Navy Joins Race to Save Russian Mini-Sub Crew
Posted on: Saturday, 6 August 2005, 12:00 CDT
BRITAIN and other countries were last night racing to help a disabled Russian navy mini-submarine with seven crew aboard.
With oygen running out, it was reported a Russian rescue vessel had managed to hook a cable on to the mini-submarine and was towing it to shallower waters.
The small submarine became entangled in a fishing net and was stranded off Russia's Pacific coast in about 190m of water.
At that depth, the crew would not be able to swim to the surface and divers would be unable to reach them.
However, bringing the sub into shallower waters would potentially make it accessible to divers or even allow the crew to escape on their own. Britain was sending a Scorpio submarine to help with the rescue operation, a spokesman for the British Embassy in Moscow said.
Russia's Pacific Fleet commander Admiral Viktor Fyodorov was quoted by the Interfax news agency as saying there was enough air aboard to last until Monday, although other officials had said there was barely more than a day's supply.
The crisis evoked comparisons with the 2000 disaster involving the nuclear submarine Kursk.
The Kursk sank to the bottom of the Barents Sea after explosions on board, killing all 118 seamen aboard. Russian President Vladimir Putin was sharply criticised for his handling of the crisis and an initial reluctance to accept foreign assistance.
Nine Russian ships were at the site, and the US and Britain were scrambling to send underwater vehicles that might assist in the rescue, officials said.
Japanese ships also were rushing to the area.
However, it was unclear if there was enough oxygen aboard the small vessel - designed for three crew members - to keep seven sailors alive until help arrives.
' There is air remaining on the underwater apparatus for a day - one day,' Captain Igor Dygalo said on state-run Rossiya television
Source: Daily Post; Liverpool
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