SUBMARINE DISASTERS

Taranaki Daily News, 11 August 1932, Page 15

SUBMARINE DISASTERS

TASK OF RAISING THE M2 ARDUOUS WORK FOR THE DIVERS. NOVEL METHODS TO BE USED. Submarines have been in the news a great deal in the past year. Nearly 200 lives have been lost in four disasters to' this type of craft belonging to three nations within 13 months. Efforts to raise tire British M2, which lies 100 ft. deep with most of the bodies of her complement of 60, off Portland Bill, England, where it sank in January, are expected to result in success very soon. The work has been hampered by many factors. It was not until more than a week after the captain of an English steamer - saw the submarine sink stern first that searchers using sounddetecting apparatus located the vessel. High seas, strong undercurrent and thick mists made the task of divers and airmen particularly arduous. the sca-bcd of the bay is dotted with countless wrecks. It is the most ambitious salvage effort tlio British Navy has ever made at such a depth, and is taking considerably longer than was expected. The author-' itaes believe that compressed air blown into the hull will give the M2 sufficient buoyancy to rise. It is calculated the submarine will have in it over 100 tons of loose water which cannot be forced out, and to ensure stability in these circumstances will be one of the most anxious problems. WORK OF DIVERS. A considerable portion of the work has been accomplished. The conning tower and seaplane hangar have been sealed with special cement and hoses have been fitted to them to carry compressed air. To provide means for the water to escape holes have been burned and drilled in the outer and inner hulls, sealed with steel and rubber patches and fitted with valves. Wlien the craft is ready to be floated 1 the compressed air pumped into it will force out the water. It will rise, it is planned, bow first. When the submarine reaches the surface divers will close the valves and it will be watertight and ready for towing to harbour. " An unprecedental number of hours is being spent under water by the pick of the Navy’s most experienced deep-sea divers. In less than two months the diving hours totalled 2-17. One diver re-

mained under water continuously for the astonishing period of 5 hours 40 minutes. When the vessel is salvaged, and immediately after - the bodies of the captain and remaining members of the crew have been removed, the most experienced men in the submarine service will carry out a complete examination. Every control in the ship will be exactly as it was when the vessel took her last plunge. It is hoped that this investigation will solve the i mystery of the sinking. A MYSTERY DISASTER. Several theories concerning the cause of the disaster have been advanced. It is presumed the vessel dived unexpectedly, and that the inrush of water through an open hatchway prevented those inside , from reaching the Davis safety appara- i tus, .i’hicli saved several lives when the British submarine . Poseidon sank after being rammed by a Chinese merchant vessel near Weihuiwei on June 9 of last year. Divers found the body of a leading seaman jammed in the hatchway of tho seaplane hangar of the M2. A naval expert expressed the opinion, that tho most likely cause was the explosion of storage batteries used to drive the electric motors.' . , Besides tho Poseidon disaster, which cost 24 Jives, and that of the M2, 04 men dived to their deaths in the French submarine Proniothee in the English Channel early this month. Although Soviet officials strenuously denied the sinking of a Russian submarine, rammed by a German steamer in the Gulf of Finland in October last year, a disaster ia generally believed to have occurred. Wireless messages transmitted by the German steamer stating that the submarine had sunk with its personnel of about 50 were confused and blurred by counter-messages broadcast on the same wave-length by Soviet stations. Later the ramming was confirmed by the Soviet, but it was stated the damage was slight and that no loss of life occurred. A brief message in May last year stated that during the Soviet Baltic Fleet’s manoeuvres, submarine No. 9 sank in deep water, which hamper-, ed raising ■ operations. No other details of this mishap were given, however. In June last year a diver off the Italian coast of the Adriatic Sea discovered intact a submarine, with the remains of ,a long-dead crew inside it, ia 90ft. of water. There was no outward sign of damage. Although inquiries were made throughout Europe the mystery was never solved.