Odd Magnus Heide Hansen was born in 1940, and by profession he is a typographer on the editorial desk of the newspaper Nordlys. His interest in Arctic ships began several years ago. A picture of a fishing ship at Rieber wharf in old Tromsø was the spark that literally ignited his interest in old and new versions of Arctic ships and a fishing culture that has almost died out.
Where did the ships come from? Where did they go, did they sink or were they condemned? What did they do outside of the fishing season? Who owned the ships? There were many questions that demanded answers. In their search for answers in what remains of the old Arctic environment in Tromsø and the nearest fjord areas and coastal municipalities in the county, new ships and more questions kept appearing.
It ended up with a series of articles in the newspaper Nordlys, which in turn led to countless inquiries where the public showed their interest.
Over the years, Hansen has systematically collected information about the various Arctic ships and their achievements from the fishing grounds and on expeditions of various kinds. This resulted in two books in which both people and ships are central. In book number three, he has concentrated on the unfortunate years of 1917 and 1918 as well as 1939 and 1949. In 1917, seven ships sank in the West Ice with the loss of 88 men. In addition, several ships were sunk by a German submarine in the East Ice and off the White Sea. Otherwise, 17 ships are described, and several people have told about their experiences in the ice, plus a wife's reflections through her diary about having responsibilities at home.
