Anniversary of a disaster

It was 100 years ago on March 31, 1914, that one of Newfoundland’s most painful tragedies occurred.

Every spring, Newfoundland sealers went out to harvest seal pelts, a vital contribution to their annual income. But sealing is an extremely dangerous occupation.

The often wooden and sometimes iron vessels sail into the edge of the ice sheets where the sealpups are born, the sealers must then walk across sometimes kilometres of ice to find the seals.

On that fateful morning 132 sealers left the SS Newfoundland, guided toward seals by another ship in the distance. but a howling blizzard of freezing rain and then snow suddenly blew up trapping them on the ice, lost between the ships in the blinding storm and darkness.

Both captains thought the sealers had made it to the other’s ship. It was only 2 days later that it was realized the men had been on the ice in the horrific wind and cold, and the survivors rescued by a third ship- after 54 hours exposed to the bitter elements.

Seventy-eight of them froze to death and many others suffered severe frostbite and loss of limbs.

At the same time another sealing ship, the SS Southern Cross was caught in that same horrific storm and sank with the loss of all 132 aboard. The tragedies combined are known as the 1914 sealing disaster.

A ceremony, commemorating those who perished on the SS Newfoundland and the SS Southern Cross, was held Monday morning attended by a number of dignitaries.

Michael Crummey,and award-winning Newfoundland author, wrote the script for 54 Hours, an animated film about the disaster.

He said he wanted to show people across the country what the event means to the people of Newfoundland and Labrador.

SEGMENT OF THE ANIMATED National Film Board PRODUCTION : 54 HOURS

http://www.nfb.ca/film/54_hours/clip/54_hours_clip1

From Newfoundland Archives –St John’s Evening Telegram newspaper story of April 2, 1914

“The waiting rooms of the Postal Telegram Offices were thronged with anxious mothers and fathers, brothers and sisters, who made heart rendering entreaties of the clerks for the lists of the dead.

At 9:30 p.m. the clerk of the Postal Telegraphs amid a breathless silence posted up another message that was forwarded on from the Fogo Station.  After a short silence, the following was read:

On Board the Bellaventure are fifty eight dead and thirty five survivors, on board the Florizel, five dead. On board the Stephano, one dead and two survivors.

Tears stood on the cheeks of men who had often trod the frozen pans and knew well the nature of the experience of a night on the ice, particularly during such as blizzard as we had on Tuesday. Woman gave expression to their grief by weeping and could only with great difficulty be consoled at all.

Shortly after the forgoing message was read it was reported that the steamers Bellaventure, Stephano and Florizel were passing Cape St. Francis and would arrive here (St. John’s) about midnight. Hundreds wended their way to the waterfront, regardless of the weather conditions and for several hours patiently waited for the coming of the ships.”