Not strictly Southampton but close to many locals hearts as this ship meant so much to so many. Most families in Southampton had a relative who had worked on her. And i have never seen this pictures before The SEAWISE UNIVERSITY (ex QUEEN ELIZABETH) finally arrives at Hong Kong on 15th July 1971. On Sunday 9th January 1972, three fires started simultaneously on board. All these quickly spread, fanned carried by the ample supply of air coming into the ship through the open shell doors. It was an hour before fire fighting tugs arrived at the scene, and after four hours of futile effort the liner was left to burn herself out. By midnight on 9th January the fire had burnt through five decks and the SEAWISE UNIVERSITY had developed a starboard list of 17 degrees, the start of a slow and unstoppable capsize. A Court of Inquiry found that arson was the cause of the fires.
Posted on: Thu, 07 Aug 2014 22:40:58 +0000