A ship runs into difficulty on the ocean. If it becomes waterlogged and leaky in heavy seas, often the vessel has to be abandoned. The captain and his crew anxiously scan the horizon for passing ships. If one is sighted, they run the flag of distress, hoping to be taken off in time. Quite often on schooners that flag was the Red Ensign or Union Jack flown upside down. If the lights of a steamer are seen at night, the crew lights a signal fire, often in a bucket hoisted to the top mast.
Not every sailor found a sure and physical retreat, a rescue ship, but those that did often returned to sail again and to tell the story of how they abandoned ship on a godforsaken sea. During the course of research on ships abandoned in the Atlantic, I located several sea epics of bravery and endurance which eventually became part of Heroes of the Sea: Stories from the Atlantic Blue.
The following five stories are of ships in difficulty at sea and the tales of those who risked life and limb to rescue all or some of the crew on sinking vessels.