An incredible true story of courage in a savage storm
By Michael J. Tougias
Christy Ottaviano Books, an imprint of Little, Brown
257 pages hardcover $18.99
Adapted for young readers (ages 9-14) from an earlier book by award-winning author Michael J. Tougias, Fatal Forecast is a gripping story of catastrophe and survival at sea. Mike is peerless in this genre, and he delivers a gripping moment-by-moment account of seventy-two hours in the lives of eight men.
On the morning of November 21, 1980, two small fishing boats set out from Cape Code for George’s Bank, 100 miles offshore. With a forecast for typical fall weather from the National Weather Service, the young crew aboard the Sea Fever and the Fair Wind had no reason to think this trip to the abundant fishing grounds would be any different from the dozens they’d made earlier in the season.
The fishermen were unaware that a fierce storm was brewing because the only weather buoy in the area was malfunctioning, and that critical data had not been reported by the NWS. Sea Fever and Fair Wind were battered by sixty-foot waves and hurricane-force winds, and crewman Ernie Hazard spent more than fifty terrifying hours in – and outside of – a tiny life raft, careening in the mountainous waves. A masterfully crafted tale of tragedy, the will to live, and an incredibly heroic Coast Guard rescue, Fatal Forecast is one of the greatest survival stories ever told.
Michael J. Tougias is the author of Abandon Ship!, the first book in the True Survival series, which he cowrote with Alison O’Leary, and many other award-winning true rescue stories, including the New York Times bestseller The Finest Hours, A Storm Too Soon, Into the Blizzard, Rescue of the Bounty and Attacked at Sea. A frequent lecturer who also enjoys visiting schools to discuss his books and show slides from the stories, he splits his time between Massachusetts and Florida and invites you to visit him online at michaeltougias.com. ■
