The Christena Disaster in Retrospect.

About this Item

This is the first of my four books about the Christena tragedy of 1970, when the ferry between St. Kitts and Nevis suddenly sank during the afternoon of August 1, killing almost 250 passengers mainly from St. Kitts-Nevis. I was living on Nevis then, and I can still see some of the horror and desperation of that afternoon, and for a long time after.

I still remember that evening as the night when Nevisians at home and elsewhere around the world cried, and cried, and cried. There were also many dead bodies, people looking on in fear, and phone calls to family and friends, beyond Nevis, on the very few landline phones available. Even our stern, unbending Premier, Robert Bradshaw, was devastated by the tragedy. That evening he cried with, and for Nevisians. In my case, what I experienced that evening, and up until I left Nevis in 1971 to attend college in the USA, became an important marker in my life. While at college in the USA, I kept seeing pictures of pain, and remembering the Christena tragedy. It was difficult for me to forget that terrible day on Nevis.

So, when I opted to write my first book, it had to be about the Christena disaster. It is a sad part of our island’s history, but I want to ensure that it is remembered forever. The research was challenging but enlightening. There were stories of premonitions of disaster. Terrible stories of loss and amazing stories of survival. One mother had three children washed from her hands, into the sea, but she survived the sinking ferry. While many people rushed to join the ferry to Nevis, others walked back off because it was overcrowded. The ferry was registered to carry 155 passengers but, on that afternoon, there were more than twice that number on board. Many of them could not swim. Clifford Browne, Laughton Sargeant, Franklyn Browne, Arrington Browne, Luella Budgeon and Dulcita David were among those who survived, lived beyond, and managed to talk about that harrowing experience they endured that afternoon of August 1, 1970.