National Seashore to Host Duo of ‘The Finest Hours’ Events

The movie poster for the Disney film Finest Hours which is scheduled for a January 29, 2016 release.

EASTHAM – The famous 1952 Coast Guard rescue off the coast of Chatham will be the focus of a duo of events next week at the Cape Cod National Seashore’s Salt Pond Visitor Center in Eastham.

On Monday, the national seashore will screen the 2016 Disney feature film “The Finest Hours,” starring Chris Pine and Casey Affleck.

The following night, author Michael Tougias will discuss the wrecks of two oil tankers and the daring rescue.

Tougias co-authored the book the film was based on, “The Finest Hours: The True Story of the U.S. Coast Guard’s Most Daring Sea Rescue.”

During a nor’easter the tankers Pendleton and Fort Mercer both split in half off the coast of the Cape. Of the 84 crew members who were on the two ships, 70 were rescued by four heroic Coast Guardsmen.

Tougias will use slides of the storm, the sinking tankers, the victims, the survivors and heroes to tell the story of the rescuers who overcame insurmountable odds, 70-foot waves, blinding snow and the dangerous shoal, the Chatham Bar.

The events are free, but tickets are required and space is limited. To secure tickets call the Salt Pond Visitor Center at 508-255-3421 extension 0.

Both events start at 7 p.m. and are sponsored by the Friends of the Cape Cod National Seashore.