''St. Philibert'' was a small cruise ship sailing in the summer from the mouth of the

Loire River The Loire (, also ; ; oc, Léger, ; la, Liger) is the longest river in France and the 171st longest in the world. With a length of , it drains , more than a fifth of France's land, while its average discharge is only half that of the Rhôn ...

and near the coast of France. On 14 June 1931, nearly 500 people, mostly workers and their families from

Nantes Nantes (, , ; Gallo: or ; ) is a city in Loire-Atlantique on the Loire, from the Atlantic coast. The city is the sixth largest in France, with a population of 314,138 in Nantes proper and a metropolitan area of nearly 1 million inhabita ...

, embarked in the port of Nantes. 467 passengers were checked in. There were also children accompanying their parents who were not counted. Seven men from the crew, supervised by Captain Ollive, were responsible for ensuring smooth passage for the ship. The outbound trip was normal and ''St. Philibert'' docked at the L'Herbaudière on the

Île de Noirmoutier Noirmoutier (also French language, French: Île de Noirmoutier, ; br, Nervouster, ) is a tidal island off the Atlantic Ocean, Atlantic coast of France in the Vendée Departments of France, department (85). History Noirmoutier was the locatio ...

. On the return trip, the weather deteriorated later in the afternoon and ''St. Philibert'' faced raging seas. The storm, of unknown force, made navigation very difficult. The ship was not prepared for bad weather. In addition, it had onboard twice the expected load. Passengers stood at the

starboard Port and starboard are nautical terms for watercraft and aircraft, referring respectively to the left and right sides of the vessel, when aboard and facing the bow (front). Vessels with bilateral symmetry have left and right halves which are ...

, which made the ship heel dangerously and with a wave stronger than the others, the ship capsized and sank almost immediately off Pointe Saint-Gildas, across the Loire from

Saint-Nazaire Saint-Nazaire (; ; Gallo: ''Saint-Nazère/Saint-Nazaer'') is a commune in the Loire-Atlantique department in western France, in traditional Brittany. The town has a major harbour on the right bank of the Loire estuary, near the Atlantic Ocean ...

. This disaster spared the lives of only 8 survivors. A trial took place in 1933 and the victims' families were unsuccessful and the owners were free from any responsibility in the disaster.

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* * * {{1931 shipwrecks Shipwrecks of France Maritime incidents in 1931 1931 in France