Two commercial ocean liners collided off the coast of Nantucket in the Atlantic Ocean, sparking one of the largest maritime rescues in history.
On the evening of July 25, 1956, SS Andrea Doria was concluding its journey from Genoa, Italy to New York in the US when it met its fateful end. The 697-foot luxury liner had collided with MS Stockholm, a smaller ship that survived the crash but caused the former to sink to the bottom of the ocean.
It was the 1950's and despite being equipped with what at the time was modern radars that could detect other ships, Andrea Doria and Stockholm collided in an area located southwest of the Nantucket Lightship, which marks the entry to and exit from the crowded entryway to the New York Harbor. At the time of the Andrea Doria sinking, it held a nearly full complement of 1,706 passengers and crew and was merely miles away from its destination before the 526-feet long Stockholm slammed into its starboard side.
Andrea Doria as a Symbol of Post-war Luxury and Travel
In the mid-1950s, the Andrea Doria was designed for luxury, being the first liner to possess three outdoor swimming pools for first, cabin, and tourist classes. According to PBS, the liner boasted of graceful lines and rooms that were lavishly decorated with art, and was equipped with desirable first-class rooms that were unlike any that came before her.
Andrea Doria was also equipped with what at the time was modern navigational equipment, such as two sets of radar which became standard equipment in commercial lines following the war. In theory, the ship was unsinkable, as it featured 11 watertight compartments designed to keep the ship afloat despite any breaches and to maintain a list of not more than 15 degrees.
What Happened During Andrea Doria's Final Voyage
Andrea Doria's unexpectedly final voyage was led by the venerable Captain Piero Calamai, an Italian mariner who was a veteran of World Wars I and II. The ship had safely completed 100 transatlantic crossings from 1953 to 1956, so the voyage on July 25, 1956 should not have been different. Except that it was.
On the final few hours of its nine-day voyage to New York City, Andrea Doria's radar detected another ship, the Stockholm, which had departed New York for Gothenburg, Sweden. Stockholm had 534 passengers and 208 onboard as it left New York and traveled eastbound towards the Nantucket Lightship.
But Andrea Doria was approaching New York from the east as well, with a reduced speed as she had been traveling through heavy fog for many hours. Following regular maritime practice, Andrea Doria sounded a fog whistle and closed all of her watertight doors.
Because adars at the time were not equipped with the electronic acquisition of targets, the very same ones available today, Casual Navigation explained, mariners were forced to plot positions manually. While Stockholm's third officer Johan-Ernst Carstens-Johannsen plotted Andrea Doria to his left and pass port-to-port, Captain Calamai plotted Stockholm's location to his right and adjusted the ship to unconventionally pass starboard-to-starboard. History said it remains uncertain who among the two had misread the radar and steered his ship towards the other.
How Did Andrea Doria Sink?
Shortly before 11:10 p.m. both ships realized they were on a collision course with each other. When Captain Calamai finally saw Stockholm's lights through the thick fog, he attempted one last hard left turn to try to outrun the smaller ship. Meanwhile, Carstens attempted to reverse his propellers to slow down upon seeing Andrea Doria.
Stockholm's icebreaker bow then crashed into Andrea Doria's starboard side, penetrating it about 30 feet into the hull. The ship remained lodged for a few seconds before breaking loose, causing the damaged tanks to be flooded with seawater.
Andrea Doria then developed a list to starboard, damage that she was designed to withstand. But because she was at the end of her voyage, the port fuel tanks were empty and her list was too severe and the seawater penetrated watertight separations. Despite attempts to fill the port tanks with water, the water flowing into the starboard side was just too strong.
Thankfully, the Andrea Doria sinking site was near enough to the New York Harbor, so many other ships were quick to respond to their distress calls. The rescue effort became one of the largest in history, lasting several hours. A total of 51 people perished from the crash and Andrea Doria sank to the bottom of the Atlantic Ocean at 10:09 a.m. on July 26.
