A memorial for Titanic victims on 100th anniversary
Reuters
2012-04-15
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A solemn memorial was held just after midnight on Sunday (April 15) for the victims of the Titanic tragedy that took place 100 years ago.
A band played music on the deck of cruise ship Azamara Journey.
Wrapped up in blankets to protect themselves against the cold North Atlantic air, relatives of the victims listened to Reverend Robert Lawrence say a brief prayer before two wreaths were tossed overboard to honor the more than 1500 people who died when the Titanic struck an iceberg.
"We're here tonight at the graves of 1,503 victims on the Titanic. And once again we ask the question why? Why?" Reverend Lawrence said in his homily.
The Titanic was considered unsinkable but foundered in frigid Atlantic waters off Newfoundland on April 15, 1912.
Of the 2,223 passengers, only about 700 were rescued. There were too few lifeboats to save the rest.
Third class suffered the greatest loss - of approximately 710 on board, only some 174 survived. Seventy-six percent of the crew died.
One of those who perished in the icy Atlantic waters was Herbert Fuller Chaffee. On Sunday, Chaffee's great granddaughter Sharon Willing was on hand to honor her fallen relative.
.
"It's almost as though while I was here he was alive for me and I can now let him go," Willing said.
The Azamara Journey, which arrived from North America, and the Balmoral from England, converged on the Titanic site late on Saturday (April 14) to mark the anniversary.
A solemn memorial was held just after midnight on Sunday (April 15) for the victims of the Titanic tragedy that took place 100 years ago.
A band played music on the deck of cruise ship Azamara Journey.
Wrapped up in blankets to protect themselves against the cold North Atlantic air, relatives of the victims listened to Reverend Robert Lawrence say a brief prayer before two wreaths were tossed overboard to honor the more than 1500 people who died when the Titanic struck an iceberg.
"We're here tonight at the graves of 1,503 victims on the Titanic. And once again we ask the question why? Why?" Reverend Lawrence said in his homily.
The Titanic was considered unsinkable but foundered in frigid Atlantic waters off Newfoundland on April 15, 1912.
Of the 2,223 passengers, only about 700 were rescued. There were too few lifeboats to save the rest.
Third class suffered the greatest loss - of approximately 710 on board, only some 174 survived. Seventy-six percent of the crew died.
One of those who perished in the icy Atlantic waters was Herbert Fuller Chaffee. On Sunday, Chaffee's great granddaughter Sharon Willing was on hand to honor her fallen relative.
.
"It's almost as though while I was here he was alive for me and I can now let him go," Willing said.
The Azamara Journey, which arrived from North America, and the Balmoral from England, converged on the Titanic site late on Saturday (April 14) to mark the anniversary.
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