Fire at Sea: The Mysterious Tragedy of the Morro Castle

by Thomas Gallagher

On a stormy night in September 1934, the Morro Castle was making its way through heavy seas en route from Havana to New York City. Shortly after 2:00 A.M., while most of the passengers slept, fire suddenly engulfed the luxury liner; within an hour, hundreds were dead or struggling desperately in the water.
The fire's apparently inexplicable outbreak wasn't the only secret that night aboard the Morro Castle. Hours earlier, Captain Robert Wilmott had died in his cabin under suspicious circumstances. Had Wilmott been poisoned? Was the fire accidental, or intentionally set? Drawing from interviews with the survivors, as well as his own in-depth research, Thomas Gallagher skillfully recreates the Morro Castle tragedy, proposing convincing solutions to its myriad mysteries.
In FIRE AT SEA, originally published in 1959, a seasoned reporter's meticulous attention to detail is combined with a novelist's sense of his story's drama. The result is a vivid and unforgettable story of the sea.

Genres: History, Nonfiction, 20th Century

280 pages, Paperback

First published January 1, 1959

About the author

Thomas Gallagher (1918-1992) was a widely published journalist and the author of eight books. His novel The Gathering Darkness (1952) was nominated for a National Book Award; his Fire at Sea: The Story of the Moro Castle (1959) won the Edgar Allan Poe Award for nonfiction.

Reviews

[Tekken · Rating 3 out of 5]

Oceanliner Designs, kuhu ma aeg-ajalt satun, on teinud juba kaks saadet Morro Castle’i laevahukust. Ühe tuttavaga suheldes kuulsin, et tal on olemas kõik raamatud, mis sel teemal kirjutatud. No on ikka segane lugu!

Thomas Gallagheri 1959 ilmunud „Fire at Sea“ on esimene raamat, kus 1934 juhtunud laevaõnnetust lahatakse. Autor oli ise meremees, intervjueeris hulka ellujäänuid ja uuris ametliku juurdluse materjale. Tema oli veendunud, et tegemist oli tahtliku süütamisega ja laeva pani põlema selle vanemradist George Rogers. Gallagher oletas, et ka laeva kapteni surm enne tulekahju algust oli Rogersi süü.

Mingeid tõendeid radisti süü kohta autor ei avastanud. Pole kahtlust, et Rogers oli osav intrigaan, kes üritas mitu aastat hiljem oma tuttavat ära tappa, aga see ei tõesta, et tal ka Morro Castle’i hukkumisega midagi pistmist oli. Kokkuvõttes ladusalt kirjutatud lugu, aga annab tunda, et autorile oli ennesõjaaegsete reisilaevade ja keeluseaduse temaatika võõras. Selleks ajaks, kui tema merele läks, oli alkoholi tarbimine jälle ok.

„Fire at Sea“ sai omakorda allikaks mitmele teisel pool raudset eesriiet elanud autorile. Ida-sakslase Günter Prodöhli loo (1963) võib leida Maaja kodukalt ja tema vene kolleegi Lev Skrjagini versiooni ajalehe Nõukogude Hiiumaa (1972) Digari väljaandest. Mõlemad kirjamehed pole lasknud faktidel ilusat lugu ära rikkuda. Prodöhl väidab millegipärast, et Gallagheri raamatus on 500 lehekülge – mina leidsin ainult 261?

[Lynette Lark · Rating 3 out of 5]

This was a very interesting book. I got a little confused at the beginning because the author obviously wrote this to impress men. However, the rest of the book picked up considerably! The writing was such that I was standing on the deck with two choices: burn or jump 30 feet into the ocean during a CAT 4 hurricane.

Interestingly, most of the crew survived.

[Lois Carkhuff · Rating 5 out of 5]

Amazing and horrifying. Very engaging and interesting. I had to remind myself that this was a real event and constructed from various reliable sources.

[Ian · Rating 4 out of 5]

I read the 1959 edition. I thought it was fast paced and written well for a true account.

[Krista the Krazy Kataloguer · Rating 3 out of 5]

This is yet another tragedy that should never have happened!

[Katherine · Rating 3 out of 5]

Interesting, but poorly written.