Maritime Lawyer

Shipping Disasters: SS Normandie

The SS Normandie was a French ocean liner built in the Art Deco style. When she was launched in 1932, the Normandie was the world’s largest and fasters ship. She retained her title as the most powerful steam turbo-electric propelled passenger ship ever built even after the Queen Mary and Queen Elizabeth took her titles as fastest and largest.

Following the fall of France to Germany in 1940, the Normandie was seized by the United States under the right of angary. The ship was in New York following a successful run from Le Havre, her home port, to New York. While docked, the Queen Mary and Queen Elizabeth also joined her in New York so, for a period, the three largest and fastest ocean liners were all in the same port together.

Once the ship was in the hands of the United States, the United States Navy decided to re-fit the Normandie as a troop ship. She was renamed the USS Lafayette as a reference to the historical American-French alliance. Earlier proposals for her use called for converting the ship to an aircraft carrier. This was deemed too expensive and too difficult and so was scrapped.

The ship was docked at Pier 88 in New York City to be refitted. Unfortunately, a welder’s sparks ignited a pile of hundreds of life jackets that were sitting in the first class dining room. These life jackets were filled with highly flammable material which caused the fire to spread quickly to the woodwork which had not yet been removed from the dining room.

Unfortunately, the effective fire sprinkler system with which the ship had been fitted was disconnected which made it useless. In addition, the American fire hoses did not fit the French pipes causing the fire to be fought purely in an inefficient manner from the outside. As more and more water was dumped on the starboard (right) side of the ship, the boat listed to the side and eventually capsized. When she capsized, she nearly crushed a fire fighting ship but, fortunately, missed.

Following the most expensive salvage operation the world has seen, the ship was sold for scrap after no one wanted to buy her and restore her to her glory days.

If you have been injured in a shipping accident, contact the maritime lawyers of Williams Kherkher at 1-800-220-9341 to discuss your case and to determine your legal options.