Erik Gustaf Collander
Erik Gustaf Collander was a passenger on Titanic.
Early life[]
Erik Gustaf Collander was a native of Mikkeli in Finland, born in 1884 on the 19th of April. His father Paul Collander was a doctor and lived in Helsinki. His mother was Augusta Erika Montin, they were both of Finnish origin and married in 1880.
Erik had one elder sister: Estrid Hanna who came into this world in 1881. There was a brother born before him as well in 1882, named Erik Karl Robert, but he died a year later. Two younger brothers and a sister were born after him: Einar in 1885, Ruth Angelika in 1888 and Paul runar in 1894.
Grown up, Erik was technical leader at AB Stockfors träsliperi, a large company with its own paper mill. When he wanted to go on a business trip, combined with pleasure activities however, he quit his employment on 1 April 1912. His Finnish address was noted in the White Star Line list as "Finska AA Helsingfors", which simply means Finska Ångfartygs AB, the shipping company where he booked his passage and got his tickets to go from Finland to England. It is pretty certain he lived in Helsinki.
Erik traveled from Helsinki to Ashtabula in Ohio. He had planned a surprise visit to his cousin Dr. Paul J. Collander who lived in the city.
Titanic[]
Erik was 27 years old when he was in Southampton on April 10, embarking on the grand luxury liner. He was a passenger in Second Class.
On April 14, late at night, Titanic scraped her hull against an iceberg that was spotted way too late to be evade. Her starboard side sustained damage underneath the water line. Seawater poured in with tons at a swift rate.
On April 15, shortly after midnight, the damage was examined by the captain and he realised that the ship was going to sink. He gave an order to start evacuating the passengers. What Erik exactly did during those fatal hours is not known, but he died after Titanic sank on 2:20 A.M. His body was not recovered or at least not identified.
After his death[]
His parents were not considered to be in need of financial assistance and received nothing from the charity fund. It’s unknown if they were compensated for the damages.