TRAPPED IN A DISABLED SUBMARINE.

Sun (Christchurch), Volume VII, Issue 2047, 6 September 1920, Page 7

TRAPPED IN A DISABLED SUBMARINE.

DEFECTIVE AIR TANK VALVE ADMITS WATER. (A. & jST.Z.) (Ree. September 6, 9.15 a.m.) WASHINGTON, September 4. The Navy Department has received an interesting account of the accident to the submarine S5 [from which the crew was rescued after being submerged for over 40 hours]. The submarine made a dive in 165 feet of water. The large valve of the air tank failed to close, admitting a large quantity of water into the living spaces, and the boat went to the bottom. The crew closed the valve and expelled the water. This caused the stern of the submarine to be lifted above the water, the bow remaining submerged. The storage batteries of the engines gave out fumes, and the crew retreated to the stern section and began to drill a hole in the side. The air was very foul. The steamship Atlantis, 25 hours later, saw the bow and a shirt waving through a small hole in it. The Atlantis pumped air into the submarine and sent out wireless messages. Another steamship then stood by, and its engineer worked for eight hours with a hand tool before he finished cutting a hole large enough to release the crew, who are suffering from the effects of the bad air.