Historic photo from Noronic found by survivor's son. Also, remembering WSBT's Bob Lux.
The S.S. Noronic is a part of maritime history on Lake Ontario. You might not know much about the steamship. No movie, yet. So we have a lesson coming here and an interesting discovery. It was 1949. There was a fire on the wooden ship, and an estimated 118 to 139 people out of 524 passengers and 171 crew members were killed by the fire or suffocation.
The ship set off from Detroit with a stop in Cleveland. It was docked in Toronto that fateful night. In the early morning hours, the fire spread quickly from a linen closet. No cause was determined.
There is a South Bend angle. Two area women, Catherine Peters Couch and Eula Korn, were on the ship and escaped (they were among at least 15 passengers from the South Bend area on board the ship). They were in their 20s, longtime friends, and it was a big adventure to take the cruise.
From 2012:Local survivors recall fatal fire on the S.S. Noronic in 1949
They told their story 10 years ago to The Tribune. It was the first time they had agreed to tell about their frightening escape.
Jim Couch, Catherine’s son, recently gave several updates. Unfortunately, Eula Korn died in December in Fort Myers, Fla. She was 94. His mother is in a local nursing home and is 98.
On to a more uplifting note: Jim said he made a great discovery. A historic one, he thinks. While cleaning his mother’s home, he was drawn to photo albums. There, he found a photo of Eula on the ship in front of the lifeboats. “I have done internet searches and made calls. No one has a photo like this on the deck of the boat.”
He said he sent an email to the Toronto Sun newspaper about the photo. He expected that a one-of-a-kind photo would get a response. Not so far. “I didn’t call. It is so expensive to call Canada.”
Jim said he thinks his mother took the photo on Sept. 16, 1949. The fire was the following day. “I showed the photo to her and she said it was Eula.”
Anyway you look at it, he believes it is quite the photo.
The rest of the story is that Eula and Catherine told The Tribune they returned to their room in the early hours. There was a knock at the door. They were told to leave. "When we looked out a window, we could see the flames," Korn recalled. "We could see it was on fire and it was serious."
They dressed, grabbed their luggage and left. They escaped to the pier and boarded another ship. They were terrified to watch the ship burn.
They returned home by train and worked their way through what happened. Later, Eula moved to California, married and worked in banking. Catherine worked for South Bend Fire, South Bend Police and the St. Joseph County Public Library.
They remained friends but didn’t talk about the ship.
Since he found the photo last summer, Jim tracked Eula to Florida. This was early September. She left California and moved with her niece Susan Gerencer to Fort Myers.
Susan said her aunt was always fun, loved to travel, but she never went on a boat again. “She lived with me for two years. She was doing fine. We were going out to eat and enjoying life” until Hurricane Ian struck the area. Their house was damaged and life was in an uproar. “I think she gave up.”
■■■
Another person who deserves another mention: Bob Lux, 81, died on Nov. 24. He was a television and radio person at WSBT. He was one of those guys who knew everyone in South Bend. He loved Notre Dame, sports and everyone he met.
When Bob had an idea for a story, he would call The Tribune. He would get one person or another. Sometimes me. “Hi, this is Bob.” He didn’t have to say “Lux” because you knew who was calling.
Jon Thompson worked with him at the station. “He had a good heart and never said a bad word. He didn’t scream ads. It was all conversational, which the sponsors appreciated. He was one of the best.”
Live reports with Bob Lux:Hiker recounts 3,506 miles on foot and his weekly call in to WSBT radio show
Another WSBT alum is Bob Nagle, who said Bob Lux was a mentor to him. “Anyone who can stay in a booth for four hours per day, I admire them.”
Joe Lightner formerly worked at WSBT also. He got the job when he was 19.
“Bob Lux also did sports on WSBT-TV as well as radio. His weekly radio air shift was afternoons. When Bob would come in to do sports on the weekend, he frequently brought his son, Bobby, with him,” Joe said.
Father Lux would do the evening sports and the young Lux would sit with Joe while he was spinning the records. Bob Jr. was probably 6-ish at the time. “He was a delightful kid and a joy to be around.” Like father, like son.
“Bob Lux was always a true friend of mine, throughout the many years. His wide smile and outgoing manner never diminished. I've lost a dear friend whose memory I'll cherish forever,” Joe said.
Contact Kathy at kfborlik@yahoo.com.
This article originally appeared on South Bend Tribune: Photo from Noronic ship found and WSBT's Bob Lux remembered
