39 HOURS ENTOMBED IN Sim COFFIN.

Auckland Star, Volume LXX, Issue 122, 26 May 1939, Page 9

39 HOURS ENTOMBED IN Sim COFFIN.

SUNKEN- SUBMARINE.

Dramatic Rescue Of 33 Of

The Crew.

LITTLE HOPE TOR 26 OTHERS

United Press Association.—Copyright.

(Received 11 a.m.)

NEW YORK, May 25

After 39 hours of imprisonment in a steel coffin 240 feet below the surface of the sea, 33 survivors of the crew of the United States submarine Squalus were rescued by the bell-chamber apparatus operated'from the rescue ship Falcon. The remaining 2(5 men, who were trapped in the after compartment by the inrush of water—possibly through the induction valve failing to close when the vessel submerged—are believed certainly to be dead.

Divers are at present trying absolutely to confirm the deaths, after which the hatches will be sealed and the dead raised with the vessel.

A Navy diver succeeded in looking into the Squalns hulk and reported that att trom the torpedo room was flooded apparently ending the hope that anvonc was left alive. It was this room 'that experts were of the opinion was most likely to remain dry since it was the farthest fro,,, the valve through which the water enters. The commander of the Navy vard sent 2b coffins to the scene after' the discovery.

The scene of the rescue was one of unforgettable drama yesterday The lalcon was moored by four " anchors directly above the sunken submarine and in a circle around her were 16 otlic naval vessels standing by, while on tin fringe hovered scores of coastguard picket boats and small fishing 'craft carrying reporters and photographers Overhead zoomed aeroplanes and a brilliant sun shone down.

The sea was calm, but an oil film was spread out to facilitate the lowerin" of the divers with the giant steel rescue chamber. Quite two and a half hours elapsed between the time the first and second batches of men were brought up.

First Use of Bell Chamber. The bell-chamber, which was used in the present disaster for the first time in actual rescue work, is said to be a United States Navy development, the design for which has been made available to all foreign navies. The United States now has five such chambers, one each on five submarine rescue ships. The bell is an intricate affair, with electric lighting and telephone systems. It weighs nine tons and is operated by a motor.

Working in brief relays, because of the great pressure at that depth which prevented their remaining down for long, 40 divers fixed the bell-chamber in place above a hatch in the deck of the submarine, and by this means access to the interior was gained. The survivors were brought to the surface in four batches, the last eight, including the commander, Lieutenant X. A. Quin, being raised soon after midnight.

Graphic stories of the hours of terrible suspense in the sunken submarine Mere told by some of the survivors. Movement and even speech wen: restricted to save the precious air and oxygen, and in the bitter cold—only four decrees above freezing point on the ocean flour

—the men huddled in their hunk*, listen in;: hopefully for the tupping of divers on the steel hull outside.