Holy shit
On the raft, the situation deteriorated rapidly. Instead of water, only wine had been packed; drunken fights broke out between the officers and passengers on one hand, and the sailors and soldiers on the other. On the first night adrift, 20 men were killed or committed suicide. A storm then hit, and more survivors were either trampled to death in a panic or swept overboard to drown. Rations dwindled rapidly; by the fourth day there were only 67 people left alive on the raft, and some resorted to cannibalism (part of the Custom of the Sea) to survive. On the eighth day, the fittest[13] decided to throw the weak and wounded overboard, leaving just 15 men remaining, all of whom survived another four days until their rescue on 17 July by the brig Argus, which accidentally encountered them
The entire article is a wild ride. A really bleak ride.
quality passive voice in that title
You’re not fooling.
On the eighth day, the fittest decided to throw the weak and wounded overboard, leaving just 15 men remaining, all of whom survived another four days until their rescue on 17 July …
Woah. Now I’m going to have to read it.
“Incompetent captain invites passenger to navigate, who promptly mistook the clouds for African mountains and plotted their course dangerously close to shore. Said captain then put the rich people on life boats and everyone else on an improvised raft (that had been built to put cargo on in hopes the ship would come off the shallows), but cut them free after they realized the raft was dragging them out to sea. He caused the death of over 140 souls.”
How’s that?
I remember obsessing about this tragedy a few months back when That Chapter covered it. Bleak barely covers it. I seem to recall reading that multiple crew members were concerned about the course from the start, and had they spoken up (if they didn’t) or been heeded (if they did), there’d be no story here.
Sorry if my comment came across as negative, I didn’t mean for it to sound that way.
Thanks for the link. It’s an unbelievable story. Everything seems to have gone so incredibly wrong. And you’re right, if they’d stopped the captain’s original mistake, it could have been a non-event.
None taken, friend.
Imagine sitting in a bri ish palace while the news are read to you. Will make more sense.
