| Accident type | : Collision |
| Vessels involved | : RMS Empress of Ireland and SS Storstad |
| Location | : Saint Lawrence River |
| Date | : May 29, 1914 |
| Casualties | : 1,012 people died |
VESSEL INFO:
| Name | : RMS Empress of Ireland |
| Built in | : 1906 |
| Type | : Ocean liner |
| Tonnage | : 14,191 GRT; 8,028 NRT |
| Length | : 570 ft (170 m) oa; 550 ft (170 m) pp |
| Beam | : 65 ft 7.2 in (19.995 m) |
RMS Empress of Ireland was an ocean liner, built by Fairfield Shipbuilding and Engineering at Govan on the Clyde in Scotland and was launched in 1906.
During the early morning hours of 29 May 1914, RMS Empress of Ireland sank in the Saint Lawrence River following a collision with the Norwegian collier SS Storstad, due to heavy fog. Many people in the lower portion of the ship drowned instantly. Of the 1,477 people on board, 1,012 died. The number of deaths is the largest of any Canadian maritime accident in peacetime.
The wreck lies in 40 metres (130 ft) of water, making it accessible to divers. Many artifacts from the wreckage have been retrieved, some of which are on display in the Empress of Ireland Pavilion at the Site historique maritime de la Pointe-au-Père in Rimouski, Quebec. The Canadian government has passed legislation to protect the site.
Source: Wikipedia
