In 1913, one of the largest storms to ever hit the Great Lakes claimed the lives of over 250 people, while sinking 12 ships.
The storm was so massive, it’s now referred to by climatologists as having been ‘weather bomb’, an extremely rare occurrence. Winds were recorded to have reached speeds of 147 kilometers per hour, waves had grown to the height of 40 feet, and blizzards gusting to the point of a whiteout.
Effects of the storm could be seen along local great lakes beaches, where remnants of the ships washed to shore. Life jackets, ores, all lifeboats were some of the first things to make it back to land. Soon after, the bodies of frozen sailors started washing up on the shores of Goderich and Kincardine.
On this episode of the 519 Podcast, we talk to David Phillips, senior climatologist with environment and climate change Canada, and Colleen Maguire, Volunteer at the Huron County Historic Museum and expert on the great storm of 1913. We examine what happened on the Great Lakes that day and discuss the wreckage that came thereafter.
