Seconds From Disaster - S02E05 - Zeebrugge Ferry Disaster

MS Herald of Free Enterprise was a roll-on roll-off (RORO) car and passenger ferry owned by Townsend Thoresen. She was one of three ships commissioned by the company to operate on the Dover--Calais route across the English Channel. The ferry capsized on the night of 6 March 1987, moments after leaving the Belgian port of Zeebrugge, killing 193 passengers and crew. This was the worst maritime disaster involving a British registered ship in peacetime since the sinking of the Titanic in 1912.

Category:

Entertainment

Tags:

• seconds from disaster
• MS Herald of Free Enterprise

[debface1987]

UNBELIEVABLE! Something as basic as closing the doors can do all that. That guy must have some weight on his conscience

[griffy1988]

what mongs to leave doors open its one of the most obvious roles you have to do regardless if you was rushed or not !! Its like not putting a burger in a bun and saying you felt rushed by the customer utter rubbish

[JonnyTainment]

Wow. Exactly 25 years ago. Interesting how the show made no mention of the recording of Let It Be since the accident.

[Janeybaby1967]

hiya ,just watched the video, and it really upset me , i rember watching this almost 25yrs ago live on the tv with my mum, we were both shocked and deeply saddened by tragic loss of life, today i read about agirl who lost her family and made me think about that fate full night , so so sad , thinking of you all on the anniversary. xxx

[shannon3059]

@wulitzer12 hi i was also on the ship that night lost my best freind having been looking for survivors for years , maybe we can chat sometime let me know on here and will give you my e-mail address if you like to chat sometime

[shannon3059]

im a surviver of this disaster i have to live with the guilt of not being able to save my freind that night and see the faces of the dying , its the 25th anniversary this march the 6th would love to find more survivers if anyone can help could you please leave a message on here thanks

[LONDONCALLING0033]

Hello Debface

You can't blame one person for this accident in the circumstances. Do you think an airplane would take off with a door open cos an air hostess wasn't at her post?

It's a question of poor design and poor management

It also happened at a time when companies were excused for the most ridiculous accidents (Bradford Football and Kings Cross Underground fires for example)

[Terestrasz]

@drgw1982 That's how a lot of disasters are - ever hear of the Gare de Lyons rail acident? That wasn't just the driver or the passengers who caused the accident. (A passenger pulled the emergency brake)

[josssmith]

I was 5 then so a bit young to remember it but I live in Dover and i know my dad, a former policeman based in Dover at the time, had to deal with a lot of bereaved relatives of the dead, he always says his toughest moments in the poilice came in the aftermath of this disaster

[AtheistBrit]

@Theaterfreak I'm sorry your mother had to see that. So sad.

[Theaterfreak]

This was terrible. My mother is from Belgium and she and my father would sail Seebrgge-Felixtoowe to visit each other before they married: they had to sail past the hull of the Herald for months until it was removed. My mother says that she has never experienced such a respecful silence as that that fell over the passengers as they sailed past every time. RIP all who died.

[drgw1982]

Seems like not one person's fault, but a collective. Terrible story.