Archive for William Garzke
Today, a technical paper that I co-authored with naval architect and friend, William Garzke, goes to publication. This is a proud moment for me. It is an opportunity to help humanity—specifically in contributing to passenger safety on our seas. This introduction explains our topic and the purpose for having written about it.
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The Loss of Andrea Doria
A Marine Forensic Analysis
by
William H. Garzke, Jr. and Pierette Domenica Simpson
ABSTRACT The Andrea Doria shipwreck of 1956 is still of interest to naval architects and historians. It pertains to the most catastrophic and the most recent collision in history between two ocean liners. One of the most controversial aspects of the event involves the sinking of the Italian luxury liner. This report’s main goal is to delve into the reasons for the sinking, which is surprisingly still controversial and debated. A New York Times article published only last year, called “From Death Ship to Cruise Ship”—referring to the Stockholm—attracted an editorial response from a Swedish co-author of a book on the collision. Mr. Bruce Paulsen wrote: “…the ship never should have sunk; she did so because of a substantial design defect.”
After much research done by author-survivor Pierette Simpson, who was provided with substantial data from findings of marine experts in both Italy and the United States that included members of Panel SD-7, she conducted her own inquiry, along with dialogue with divers and crewmembers of the Andrea Doria. This paper presents definitive conclusions on the sinking based on information from Ms. Simpson and Italian naval architects familiar with the ship’s design as well as insights on a marine forensics investigation by co-author and Chairman of Panel SD-7 William Garzke.
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Our technical paper is being published in the Journal of Ship Production. Here’s the description I found on their website.
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“Original and timely technical papers addressing problems of shipyard techniques and production of merchant and naval ships appear in this quarterly publication. Since its inception, the Journal of Ship Production has been a forum for peer-reviewed, professionally edited papers from academic and industry sources. As such, it has influenced the worldwide development of ship production engineering as fully qualified professional discipline. Each issue contains a well-rounded selection of technical papers relevant to ship professionals, including written discussions and author’s closures.” |
The Journal is published by The Society of Naval Architects and Marine Engineers (SNAME) http://www.sname.org/SNAME/SNAME/Publications/JournalofShipProduction/Default.aspx
Filed under: Andrea Doria, Serving Our Seas | Alive in the Andrea Doria, andrea doria, naval architecture, panel SD-7, pierette simpson, shipwrecks, SNAME, Society of Naval Architects and Marine Engineers, Stockholm, William Garzke|No Comments
The chairperson for the evening began her introduction of ASNE’s coveted guest:
…He studied physics and English at California State University. Later, he discontinued his studies and worked several jobs such as machinist and truck driver and wrote when he had time. Mr. Cameron taught himself special effects…. After seeing the film Star Wars in 1977, Cameron quit his job as a truck driver to enter the film industry.[4] When Cameron read the book Screenplay, it occurred to him that integrating science and art were possible and he wrote a ten minute science fiction script with two friends, entitled Xenogenesis. They raised money and rented a camera, lenses, the film stocks, and studio and shot it in 35mm. To understand how to operate the camera, they dismantled it and spent the first half-day of the shoot trying to figure out how to get it running. [1]
How admirable, I thought—and a genius too! After the chairperson enumerated his successful movies: The Terminator and Terminator 2, Rambo, Abyss, Alien, True Lies, she emphasized his most grandiose accomplishment, Titanic.
“He wrote and directed the film Titanic, which earned 11 Academy Awards and grossed over $1.8 billion worldwide. To date, his directorial efforts have grossed approximately $3 billion.”
And now he is striving for a repeat performance with the upcoming Bismarck. As with Titanic, Cameron will rely only partially on his consultants for information. He has already explored the wreck at 15,000 feet below the water surface in a submersible and brought back priceless data of the World War II battleship sunk by British forces. Moreover, on the 2002 expedition he brought along two survivors of the German battleship who survived the carnage, but wanted to make peace with the tragedy.
The audience sat mesmerized while viewing a 40-minute video of Cameron’s photographic examination of the Bismarck. He discussed the results of his extensive survey which resulted in scientific conclusions about the battle between the British and the Germans, the damage which sank the German battleship, the damaging drop on a mountainous seafloor, and the condition of the current wreck. In his signature Cameron style, he emphasized the relationship between humanity and technology. As we viewed the last clips of this rare footage, Cameron explained:
“Although I have a fascination with geeky technology and exploration, I’m showing you the boots, the leather bags, and personal articles so that we never forget what this disaster is about: the human tragedy…I have an 18-year-old son who is older than some of the young men who perished…this tragedy brings the message close to home…”
The fluid, engaging speaker explained that he obtained some of the film footage with his trusted robotic camera (ROV), fondly named Elwood, and that he has personally logged 3,000 hours as a shipwreck diver. It is no wonder that he has made outstanding contributions to marine science and maritime archeology as part of his film making. As he finished his talk, the audience swiftly stood up to applaud his work and brilliant documentation.
The presentation was followed by a question and answer segment. Cameron answered each question thoroughly, as if each one mattered. Bill Garzke, his right-hand man on the Bismarck research, joined him on stage to answer questions about Titanic and Bismarck survivors. Bill has spent decades interviewing Bismarck survivors and analyzing the testimony of Titanic survivors; he believes that by using eyewitness accounts in conjunction with scientific findings, the public will have a better understanding of shipwreck events.
(To be continued)
[1] Details from Wikipedia.
Filed under: Andrea Doria, Serving Our Seas, Survivor Stories | andrea doria, Avatar, Bismarck, James Cameron, shipwreck survivors, shipwrecks, Titanic, William Garzke|No Comments
My friend Giuliano called me shortly after 9 p.m. on 2-3-10 to inform me that “my friend” James Cameron was appearing on the Larry King show. I told Giuliano that I was on a Teleseminar; but after two seconds of reflection, I said “Thanks. I gotta watch it!” realizing that my current priority was to reconnect with one of the world’s greatest geniuses.
I sat mesmerized in front of the TV as I watched Cameron, two of his major technical assistants, and some actors being interviewed about their role in “AVATAR”. Watching Jim speak reminded me of the evening I met him in Washington, DC a year and a half ago. It will always be one of the most exciting and memorable events of my life: “The James Cameron Event” explained in the article below. In fact, I tell my friends that the opportunity to meet the man, felt like I had reached the top of Mount Everest.
This is the first part of the article. I will blog two more times to share its entirety.
A NIGHT TO REMEMBER
An Evening with James Cameron
Washington D.C., June 24, 2008
Thank God I didn’t have to re-live another shipwreck, like the Andrea Doria, to feel a close connection with the 1997 movie, Titanic. As a guest at the American Society of Naval Engineers (ASNE) dinner, Titanic’s Academy Award winning director sat one seat away from me. James Cameron was about to present his talk, ‘Undersea Exploration of the DKM Bismarck.’
I was introduced to the tall, stately looking gentleman by my friend William Garzke[1], one of Cameron’s chief consultants for his presentation on the Bismarck.
“This is Pierette Simpson. She is a survivor of the Andrea Doria and has recently written an excellent book on the loss of this ship.”[2]
The silver-haired gentleman extended his hand to me and graciously exclaimed, “You must have been very young.”
I clumsily replied, “Probably not as young as you many think…but thank you for the compliment.” Shaking hands, I immediately I felt a warm connection to the film giant.
Bill Garzke continued to explain: “I reviewed Pierette’s book for the Society of Naval Architects and Marine Engineers. We also collaborated on a report called ‘The Loss of the Andrea Doria’, which we presented in New York last week.”[3]
I felt great pride being accepted by these legendary shipwreck experts. Immodestly, I added that Bill was my mentor and in collaboration we had become authorities on the Andrea Doria tragedy. Then, quickly, before someone else could intervene on what seemed to be a magical moment, I introduced Cameron to my companion, Richard Haskin. I was impressed that the special guest walked over to Richard to shake his hand; he could have more efficiently extended his hand across a few people. Immediately, Cameron became the consummate gentleman and scholar in my mind. These precious moments set the tone to what would turn out to be a night to remember.
My friend Bill had helped to organize the evening’s event for the American Society of Naval Engineers (ASNE). Little did I know that Richard and I would sit at the ‘Reserved’ table, front and center, with Cameron and his three main consultants for the Bismarck presentation. After meeting all the distinguished scientists, I had a feeling that maybe I shouldn’t be drinking wine, for fear of losing coherence. I took a small sip anyway, hoping to put me more at ease.
[1] William Garzke is the national chairman of the marine forensics panel SD-7 of The Society of Naval Architects and Marine Engineers.
[2] For a copy of the review, see www.pierettesimpson.com: “The Book”.
[3] For a copy of the report, contact Pierette@PieretteSimpson.com .
Filed under: Andrea Doria, Serving Our Seas, Survivor Stories, Uncategorized | andrea doria, ASNE, Avatar, Bismark, James Cameron, shipwreck survivors, shipwrecks, The Larry King Show, Titanic, William Garzke|4 Comments
Dear Pierette:
The Marine Forensic Committee that I chair opened the Technical and Research Session of the Society of Naval Architects and Marine Engineers at its national meeting in Providence, Rhode Island. Our one-hour part of the program as certainly was successful as we filled up the 75-seat room and had people standing at the back and in the doorway. Phil Sims opened our session with a paper on the Decay of the Andrea Doria that had John Moyer and Steve Gatto as co-authors. Steve and John were unable to attend. The Society charges authors for attending meetings now due to the costs of meeting rooms in the Westin Hotel. Years ago things were different as authors went free. Times have certainly changed. Nonetheless, Phil did an excellent job of presenting the paper and attached is the current version of the Andrea Doria paper. I think you will find it interesting as there is a picture of Steve Gatto when he was much younger.
The rest of our session was also successful as there was a brief presentation of some research done on the SS Edmund Fitzgerald, followed by a presentation on the Guidelines for Investigating Shipwrecks that is being prepared by the Committee for possible publication in the near future.
I hope you will the attachment of interest and useful. Certainly the ship is decaying with the aluminum superstructure all but gone – a sacrificial anode that keeps the hull fairly intact. However, Phil Sims mentioned that in the visit to the wreck site this year, the bow is beginning to fall to the seabed as the hull now begins to decay. It is interesting to note that the HMHS Britannic in the Aegean Sea is in much better condition than the Andrea Doria even though that hull has been underwater for 93 years!
Bill Garzke
NB. Garzke is the chairman of the Marine forensic panel for the Society of Naval Architects and Marine Engineers
*Society of Naval Architects and Marine Engineers
Filed under: Serving Our Seas, Survivor Stories | andrea doria, John Moyer, shipwrecks, SNAME annual conference, Steve Gatto, The Decay of the Andrea Doria, William Garzke|No Comments
My friend and naval architect extraordinaire, Bill Garzke, called me to report on his trip to London in September.
“It was even better than I expected,” were his first words about the voyage. “Good cuisine, smooth sailing, and I got a tour of the control room with the chief engineer. I learned that in their operational rules that no craft can get less than 2 miles from the Queen Mary. And, because it can travel at 29.5 per hour, it can outdo most pirate vessels; it also has a mechanism by which to defend against piracy—if absolutely needed.
Convincingly, Bill explained, “You would have felt very safe on this vessel. We’ve learned a lot since the Andrea Doria tragedy.”
The mariner/historian continued, “My presentation in London was extremely well received.” (At London’s Lloyd’s register for the joint Institute of Marine Engineers Science and Technology, and the Royal Institution of Naval Architects.)
Bill explained that he had to do the presentation on the Prince of Wales shipwreck alone; his co-presenter, diver Kevin Delay from Australia, was not able to attend. Since Bill frequently does presentations and draws experience from many years of teaching, the prestigious event was not a challenge.
Unexpectedly, he was asked to do a presentation at the end of the return voyage of the Queen Mary II. I teased, “I hope you didn’t talk about the Titanic!” He did indeed talk about the infamous shipwreck, of which she is an expert, but toward the end of the journey.
Then Bill suggested that we co-present on the Andrea Doria shipwreck, of which we’re both authorities. “Who knows, we may even get a free trip!” he said with glee. I agreed that it would be of great interest to me to return to the sea for my second cruise. My last one was in the winter of 2008, on Carnival’s “Ocean of Gratitude” voyage. http://www.oceanofgratitudecruise.com/
Filed under: Andrea Doria, Serving Our Seas, Survivor Stories | Andrea Doria shipwreck, Ocean of Gratitude Cruise, The Queen Mary II, Titanic shipwreck, William Garzke|No Comments
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