body of the captain revealed a high blood alcohol content, 360 milligrams per 100 millilitres of alcohol or 0.36 percent weight by volume. This was concluded by chemist John Howes, employed by the Centre for Forensic Sciences, University of Toronto, who conducted the testing and informed the inquiry of the high alcohol content in the captain's body. Howes was quoted as saying, "There would be every indication of mental and physical drunkenness in the average person. The average person would be nearly unconscious. They would have difficulty walking, talking, muscular coordination and seeing... He wouldn't be able to act immediately to an emergency. It is possible he might not react at all." The inquiry concluded with a 49-page report wherein Justice Chevalier concluded that the sinking of Eastcliffe Hall was due to the captain's "state of plain drunkenness". Justice Chevalier also noted, "That the ship and all its contents, cargo, and human beings were in the hands of a blind man who did not know where he was nor what he was doing." Shipwreck Following the sinking, Eastcliffe Halls protruding masts and cargo were removed and the forward superstructure was dynamited back into the forward hold to clear the site as a navigational hazard. Though the surface currents are quick, the ship has since become a popular destination for recreational divers. References Maritime incidents in 1970 1954 ships Merchant ships of Canada Shipwrecks of the Saint Lawrence River