014 SS El Faro A Tribute to the Unsung Heroes

Annmarie's Breaking Ground Podcast Show

On October 1st 2015 Hurricane Joaquin took down the SS El Faro cargo ship along with the lives of 33 people. This tragic event ranks as one of the worst Maritime disasters in the United States history.

Sophia Meyer, a 16-year-old Thornton Academy student from Maine became interested in the El Faro after reading an article about a year ago. She wanted to learn more and decided to research the El Faro for the 2019 History Day Contest. In her research she found out there was an additional ship the SS Matsonia. Liz Gotthelf wrote an article posted by the Journal Tribune on February 18th 2019 highlighting Sophia’s research. I was impressed by this 16 year Old’s desire to learn about the Maritime industry and I wanted to get an interview with her. Only days after Liz Gotthelf’s article was posted about Sophia’s research, the Matsonia was discovered to have a crack in it’s hull. On February 28th, 2019 I was lucky enough to get Sophia on the phone and had the following interview.