He remained on deck as his ship went down...
He was a very good seaman and pilot – except when he wasn’t. And on the occasion when the captain of the ill-fated Courier took his eyes off the ball and fixed them upon Herm, the price was not just a fine vessel but 10 lives and his own reputation...
Capaian Edward Smith had an excuse when Titanic hit an iceberg. He was off watch and resting in his cabin.
Sadly, six years earlier, Captain Nicholas Whales, could not offer a similar reason when Guernsey suffered the worst maritime disaster in its own waters.
This time there was no iceberg – you wouldn’t expect it in the Little Russel – but nevertheless there were and remain dangerous rocks lying off the east of Jethou and the experienced old captain, at the helm of the vessel Courier, failed to see them.
But why?
The answer was simple enough. In broad daylight, he had his back to them when taking a peek at nearby Herm.
It was a fateful mistake for a man, aged 72, who had decades of experience and knowledge of Channel Island waters, and his penury was to live the rest of his life with the knowledge that his error not only cost the temporary loss of a famous local ship but, tragically, 10 lives – those of seven passengers and three crew, all of whom were drowned.
It’s an incredible story.
