Shipwrecks -- North Atlantic Ocean -- History -- 20th century; Titanic (Steamship)
I next found myself alongside of that overturned boat. This was before
the _Titanic_ sank. The funnel then fell down and if there was anybody
on that side of the Engelhardt boat it fell on them. The ship was not
then submerged by considerable. The stern was completely out of the
water. I have heard some controversy as to the boilers exploding owing
to coming in contact with salt water, by men who are capable of giving
an opinion, but there seems to be an open question as to whether cold
water actually does cause boilers to explode.
I hardly had any opportunity to swim. It was the action of the funnel
falling that threw us out a considerable distance away from the ship.
We had no oars or other effective means for propelling the overturned
boat. We had little bits of wood, but they were practically
ineffective.
On our boat, as I have said before, were Colonel Gracie and young
Thayer. I think they were the only two passengers. There were no women
on our overturned boat. These were all taken out of the water and they
were firemen and others of the crew--roughly about thirty. I take
that from my own estimate and from the estimate of someone who was
looking down from the bridge of the _Carpathia_.
* * * * *
And from the same officer’s testimony before the British Court as
follows:
An order was given to cut the lashings of the other Engelhardt boats.
It was then too late as the water was rushing up to the Boat Deck and
there was not time to get them to the falls. He then went across to
the officers’ quarters on the starboard side to see what he could do.
Then the vessel seemed to take a bit of a dive. He swam off and
cleared the ship. The water was so intensely cold that he first tried
to get out of it into the crow’s nest, close at hand. Next he was
pushed up against the blower on the forepart of the funnel, the water
rushing down this blower, holding him against the grating for a while.
Then there seemed to be a rush of air and he was blown away from the
grating. He was dragged below the surface, but not for many moments.
He came up near the Engelhardt boat “B” which was not launched, but
had been thrown into the water. The forward funnel then fell down.
Some little time after this he saw half a dozen men standing on the
collapsible boat, and got on to it. The whole of the third funnel was
still visible, the vessel gradually raising her stern out of the
water. The ship did not break in two, and could not be broken in two.
She actually attained the perpendicular before sinking. His impression
was that no lights were then burning in the after part not submerged.
It is true that the after part of the vessel settled level with the
water. He watched the ship keenly all the time. After she reached an
angle of 60 degrees there was a rumbling sound which he attributed to
the boilers leaving their beds and crashing down. Finally she attained
an absolute perpendicular position and then went slowly down. He heard
Public-domain text, read in full here on John Shaqi.
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