RUSSIA: FRAGMENTS OF SUNKEN KURSK NUCLEAR SUBMARINE GO ON DISPLAY AS INVESTIGATION CONTINUES

Record ID: 547831

  • Title: RUSSIA: FRAGMENTS OF SUNKEN KURSK NUCLEAR SUBMARINE GO ON DISPLAY AS INVESTIGATION CONTINUES
  • Date: 14th October 2000
  • Summary: ST. PETERSBURG , RUSSIA (OCTOBER 13, 2000) (REUTERS) ***CONTAINS FLASH PHOTOGRAPHY*** SLV CORRODED METAL FRAGMENTS OF KURSK SUBMARINE DISPLAYED ON TABLE; MV JOURNALISTS LOOKING AT OBJECTS; CU FRAGMENT; MV JOURNALISTS; CU FRAGMENT (4 SHOTS) SCU FRAGMENTS ON TABLE (6 SHOTS) SLV PRESS CONFERENCE
  • Embargoed: 29th October 2000 12:00
  • Keywords:
  • Location: ST. PETERSBURG, RUSSIA
  • Country: Russia
  • Topics: Accidents,Defence / Military,Transport
  • Reuters ID: LVA7TSJE8OUQS0K19N2U76YLW7GV
  • Story Text: Fragments of the sunken Kursk submarine, brought up from the Barents sea, have been displayed in Russia's second largest city of St.Petersburg. The head of the government commission investigating the Kursk tragedy has said the investigation confirmed that by the time the submarine sank to the bottom of the sea all the crew had already been dead.
    Dozens of rusty fragments belonging to the Kursk submarine were displayed in St.Petersburg on Friday (October 13). The corroded metal parts of different sizes were brought up from the Barents seabed with the help of Russia's deep underwater rescue subs "Mir-1" and Mir-2" from the place where the Kursk submarine sank on August 12. The two mini-subs belong to the Russia Scientific and research ship " Mstislav Keldysh" and are well known for filming and bringing up items from the famous Titanic.
    Ilya Klebanov, vice premier and head of the government commission investigating the Kursk tragedy, has told journalists the two Mir mini-subs investigated around 60 square miles of seabed around the Kursk sub and found various heavily damaged metal parts from the vessel.
    The 17,000-tonne Kursk sank to the bottom of the Barents Sea on August 12 after two explosions ripped through its bow.
    The Russian government launched an unsuccessful and much criticised rescue effort that eventually brought in a crack team of Norwegian divers for a last-ditch attempt.
    Klebanov said that the investigation of the fragments lead the commission to believe that the first two compartments of the submarine were completely destroyed by the blast that ripped through the sub killing all the crew on board.
    The comission did not exclude that Kursk had been hit by some unidentified object, perhaps a foreign made submarine, although no fragments of it have been found in close proximity to Kursk.
    Klebanov said the reactor inside the sub was sealed and safe and that there was no danger of any radiation leak.
    However the damage to the Kursk submarine had been so severe that the metal debris could hamper the work of divers in recovering the bodies of the sailors killed by the blast.
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