[The following is took place during the sinking of the SS Eastland. Context for the disaster, courtesy of Wikipedia: “The SS Eastland was a passenger ship based in Chicago and used for tours. On July 24, 1915, the ship rolled over onto her side while tied to a dock in the Chicago River. A total of 844 passengers and crew were killed in what was the largest loss of life from a single shipwreck on the Great Lakes.”]
At the accident site, the last few unfortunates who were hanging from the starboard railing, beyond the reach of those on the hull, lost their grips. Mostly women, they began to plunge, one by one, into the water, their screams swallowed by the river. A few lifeboats, most of them launched from the Roosevelt, arrived far too late for many. Rescuers pulled one woman from the river clutching a baby that had already expired. She refused to let go of the tiny, still body. Several men spent agonizing minutes trying to pry the lifeless child from her arms.
”I saw strong men turn their eyes away and groan and weep,” Babcock reported. “I saw others stagger and faint. I heard women ashore shriek out hysterically and saw them swoon. Others ran screaming from the mind-racking scene and were swallowed up in the fast-gathering, panicky, shouting, wild-eyed multitude. Thrilling and heartbreaking incidents happened so rapidly as to be kaleidoscopic.”
Source:
Bonansinga, Jay R. “Chapter Eight – Down and Down.” The Sinking of the Eastland: America's Forgotten Tragedy. Citadel Press, 2005. 89. Print.
Further Reading:
If you enjoy this type of content, please consider donating to my Patreon!
No comments, yet...