Anniversary Of Edmund Fitzgerald Sinking Remembered

Still a Great Lakes mystery, 41 years later–the sinking of the Edmund Fitzgerald, which went down during a wicked Lake Superior storm.

The Great Lakes Maritime Academy in Traverse City is one of several places holding memorials today. Superintendent Jerry Achenbach , who’s spent his career on the water, says academy cadet David Weiss was among the 29 casualties on the Fitzgerald.

And while people have heard the Gordon Lightfoot ballad about the tragedy, most don’t realize the singer did much more for the maritime community.

Experts have never agreed on why the ship sank. Achenbach says the Fitzgerald story is part of cadets’ education, as safety classes also detail why current guidelines were adopted.