NationStates Jolt Archive

OOC: This is going to be an RP of a major storm on the Great Lakes in November. This is open to all. Obviously, the storm will be much more powerful than expected. The conditions will be far worse than those of the 1975 storm.
http://www.interlakesteamship.com/images/updated-port-map.png
map for reference

IC:
November 8, 2005
Captain Eric Miller was standing on the port bridge wing of his mighty freighter's forward pilothouse. It was a cold morning in Duluth, Minnesota. The 6,350 (empty) ton ore carrier Arthur M. Anderson was far from new. She had been built in 1952 and was wrapping up her 53rd season on the lakes. She was to take 20,000 tons of iron taconite ores from Duluth to the Port of Indiana in Burns Harbor, Indiana where the mighty mills of US Steel, Bethlehem Steel and ISG would turn the ore to steel for use in IDF or export.

Captain Miller was a 24 year veteran of Great Lakes shipping. He had missed the great storm of 1975 by 6 years. His ship hadn't missed it though. The Arthur M. Anderson was caught in the middle of it. Thirty years ago on this week, the crew on this very bridge watched the great Edmund Fitzgerald disappear on Lake Superior. The Anderson was a famous ship due to her association with the disaster.

The weather reports coming in from Whitefish Point were far from encouraging. A storm was moving in from Canada, but it wasn't looking to be as strong as the one that had taken the Big Fitz. The Anderson would hit them just west of Caribou Island. Once she got into the bay, she'd be safe and Lake Michigan was far more hospitable than Superior. Either way, this was the last voyage for the season and he'd have a good 4 months of vacation.
http://www.boatnerd.com/news/newpictures03/Arthur-M.-Anderson-approach.jpg
The Anderson

OOC: Come on, I know you want to RP disaster on Gitchee Gumee.

OOC: Bump

"The legend lives on from the chippewa on down
Of the big lake they called ’gitche gumee’
The lake, it is said, never gives up her dead
When the skies of november turn gloomy
With a load of iron ore twenty-six thousand tons more
Than the edmund fitzgerald weighed empty.
That good ship and true was a bone to be chewed
When the gales of november came early."

OOC:I am not going to role play this, but I thought I'd mention I am from Duluth and have actually seen the Arthur M. Anderson on more than one occasion. Beautiful ship.

OOC:I am not going to role play this, but I thought I'd mention I am from Duluth and have actually seen the Arthur M. Anderson on more than one occasion. Beautiful ship.
OOC: She is. I saw her at Sault St. Marie two summers ago. We go up there a lot so I've seen almost all of the major freighters. Including 10 of the 14 1,000 footers. I even saw the Paul Tregartha the largest ship on the lakes. I've seen many of the larger freighters at the Port of Indiana in Burns Harbor. It's near where I live.

bump

At 1600 in the afternoon, Arthur Anderson was cleared for departure. She was now weighing in at 27,000 tons with her full load of taconite. A harbor pilot was guiding the ship out for Captain Eric Miller as a pair of tugs pulled her clear of her dock. The loading of the Anderson went quickly as she was a self loader. She was actually one of the first on the Great Lakes.

At 1630, the tugs tied off of the Anderson and the pilot left leaving Miller and his crew of 26 men to take over. The Anderson and lakers like her could only makd 10 knots as she moved East Northeast along the main shipping routes. Her course was longer than usual, but made for safety reasons. SHe was to move North of Isle Royal and go between the island and Thunder Bay. The hopes were she could spend more time in sheltered waters and avoid the worst of the storm. Unforturnately, the ship was vulnerable to the heavy winds and waves between Island Royale and Michopicoten Island. She was also vulnerable from Michopicoten Island to Whitefish Point. Once the Whitefish Point Lighthouse was in reach, the ship would be safe. Captain Miller knew his ship would have problems, but he was sure that the Anderson could do it. She had done it before and could again.

bump