The Real-Life Tragedy In The Chicago Med Season 10 Premiere, Explained

Contains spoilers for "Chicago Med" Season 10, Episode 1 — "Sink or Swim"

A crisis hits Chicago Gaffney Medical Center during the opening minutes of "Sink or Swim." No, it's not the announcement that returning veteran character Sharon Goodwin (S. Epatha Merkerson) makes, explaining that nearby Jackson-Monroe Hospital will be closing and the hospital will be taking on part of their caseload. It's a mass casualty event involving a commuter ship being broadsided by another boat. It capsizes feet from the dock, catching fire and overturning onto its side, and flooding with water.

The disaster is a mixed blessing; while the boat is close to the dock when it occurs, potentially making rescue efforts easier, the fire and capsizing make rescue difficult for one and all. Per dialogue, Gaffney takes on 80 or so victims, and 29 deaths are confirmed by news chyrons, with 49 in critical condition.  

"Sink or Swim" itself references the real-life Chicago-centered maritime tragedy this storyline is most reminiscent of — the Eastland Disaster. But the scope of the Eastland's capsizing close to the dock in the Chicago River on July 24, 1915 was enormous, a tragedy of unfathomable proportions. Hundreds died when a boat already known for listing to one side finally went completely portside, leaving behind an unforgettable tragedy.

The SS Eastland had been hired to ferry a large group of workers for Western Electric to their annual employee picnic in Michigan City, Indiana. But they would never make it out of the docks in Chicago — indeed, some of them would never leave the city again.

When the Eastland lurched sharply to port, it was only 20 feet from the dock. Only half of the ship was submerged underwater. But 844 of the 2,572 people aboard the ship — crewmembers and guests alike — died. Some were crushed by heavy furniture as the ship went sideways. Others were trapped below deck by the rising waters as the ship flooded. It was an astronomically high death toll considering how close to the dock the Eastland was and how many boats were surrounding it.  

In the subsequent investigation, the ship's captain and engineer were found to be at fault for contributing to the ship's instability by overloading the vessel and mishandling its water ballast, among other problems. Its faulty construction — which had been augmented by recent flooring changes – added to the ship's problems. The Eastland tragedy continues to be remembered to this day in various ways — through a marker beside the Chicago River, by YouTubers like Caitlin Doughty of Ask a Mortician, and by the heartbreaking events of "Chicago Med" Season 10, Episode 1.