibition. Hence the exemption.
Float planes in a Storm?
Good idea to NOT dispatch them!
I'm pretty sure that it was during the search for the Indianapolis in WWII that a PBY Pilot landed in heavy swells. He knew he would never be able to take off but the plane provided refuge for the sailors suffering from exposure and shark attacks.
@@cmendla - Swells vs a raging Nor'Easter Storm.
Big difference.
This video is using clips from the Svenska Amerika Linien, Swedish American Line, in the white livery, 1931 onwards.
Dear, I've got interesting topic for Motion history regarding trains. Accumulator train cars such as german Wittfeld accumulator train unit or ETA150, which last been used on 1995.
My aunt's sister died in the sinking(due to a fire) of the French ocean liner George
Philippar in the Red sea in 1932.
Hey, Hey, Hey! Even managed to include a photo of a Royal Canadian Navy seaman. (6:10).
HMS Birkenhead Crew 'HOLD! Women and Children first!!'
SS Morro Castle crew 'FIRST!'
The Chief Officer was having a bad day by the sounds of things, impromptu promotion notwithstanding!
Very interesting thanks
Wild!
That very good
"Its exemption from the oppressive rules of Prohibition" there was no such exemption, it's suggested on Wikipedia, but as with many things found there, it ain't true The destination, Cuba, was where the passengers got liquored up. This was an American ship, and American ships were "dry" during Prohibition. Liquor consumed on board would have come from the passengers' luggage; or Cuba, The ship wasn't serving any until Prohibition ended with calendar year 1933 - months before the Morro Castle burned.
Ss yarmouth castle suffered the same fate
First heard of it in the Big Book of Great Disarsters..
Thank you for my daily ship bread
I always thought that safety legislation and practice were drastically improved after the loss of the Titanic, sadly it seems not.
You should maybe move these over to your new and excellent channel Sir 👍 📚 🇬🇧 🙏 ☘️
A few inaccuracies, but the footage is good.
Makes you wonder about the Captains death when you consider the suspicion around Rodgers, with the Captain dead and the far less experienced man assuming command it was very convenient, perhaps he was poisoned.
The captain's body was recovered after the ship was grounded.
This whole disaster smells pretty sus
Dunno why, but I always thought that the Morro Castle was named after the fort in Puerto Rico. I guess I stand corrected 😊
Greed and neglect have claimed so many lives in this way...and it continues to happen. 'Rush rush rush!...no time for maintenance...patch 'er up and slap on some paint...stuff human lives!'
Interesting but sad
The ship at timstamp 0.40 is SS/Drottningholm of Sweden
Ship at timestamp 01:14 looks to be Swedish liner Stockholm - the bane of Italian liner Andrea Doria.
@@anderspedersen7488 it´s M/S Gripsholm
@@andreassoderholm3870 Sorry about that, I thought the Stockholm was the one that had 2 funnels.
No "level playing field" back then. !
Very sad
I HATE TO SEE A FIRE ON THESE MODERN CRUISE SHIPS OF TODAY. I FEAR THAT THE RESULTS WILL NOT BE MUCH DIFFERENT. LACK OF CREW TRAINING IS EVEIDENT, AND AS FAR AS FLAMMABLE MATERIALS, TAKE YOUR PICK.
No need to shout. I'm certain you'd find that there is less flammable material than you think... given modern construction requirements...add to that effective fire doors, automatic sprinkler systems and so on... and "lack of crew training is evident"...well...depends on the line and ship I'd suggest.
You'd think more ships would'vs gone up in flame when they burn coal and coal fire was fairly common. These accidents were few and far between then when half of the ships' structure was made out of wood. Most fire at sea are the result of improper maintenance, improper refit and arson
Captain Schettino would beg to differ.....
@@patagualianmostly7437 Yeap😮😮😮👍
whoops. that is bad timing!
Any info on the Union Castle ?
Surprisingly, it wasn’t owned by union-castle line, hence the castle suffix
"...but regardless no evidence has been found" except all that stuff you said before...?
Hollywood should make a movie on this ship's story and hire Ryan Gosling as Jack Dawson.
Quite a few pictures of the Swedish American line in the beginning of this video without a word of that shipping company or Sweden.
Carzy
Um... Why all the Nazis at 0:57?
Another J P Morgan Banking scam
Booze cruise
not a pretty ship
Yet another catastrophe solely caused by the prohibition
the Prohibition ended in 1933 the Morro Castle Fire was 1934
@@robertyoung3992 oh so the people were still celebrating the end of the prohibition a year later?
@@kai990
The ship made its reputation during prohibition as a good time cruise.
So I guess "Made popular during the Prohibition years" would have been a little more accurate.
Unappealing (if linguistically logical) 'short a' English regional accent exacerbated by a Yankee flat sentence inflection.
What?