Community Chat

[Kachina624]

Th8s weekend was the anniversary of the collision of the Andrea Doria and the Stockholm.  It's memorable for me because it's the first actual disaster I can remember being broadcast live on TV.  It was the interviews with survivors as they arrived in NYC that they broadcast live.  I remember being glued to the TV for hours, even though I was just a kid.  There were a couple of movie stars among those interviewed.

[FancyPhillyshopper]

Sorry, Kachina, I was not even born yet when this happened!!

[shoekitty]

@Kachina624  I sort of remember I was about 8.  In those days disasters, mass murders and such didn't occur like they do today. Something like this was huge!!!! I can still remember mom talking to friend on phone about it

[Twoaces]

Yes, I do remember!  I believe there were news updates as the ship was sinking slowly, and it was terrifying to me to think about the circumstances of those on board. That event is one of those childhood memories that remains beneath the surface until something, or someone, brings it back.

[jlkz]

@Kachina624 

Yes, I remember watching it on our first black and white TV.  Never wanted to go on a boat / ship since !!!

[beckyb1012]

I knew of the event but years before my birth.

[faeriemoon]

Before I was born, but when it comes up I am always reminded of the Seinfeld episode.

[Still Raining]

I was a kid but do not recall at all.

[DREAMON]

Not born yet but do know the story

[MissRose722]

@Kachina624

Thank you so much for posting this. The Andrea Doria affected my mother's family in a very tragic way. Two of the 51 lives lost were my mother's cousin's wife and their son. The collision happened shortly after 11:00 PM near Nantucket, MA; the Andrea Doria was scheduled to arrive in New York Harbor early the next morning. My mother's cousin decided to go on the upper deck to have a cigarette, just before the collision; because he was on the upper deck, he survived. Sadly, his wife and son were in their cabin in the lower section, close to where the collision occurred; they did not survive. Upon the news of the collision, my uncle (my mom's older brother) raced down to New York Harbor wearing a jacket over his pajamas. I was told that the cousin received a substantial amount of money from the Insurer of the Andrea Doria due to the loss of his wife and son, but no amount can replace their lives. There is a website about the Andrea Doria chronicling the history of this great ocean liner. The website lists the survivors along with the deceased; two of the deceased are the names Lucia DeGrandi, age 23 and Giuseppe DeGrandi Jr., just 1-1/2 years old. This beautiful family was traveling from their native Sicily to start a new life in the United States. May God rest Lucia's and little Giuseppe's souls, along with the other lives lost on the Andrea Doria and the Stockholm.