Extreme values in the dock.

Heffernan, Janet and Tawn, Jonathan (2004) Extreme values in the dock. Significance, 1 (1). pp. 13-17. ISSN 1740-9705

Abstract

On 9th September 1980 the bulk carrier M. V. Derbyshire sank in the Pacific Ocean, around 350 miles south-east of Japan, when she was caught in Typhoon Orchid while transporting iron ore from Canada to Japan. All 44 people on board died. Janet Heffernan and Jonathan Tawn describe their involvement as statistical expert witnesses in the Investigation of the sinking and their experience of giving evidence in court, outlining their statistical analysis which provided new insight into the circumstances surrounding the loss of the ship.