Page 63 - All About History - Issue 09-14

The unsinkable ship

Data sheet
First-class cabins
They had private Length: 269m (882ft)
bathrooms and were
equipped with electric Beam: 28m (92ft)
stoves or, in the case of the Displacement: 52,310t
suites, a chimney. Cruising speed: 21 knots
28m 269m
(39km/h / 24mph)
Technical
innovations
The Titanic had four
elevators, three for first
class and one for second.
Logo
The front of the ship
Command carried the logo of the
bridge White Star Line, a red flag
with a white star on it.

Bow

Swimming pool
“ On 11 April the ship began to

receive ice warnings from other
ships that were further ahead of it”

the ice warnings, as several had been passed undisturbed. However, after a survey of the ship
on previously. It’s unlikely that even if this final Captain Smith realised that serious damage had
warning had been relayed that anything different been done and that water was rapidly being taken
would have occurred. What we do know is that at on. The Titanic was sinking.
11.40pm, lookout Frederick Fleet spotted an iceberg At the British enquiry following the accident,
immediately ahead and alerted the bridge. First Edward Wilding (chief naval architect for Harland
Officer William Murdoch ordered the engines to and Wolff), calculating on the basis of the observed
be put into reverse and for the ship to be steered flooding of forward compartments 40 minutes
around the obstacle but it was too late. Far, far too after the collision, testified that the area of the
late. Just 30 seconds after the iceberg had been hull opened to the sea was, “Somewhere about 12
spotted the giant ship, the embodiment in man’s square feet (1.1 square metre).” Modern ultrasound
industrial prowess, careered the starboard side of surveys of the wreck found that the damage
its frame into the iceberg, cutting open a series of consisted of six narrow openings in an area of the
holes below the waterline. hull covering about 1.1 to 1.2 square metres (12 to 13
The actual collision wasn’t that strong, indeed, square feet). Regardless, the ship was going down.
many of the ship’s passengers who had already Less than 20 minutes after the iceberg had been One of the most luxurious rooms aboard the Titanic,
retired to bed remained asleep, their dreams struck, lifeboats were launched into the water Stateroom B-59, decorated in Old Dutch style
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