24 These see the works of the LORD, and his wonders in the deep.
25 For he commandeth, and raiseth the stormy wind, which lifteth up the waves thereof.
26 They mount up to the heaven, they go down again to the depths: their soul is melted because of trouble.
27 They reel to and fro, and stagger like a drunken man, and are at their wits' end.
28 Then they cry unto the LORD in their trouble, and he bringeth them out of their distresses.
29 He maketh the storm a calm, so that the waves thereof are still.
There were two old timers sitting on the porch in one man's home on the shore of Lake Superior. The Edmund Fitzgerald sailed by just then, and one old timer issued a verdict about the ship which was new to the lakes.
"That ship is going to break up and sink one day. It is too long for the Great Lakes."
The Fitzgerald was made on the dimensions used for ocean going ships. The waves in the ocean are farther apart than on the Great Lakes, but the Great Lakes can have waves just as high as the ocean. This shorter distance between the Great Lake waves causes the bow and stern of an oar carrier to be lifted up on the waves, bow and stern, so that the middle of the ship is lifted clear of the water. This puts a horrendous strain on the middle of the ship. Iron ore is, of course, very heavy, and the maximum stress is the result.
I have read various theories about what caused the ship to break up and sink, and I believe this is the most logical explanation. The Fitzgerald simply broke in half and sank rapidly. I do not believe anything else caused the wreck. The problems they were having otherwise were common to ships of the time.
"That ship is going to break up and sink one day. It is too long for the Great Lakes."
The Fitzgerald was made on the dimensions used for ocean going ships. The waves in the ocean are farther apart than on the Great Lakes, but the Great Lakes can have waves just as high as the ocean. This shorter distance between the Great Lake waves causes the bow and stern of an oar carrier to be lifted up on the waves, bow and stern, so that the middle of the ship is lifted clear of the water. This puts a horrendous strain on the middle of the ship. Iron ore is, of course, very heavy, and the maximum stress is the result.
I have read various theories about what caused the ship to break up and sink, and I believe this is the most logical explanation. The Fitzgerald simply broke in half and sank rapidly. I do not believe anything else caused the wreck. The problems they were having otherwise were common to ships of the time.
