The “Empress of Ireland” was considered to be one of the fastest and safest ships in the Canadian trade. The 168 metre ocean liner always made an impressive site as she steamed her way up the St. Lawrence River.
She sank in 14 minutes, on May 29, 1914, only two years after the Titanic, with a loss of 1015 passengers and crew members. The wreck of the Empress of Ireland sits in over 45 meters of water near the town of Rimouski, Quebec.
It is neither easy to get to nor easy to dive but some have ventured to the wreck. Dan has been diving for 22 years with 6 of those years spent in the commercial diving industry working as Diver- EMT, with Canadian based companies in the Beaufort Sea, Davis Strait, and the Great Lakes.
Dan is now employed as an Electronics-Electrician by trade but his greater love is deep water wreck exploration, video photography, and film making. Through his company SeaView Imaging he has created video from the Red Sea, The Caribbean, and most recently a historic production on the “EMPRESS of IRELAND”.
Mark Oliphant Mark has been involved with the planning and coordination of the dive trips to the North Channel near Manitoulin Island to dive on a 300′ steel ore freighter called ” The North Wind”. Built in 1888 , she saw 6 years of service in the Atlantic Ocean out of Boston.
The North Wind sank after being stranded on Robertson Rock in 1926 and lays in 80′ to 110’+ of water in the North Channel, near Clapperton. It isan impressive dive and remains in excellent shape.
Mark will share some of his experiences on diving The North Wind and show some exciting video footage of the wreck.
