Shipwrecks and Sea Dogs

By Rich NapolitanoSociety & Culture Documentary News History

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Shipwrecks and Sea Dogs episodes

October 27 A North Sea Tragedy: The Alexander Kielland
On 27 March, 1980, the semi-submersible Norwegian oil platform Alexander L. Kielland collapsed and capsized during a terrible storm in the North Sea. The platform was being used as a floating hotel, or "flotel" for workers at the Ekofisk oil field. A massive search and rescue operation was launched, including surface vessels and aircraft from Norway, West Germany, the Netherlands, and the United Kingdom. 123 of the 212 people on the platform perished, making it the worst industrial disaster in Norwegian history. The disaster prompted a number of changes to the safety regulations and emergency response procedures governing oil drilling platforms in the North Sea.

Written, edited, and produced by Rich Napolitano. All episodes, show notes, and transcripts can be found at ⁠shipwrecksandseadogs.com⁠.

Original theme music is by Sean Sigfried and you can find him at ⁠seansigfried.com⁠.

** No AI was used to create this episode.

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35 min
October 23This Week in Shipwrecks #10
This edition of This Week in Shipwrecks includes archaeologists changing direction about the Nantucket shipwreck, the search for Amelia Earhart’s plane, continuing trouble in the Strait of Hormuz, and SUNY Maritime’s training ship, Empire State VII, and more.

Sources for this episode:
Egan Maritime Institute

Purdue University

Reuters

Antara News

gCaptain
Written, edited, and produced by Rich Napolitano. All episodes, images, and sources can be found at ⁠shipwrecksandseadogs.com⁠.
Original theme music by Sean Sigfried. ⁠⁠⁠https://www.seansigfried.com⁠
🎧 Listen to Shipwrecks and Sea Dogs, a weekly maritime history podcast hosted by Rich Napolitano, wherever you get your podcasts.
**🎧 LISTEN AD-FREE + BONUS EPISODES**
👉Get exclusive bonus episodes and merch on Patreon: ⁠⁠⁠https://www.shipwrecksandseadogs.com/patreon⁠⁠⁠
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👉Shipwrecks and Sea Dogs is part of the Into History podcast channel. Subscribe here: ⁠⁠⁠https://www.intohistory.com/shipwreckspod⁠⁠⁠
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14 min
October 20 Disaster in the Baltic: The Jan Heweliusz
On 14 January 1993, the Polish ferry MV Jan Heweliusz capsized in a hurricane-force Baltic storm off Cape Arkona, Germany. Fifty-five people died and only nine crew members survived. It remains Poland’s deadliest peacetime maritime disaster.
This episode of Shipwrecks and Sea Dogs traces the full story of the ill-fated roll-on/roll-off ferry. Built in Norway in 1977, she was plagued by accidents, stability problems and a questionable repair after a 1986 fire. Days before her final voyage, the stern gate was damaged at Ystad, and the owners ordered only a temporary fix.
Hear what happened as Storm Verena struck during the overnight crossing from Świnoujście, Poland, to Ystad, Sweden, and how a rescue in the dark came too late for most of those on board. Then follow the aftermath: conflicting investigations, maritime chamber rulings, and a 2005 judgment from the European Court of Human Rights in Brudnicka and Others v. Poland, which found that Poland’s maritime tribunals lacked independence.

** No AI was used to create this episode.

Written, edited, and produced by Rich Napolitano. All episodes, images, and sources can be found at shipwrecksandseadogs.com.

Original theme music by Sean Sigfried and you can find him at seansigfried.com.

**🎧 LISTEN AD-FREE + BONUS EPISODES**

👉Get exclusive bonus episodes and merch on Patreon: ⁠⁠https://www.shipwrecksandseadogs.com/patreon⁠⁠

👉Subscribe on Apple Podcasts: ⁠⁠https://www.shipwrecksandseadogs.com/apple⁠⁠

👉Shipwrecks and Sea Dogs is part of the Into History podcast channel. Subscribe here: ⁠⁠https://www.intohistory.com/shipwreckspod⁠⁠

👉Shipwrecks and Sea Dogs Merchandise is available!
⁠⁠https://shop.shipwrecksandseadogs.com⁠⁠

👉You can support the podcast with a donation of any amount at:
⁠⁠https://www.buymeacoffee.com/shipwreckspod⁠⁠

Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices
25 min
October 16This Week in Shipwrecks #9
This week in Shipwrecks features the possible discovery of the oldest known shipwreck, a ring depciting the Lighthouse of Alexandria, a deadly shipwreck of migrants off the coast of Djibouti, commercial shipping turmoil in the Black Sea and the Strait of Hormuz, images of the steam-yacht Ituna, and a 2300 yeard old shipwreck found at Vis in Croatia.

Sources for this episode:
ABC News, October 14, 2026

Anadolu Agency, October 14, 2026

Archaeology Magazine, October 8, 2026

We Are the Frontier, October 15, 2026

International Organization for Migration, October 11, 2026

Financial Times, October 15, 2026

Associated Press, October 14, 2026

Maritime and Port Authority of Singapore, October 14, 2026

The Times of India, October 2026

Divernet, October 8, 2026

Nantucket Current

Egan Maritime Institute, October 8, 2026
Written, edited, and produced by Rich Napolitano. All episodes, images, and sources can be found at shipwrecksandseadogs.com.
Original theme music by Sean Sigfried. ⁠⁠https://www.seansigfried.com
🎧 Listen to Shipwrecks and Sea Dogs, a weekly maritime history podcast hosted by Rich Napolitano, wherever you get your podcasts.
🔗https://www.podfollow.com/shipwreckspod
**🎧 LISTEN AD-FREE + BONUS EPISODES**
👉Get exclusive bonus episodes and merch on Patreon: ⁠⁠https://www.shipwrecksandseadogs.com/patreon⁠⁠
👉Subscribe on Apple Podcasts: ⁠⁠https://www.shipwrecksandseadogs.com/apple⁠⁠
👉Shipwrecks and Sea Dogs is part of the Into History podcast channel. Subscribe here: ⁠⁠https://www.intohistory.com/shipwreckspod⁠⁠
👉Shipwrecks and Sea Dogs Merchandise is available!
⁠⁠https://shop.shipwrecksandseadogs.com⁠⁠
👉You can support the podcast with a donation of any amount at:
⁠⁠https://www.buymeacoffee.com/shipwreckspod⁠⁠

Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices
13 min
October 13 Charles Lightoller: Titanic’s Highest-Ranking Survivor w/Dustin Hyland
Charles Lightoller was the most senior officer to survive the sinking of the Titanic, and his story did not end in the North Atlantic. In this episode, we follow Titanic’s Second Officer from the bridge on the night of April 14, 1912, to the beaches of Dunkirk nearly three decades later.
Rich Napolitano speaks with author and historian Dustin D. Hyland about his book, "Unsinkable Lights: Charles H. Lightoller’s Epic Tale of Hope and Survival". Available now at https://www.penandswordbooks.com/ or dustinhyland.com
Lightoller survived the sinking by climbing onto an overturned collapsible lifeboat and helping keep dozens of people alive until rescue arrived. He then testified at the inquiries that followed, defending his actions and the crew’s conduct. Few expected him to return to the sea, but he did, serving in the Royal Navy during World War I and earning decorations for his command of warships in combat.
In 1940, at age 66, he took his private yacht Sundowner across the Channel to help evacuate Allied troops from Dunkirk, bringing back more than 120 soldiers on a boat built for far fewer.
In this episode:
⚓The Titanic’s final hours from the officer’s point of view
⚓Survival on the overturned lifeboat
⚓Lightoller’s wartime service and his Dunkirk crossing
⚓His legacy as one of history’s most remarkable seafarers
* No compensation or remuneration was received by or paid by Rich Napolitano, Shipwrecks and Sea Dogs, or Nautilus Media, LLC in exchange for Mr. Hyland's participating in this podcast.
** No AI was used to create this video.
Written, edited, and produced by Rich Napolitano. All episodes, images, and sources can be found at shipwrecksandseadogs.com.
Original theme music by Sean Sigfried.
⁠⁠https://www.seansigfried.com
🎧 Listen to Shipwrecks and Sea Dogs, a weekly maritime history podcast hosted by Rich Napolitano, wherever you get your podcasts.
🔗https://www.podfollow.com/shipwreckspod
**🎧 LISTEN AD-FREE + BONUS EPISODES**
👉Get exclusive bonus episodes and merch on Patreon: ⁠⁠https://www.shipwrecksandseadogs.com/patreon⁠⁠
👉Subscribe on Apple Podcasts: ⁠⁠https://www.shipwrecksandseadogs.com/apple⁠⁠
👉Shipwrecks and Sea Dogs is part of the Into History podcast channel. Subscribe here: ⁠⁠https://www.intohistory.com/shipwreckspod⁠⁠
👉Shipwrecks and Sea Dogs Merchandise is available!
⁠⁠https://shop.shipwrecksandseadogs.com⁠⁠
👉You can support the podcast with a donation of any amount at:
⁠⁠https://www.buymeacoffee.com/shipwreckspod⁠⁠

Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices
1 hr 15 min
October 09This Week in Shipwrecks #8
This week's roundup spans a war reaching the Black Sea, a fishing vessel run aground beneath a Scottish sea stack, and a 2,100-year-old shipwreck that gave up its cargo almost untouched. Host Rich Napolitano covers seven stories in sourced, fact-checked detail, from active maritime disasters to historic wrecks and the ongoing fight to save a Falklands-era frigate from the scrapyard.
Stories in this episode:
Drone Strikes Sink Two Ships in the Black Sea — Russian drone attacks sink the cargo ships Alfa Watan and Royad Mammadov, killing two and leaving a crew unaccounted for.

Virgo Transport 8 Salvage Operation Confirmed — Indonesia's ferry operator agrees to raise the capsized vessel this month, with 55 people still believed inside.

Fishing Vessel Runs Aground at Old Man of Hoy, Orkney — Seventeen crew are winched to safety after the longliner Genesis strikes rocks off Scotland.

Fishing Boat Capsizes Off Jeju, South Korea — Nine crew are rescued and two remain missing after a coastal longliner capsizes in rough water.

Campaign to Save HMS Ambuscade Continues in Karachi — A preservation group appeals directly to Pakistan's prime minister as the deadline to remove the former Royal Navy frigate passes.

2,100-Year-Old Shipwreck Yields Intact Luxury Tableware — Archaeologists recover more than 6,500 ceramic pieces from a Roman-era wreck off Turkey's Antalya coast.

Twelve Divers Rescued in Separate Incidents Off Japan and Indonesia — Strong currents sweep two dive groups off course, prompting search and rescue operations on both sides of the Pacific.
Written, edited, and produced by Rich Napolitano. All episodes, show notes, and transcripts can be found at ⁠shipwrecksandseadogs.com⁠.

Original theme music is by Sean Sigfried, and you can find him at ⁠seansigfried.com⁠.

🚫No AI was used during the production of this episode.

**🎧 LISTEN AD-FREE + BONUS EPISODES + MERCH**

👉Subscribe on Patreon: ⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠https://www.shipwrecksandseadogs.com/patreon⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠

👉Subscribe on Apple Podcasts: ⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠https://www.shipwrecksandseadogs.com/apple⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠
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👉You can support the podcast with a donation of any amount at: ⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠https://www.buymeacoffee.com/shipwreckspod⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠

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11 min
October 06 HMAS Sydney: Australia's Worst Naval Disaster
On November 19, 1941, the Australian light cruiser HMAS Sydney met a suspicious merchant ship off the coast of Western Australia. The ship claimed to be a harmless Dutch freighter. It was actually the German raider HSK Kormoran, and within hours, Sydney was gone. All 645 crew members were lost, making it the worst naval disaster in Australian history.
This episodes describes the entire service history of HMAS Sydney (D-48) the questions that haunted Australia for decades. Why did Captain Joseph Burnett bring his cruiser so close to an unidentified ship? How did Kormoran's disguise fool a warship built to fight? And why did a battle with so many German survivors leave no Australian ones?
Host Rich Napolitano follows the story from the fatal encounter and the survivors' accounts to the conspiracy theories, the long search, and the 2008 discovery of both wrecks on the ocean floor, more than 2,000 meters down. Two official inquiries have answered many questions, but the controversies surrounding HMAS Sydney persist.

Written, edited, and produced by Rich Napolitano. All episodes, show notes, and transcripts can be found at shipwrecksandseadogs.com.

Original theme music is by Sean Sigfried, and you can find him at seansigfried.com.

🚫No AI was used during the production of this episode.

**🎧 LISTEN AD-FREE + BONUS EPISODES + MERCH**

👉Subscribe on Patreon: ⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠https://www.shipwrecksandseadogs.com/patreon⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠

👉Subscribe on Apple Podcasts: ⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠https://www.shipwrecksandseadogs.com/apple⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠
👉Subscribe on Spotify: ⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠https://www.shipwrecksandseadogs.com/spotify⁠⁠⁠⁠

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👉You can support the podcast with a donation of any amount at: ⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠https://www.buymeacoffee.com/shipwreckspod⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠

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48 min
October 02This Week in Shipwrecks #7
This Week in Shipwrecks is the weekly maritime news series of Shipwrecks and Sea Dogs.
News from September 25 through October 1, 2026
Masts removed from the "bomb" ship Richard Montgomery in the Thames Estuary.

The death toll from the Virgo Transport 8 ferry disaster rises to 78

Shipwreck remains wash up on Nantucket shore after strong nor'easter.

The Batavia replica ship set for preservation efforts at Museum Batavialand.

17th century German shipwreck found during pipeline project

Criminal charges for those responsible for migrant deaths in English Channel.

More migrants die in a shipwreck in the Gulf of Gabes off Tunisia.

70 year old Canadian man saved by Australian Navy from a sinking catamaran
Written, edited, and produced by Rich Napolitano. All episodes, show notes and transcripts can be found at ⁠shipwrecksandseadogs.com⁠

Original theme music is by Sean Sigfried, and you can find him at ⁠seansigfried.com⁠.

🚫No AI was used during the production of this episode.

**🎧 LISTEN AD-FREE + BONUS EPISODES + MERCH**

👉Subscribe on Patreon: ⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠https://www.shipwrecksandseadogs.com/patreon⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠

👉Subscribe on Apple Podcasts: ⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠https://www.shipwrecksandseadogs.com/apple⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠
👉Subscribe on Spotify: ⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠https://www.shipwrecksandseadogs.com/spotify⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠

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13 min
September 29El Faro: The Clock is Ticking (Replay)
In October 2015, the cargo ship El Faro sank in Hurricane Joaquin with 33 people aboard. Hear Captain Michael Davidson's emergency calls and the bridge transcripts from the ship's Voyage Data Recorder.
This episode reconstructs the final hours of the voyage from primary sources.
You'll hear the recorded emergency phone calls from Captain Michael Davidson as the ship took on water and lost propulsion. We also go through transcripts from the Voyage Data Recorder, the "black box" recovered from the ocean floor during the NTSB investigation. The bridge conversations show how decisions were made and how quickly conditions deteriorated.
Content note: this episode includes real emergency audio and may be distressing to some listeners.

This is a replay of Episode 38, originally released in January of 2024.

El Faro, El Faro sinking, Captain Michael Davidson, Hurricane Joaquin, Voyage Data Recorder, NTSB investigation, shipwreck podcast, maritime disaster, true story
Written, edited, and produced by Rich Napolitano. All episodes can be found at ⁠⁠https://www.shipwrecksandseadogs.com⁠⁠.

Original theme music by ⁠⁠Sean Sigfried⁠⁠.

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1 hr 7 min
September 25This Week in Shipwrecks #6
This Week in Shipwrecks: September 18–24, 2026
From a sabotage plot hidden in a 160-year-old cargo of Guinness to the long-overdue removal of the masts on Britain's most dangerous wreck, and a modern maritime disaster still unfolding in Indonesia, this week's episode spans two thousand years of shipping history and picks up right where last week left off.
Stories in this episode:
The Mindoro, English Channel — New evidence points to a sabotage plot behind the 1864 wreck that gave up bottles of vintage Guinness this summer.

Iron Age Arms Cache, Austria — A hoard of prehistoric iron bars pulled from the Danube turns out to be one of Europe's largest.
F/V Mistress, Rhode Island — A fishing boat missing since 2019 is finally located near the Block Island Wind Farm.
Collision in the Singapore Strait — Viral footage captures a bulk carrier striking a Chinese fishing vessel in one of the world's busiest shipping lanes.
The Virgo Transport 8, Indonesia — An update on the ferry disaster, as the search enters its twelfth day with dozens still missing.
Fishing Boat off Sattahip, Thailand — A storm sinks a fishing vessel in the Gulf of Thailand, with crew still unaccounted for.
The SS Richard Montgomery, Thames Estuary — After 80 years, work begins removing the masts of Britain's WWII "bomb ship."
Written, edited, and produced by Rich Napolitano. All episodes, show notes and transcripts can be found at shipwrecksandseadogs.com

Original theme music is by Sean Sigfried, and you can find him at seansigfried.com.

🚫No AI was used during the production of this episode.

**🎧 LISTEN AD-FREE + BONUS EPISODES + MERCH**

👉Subscribe on Patreon: ⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠https://www.shipwrecksandseadogs.com/patreon⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠

👉Subscribe on Apple Podcasts: ⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠https://www.shipwrecksandseadogs.com/apple⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠
👉Subscribe on Spotify: ⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠https://www.shipwrecksandseadogs.com/spotify⁠⁠⁠⁠

👉Shipwrecks and Sea Dogs Merchandise is available! ⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠https://shop.shipwrecksandseadogs.com⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠

👉You can support the podcast with a donation of any amount at: ⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠https://www.buymeacoffee.com/shipwreckspod⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠

Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices
12 min

About Shipwrecks and Sea Dogs

From the publisher's feed

A maritime history podcast about shipwrecks, maritime disasters, and seafaring legends. Hear tragic shipwreck stories as well as heroic tales of triumph. Host Rich Napolitano explores maritime…