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Erin Bensinger
Erin Bensinger

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Big Boat Stuck!

My BlueSky skyline (that's the timeline, but sky-themed) is blowing up today over the news that a big boat is stuck.

Detroit ship freed after being stuck in Detroit River near Windsor

The MV Mark W. Barker ship ran aground Wednesday morning in the Detroit River near the U.S.-Canada border.

usatoday.com

Imagine my surprise when, upon further reading, I learn that...the big boat is stuck very close to my hometown 😳

Working remotely with a global community can make the world feel so big that when something happens close to home, it feels like a one in a million occurrence.

So, here's my question: has a wild viral story ever happened close to your hometown or place of residence? Please share!

Top comments (6)

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nickytonline profile image
Nick Taylor

Austin Powers trying to steer the Evergreen ship out of a tight space

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ben profile image
Ben Halpern

has a wild viral story ever happened close to your hometown or place of residence?

These are a little before my time, but my hometown was part of a few big boat and plane disasters:

Largest explosion in world history (pre-Nuclear)

On the morning of 6 December 1917, the French cargo ship SS Mont-Blanc collided with the Norwegian vessel SS Imo in the waters of Halifax, Nova Scotia, Canada. The Mont-Blanc, laden with high explosives, caught fire and exploded, devastating the Richmond district of Halifax. At least 1,782 people were killed, largely in Halifax and Dartmouth, by the blast, debris, fires, or collapsed buildings, and an estimated 9,000 others were injured. The blast was the largest human-made explosion at the time. It released the equivalent energy of roughly 2.9 kilotons of TNT (12 TJ).

Halifax is the final resting place for Titanic victims (including Jack Dawson, who was a real person)

Fairview Cemetery is a cemetery in Halifax, Nova Scotia, Canada. It is perhaps best known as the final resting place for over one hundred victims of the sinking of the Titanic. Officially known as Fairview Lawn Cemetery, the non-denominational cemetery is run by the Parks Department of the Halifax Regional Municipality.

Horrible plane crash

Swissair Flight 111 (SR111/SWR111) was a scheduled international passenger flight from John F. Kennedy International Airport in New York City, United States, to Cointrin Airport in Geneva, Switzerland. This flight was also a codeshare flight with Delta Air Lines. On 2 September 1998, the McDonnell Douglas MD-11 performing this flight, registration HB-IWF, crashed into the Atlantic Ocean southwest of Halifax Stanfield International Airport at the entrance to St. Margarets Bay, Nova Scotia. The crash site was 8 kilometres from shore, roughly equidistant from the small fishing and tourist communities of Peggy's Cove and Bayswater. All 229 passengers and crew on board the MD-11 were killed, making the crash the deadliest accident in the history of Swissair and the deadliest accident involving McDonnell Douglas MD-11.

Diversion zone for planes during 9/11

Operation Yellow Ribbon was commenced by Canada to handle the diversion of civilian airline flights in response to the September 11 attacks in 2001 in the United States. Canada's goal was to ensure that potentially destructive air traffic be removed from United States airspace as quickly as possible, and away from potential U.S. targets, and instead place these aircraft on the ground in Canada, at military and civilian airports primarily in the Canadian provinces of Nova Scotia, Newfoundland, and British Columbia. Yukon, New Brunswick, Alberta, Manitoba, Ontario, Northwest Territories, and Quebec also took in aircraft so that any malicious or destructive potential threats could be better contained and neutralized. None of the aircraft proved to be a threat, and Canada hosted thousands of passengers who were stranded until U.S. airspace was reopened.

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erinposting profile image
Erin Bensinger

Oh wow, this is a lot of misfortune! I had no idea Halifax had such a dark history 😳

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ben profile image
Ben Halpern

At least we have Elliot Page and the Trailer Park Boys

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nlxdodge profile image
NLxDoDge

In 2003 when I was really young one of the dykes broke and water poured in a lot of houses, I lived on top of the dyke with my family and the water was suddenly gone in the morning.

We had no idea some dyke just broke 😬

Couple links with interesting video's about it:
youtube.com/watch?v=FsPTR_Va3lg
youtube.com/watch?v=QkBdya9JuzM
youtube.com/watch?v=LK6XF6WxZ0c

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rachelfazio profile image
Rachel Fazio

I am struggling to think of any good ones from my hometown!

My hometown has cliffs near it and we have had a number of historic landslides, and once when I was a kid a few houses actually fell down the cliffs fully, it was pretty devastating.

Here is a clip from a recent one a few months ago:

ALSO, not a viral story whatsoever, but one of my favorite facts is that the port in Long Beach near my hometown was the bridge in a ton of car chases in movies. My favorite appearance was the first Charlie's Angels!