Newfoundland and Labrador has been the site of hundreds of shipwrecks throughout the last two centuries. The area has had many more shipwrecks than Sable Island. Shipwrecks on these treacherous coasts were frequent. Every year steamers and other types of vessels mistook their positions and went to their doom on the rocks. Many of the accidents happened during the summer and fall, when the weather is foggy but comparatively mild. The strong currents that drove vessels miles off their course and the lack of foghorns and lighthouses were all major contributing factors to the loss of shipping.