Maritime Lawyers

Shipping Disasters: The Andrea Doria

The Andrea Doria was an ocean liner for Società di Navigazione Italia with a homeport of Genoa, Italy. The ship was named for a 16th-century Genoese admiral Andrea Doria. The ship was an icon of Italian national pride following the defeat of the country and collapse of its economy after World War II. The ship was the largest, fastest, and supposedly safest of the Italian fleet.

Unfortunately, on July 25, 1956, the Andrea Doria collided with the eastward-bound MS Stockholm of the Swedish American line off the coast of Nantucket on its way into New York City. What ensued became one of the most famous maritime disasters.

The Andrea Doria was struck on her starboard (right) side and started listing severely to starboard almost immediately. Because the boat listed so severely and so quickly, the crew was unable to use roughly half of the lifeboats. While this could have resulted in a loss of human life similar to that of the Titanic in 1912, advances in communication and the rapid response of other ships in the area prevented such a thing. 1,660 crew members and passengers survived the collision. The 46 people that died had injuries that were caused by the collision, not the sinking of the ship.

Following the evacuation of the crew and passengers, the ship continued to list to starboard overnight and into the next morning. On the morning of July 26, the Andrea Doria capsized and then sank.

For years, it was believed that the collision was the fault of people onboard the Andrea Doria. Later reports, however, revealed that a mistake in reading radar on behalf of the MS Stockholm put the ships on a collision course.

The Andrea Doria was the last major transatlantic passenger liner to sink before aircraft became the preferred method of getting to Europe. If you have been injured at sea, contact the maritime injury lawyers of Williams Kherkher at 1-800-220-9341 to discuss your case and to determine your legal options.