Tag Archives: daily mail

Titanic News: OceanGate Employees To Testify At Hearing, Cruise Ship Grazes Iceberg

Moyer, Jameson. “Former Top OceanGate Employees to Speak at Hearing for Imploded Submarine.” News Nation, September 10, 2024. https://www.newsnationnow.com/travel/missing-titanic-tourist-submarine/oceangate-titan-submersible-hearing/.

Coast Guard Standard (not the same as used for law enforcement)
1964.
Public Domain via Wikimedia Commons

With the public hearing on why a submarine out to explore the Titanic wreckage imploded looming, the Coast Guard announced that former employees of the company responsible for creating the vessel will speak in North Charleston. As part of the Coast Guard’s Marine Board of Investigation (MBI), public hearings are set to begin Sept. 16 before a panel at the Charleston County Council Chambers. A witness sheet provided by the Coast Guard includes OceanGate Co-Founder Guillermo Sohnlein and high rankers such as the former engineering director, scientific director, and operations director. Two people scheduled to speak, Renata Rojas and Fred Hagen, are listed as OceanGate mission specialists; however, several news outlets, including CNN and The Independent, say both Rojas and Hagen were previous OceanGate dive passengers. Others set for witness testimonies include Coast Guard, NASA, and Boeing officials, among others.

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Photo:Public Domain

McCormack, Caitlin. “Carnival Cruise Grazes Ice in Alaska, Passenger Compares It to Modern ‘Titanic Moment.’” New York Post, September 10, 2024. https://nypost.com/2024/09/09/us-news/carnival-spirit-undamaged-after-grazing-ice-in-alaska/.

A Carnival cruise ship was undamaged after grazing a piece of ice in Alaska’s Tracy Arm Fjord last week — with one passenger dramatically comparing it to a modern “Titanic moment.”The hull of the Carnival Spirit was assessed and no damages were found after the incident on Thursday, Carnival Cruise Line wrote in a statement to The Post.

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Cook, Julie. “The Dark Side of Our Titanic Obsession: From Gruesome Tourism to Treasure Hunting… It’s Time To…” Mail Online, September 6, 2024. https://www.dailymail.co.uk/femail/real-life/article-13821183/The-dark-Titanic-obsession-gruesome-tourism-treasure-hunting-time-let-writes-JULIE-COOK-great-grandfather-died-wreck.html.

I’ve dedicated years of my life to studying the Titanic. Maybe I’d be a hypocrite if I didn’t admit I’ve written two books on her, appeared in documentaries and TV interviews about her – and yet, still, I am glad the ship is falling apart. You see, my great-grandfather died on the ship – his remains are possibly still on board – and I believe it’s time to let her go. Not only that, I also firmly believe the Titanic is cursed – that it not only wrecked so many lives over 100 years ago, but it is still a malign influence today.

Suggested Reading

Behe, George TITANIC: SAFETY, SPEED AND SACRIFICE, Transportation Trails, Polo, IL 1997

Behe, G. (2012). On board RMS Titanic: Memories of the Maiden Voyage. The History Press.

Brewster, H. (2013). Gilded Lives, Fatal Voyage: The Titanic’s First-Class Passengers and Their World. National Geographic Books.

Eaton John P. & Haas Charles, TITANIC TRIUMPH AND TRAGEDY, SECOND EDITION, W.W. Norton & Company, New York, New York, 1995 First American Edition

Lord, Walter, A NIGHT TO REMEMBER, Holt Rinehart and Winston, New York, New York, 1955. Multiple revisions and reprints, notably Illustrated editions (1976,1977,1978 etc.)

Lord, Walter, THE NIGHT LIVES ON, Willian Morrow and Company, New York, New York, 1986 (First Edition)

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Is It Time to Let Go of Titanic?

RMS Titanic pictured in Queenstown, Ireland 11 April 1912
Source:Cobh Heritage Centre, Cobh Ireland/Wikimedia Commons

When Titanic was found in 1985, it ignited a debate that exists to this day: salvage or not to salvage. Robert Ballard argued Titanic should be left in peace and treated as a grave. Others thought otherwise that the ship was not a grave and to try to preserve what was left by bringing up artifacts to be conserved and displayed. When RMS Titanic, Inc went to US federal court after going to the wreck site to claim salvage rights, the anti-salvage camp flew into a rage. Titanic became a divided community of salvagers and anti-salvagers with vicious posts on Usenet (a precursor to Internet chat rooms) and email discussion lists. Instead of reasoned discussion, accusations flew like popcorn in at a ballgame. And some of the anti-salvagers went to war literally going after people personally for their views sometimes creating utter falsehoods that had real world consequences. It forever split the Titanic community and ended a lot of friendships. Apparently, it has reared its head again with the Titan disaster.

Julie Cook grew up on Titanic. Her great-grandfather died on that ship, and she was raised knowing what happened. That led to her interest in all things Titanic. She studied its lore, read the many books, and even wrote some books herself. She like many joined social groups to share her love with the ship, meet other enthusiasts, and other descendants of survivors or families that lost loved ones on that fateful night in 1912. And she found out that there are darker sides to using social media when she got some nasty messages, some of a personal and sexual nature, or other ones accusing her of things she never did. She came across her fair share of “rivet counters” as well. These are people so into the Titanic that goes beyond the normal academic or casual student of history. They know the smallest details about the ship, its people, and a whole lot more than most really care or want to know. And of course, the conspiracy theorists. There are a lot of them.

The Titan tragedy seems to have brought back the salvage vs anti-salvage row. White recounts that in its aftermath “…. Titanic community erupted into a toxicity I’d never seen.”

There were two camps. Those who felt Titanic should now be left alone and that the symbolism of a sub named Titan being wrecked when visiting her was just too disturbing. And, on the other side, that expeditions must continue, to honour those who perished and retrieve artefacts from the wreck before it was too late. Some of these people are inevitably more concerned with the monetary value of what may be recovered, or what they can get from gruesome ‘Titanic tourism’. Arguments and name-calling ensued. I got threats sent to my personal email from strangers who read an article I wrote in this newspaper last June about the Oceangate tragedy.

This sounds all tragically familiar to what took place in the late 1990’s and later when salvage was a hot topic causing exactly the same kind of name-calling, I personally saw take place. This does not surprise me at all, and I bet a few of them are from that time. New recruits to the cause are probably also jumping in as well starting up once again an uncivil discussion and resorting to personal threats and even worse. The toxicity of what she encountered really hit Cook hard it seems from her commentary on Daily Mail. She wonders though that perhaps it is just time to let the ship go.

You may or may not believe in curses, but to me, the wrecking of Titan on an expedition to see Titanic was a sign that said: leave her alone now.

Well, I do not believe in curses and nor do I subscribe to various claims the ship was cursed. The argument about salvage or not has merit and worthy of discussion. What made it go so terribly wrong was the hatred that ultimately was spewed forth by those on both sides. It was not enough to just say a person was wrong, they had to be punished. We see it today when someone does something that another person finds offensive. Instead of just saying “I don’t like that” and going on with their lives, they make it mission to start a campaign to damage them. They gather supporters to write nasty things about the person, to search and find out where they live, and to make dark threats as well. The hatred takes on a life of its own and sometimes ends up achieving a bad result for the person being targeted.  Cook has decided to leave all those groups and all the sniping behind. She has had enough and thinks at this point Titanic should be left alone.

Bathtub in Capt. Smith’s bathroom. Rusticles are observed growing over most of the pipes and fixtures in the room.
June 2004
Lori Johnston, RMS Titanic Expedition 2003, NOAA-OE.
Public Domain via Wikimedia Commons

Many no doubt will agree with her (not necessarily about the curse part, but that the wreck should be left in peace). The recent expedition confirmed what we all knew was taking place. As time marches relentlessly on, the deterioration of the ship will continue. Nothing can stop or delay that now. The Titan submersible tragedy, rather than a curse, showed the fragility that exists when diving to depths where the pressure is so great that the tiniest flaw or imperfection will result in a catastrophe. We will have to await the report that will be issued as to what the cause or causes were. If anything, the people at OceanGate fell into the very same trap that Captain Smith and others had about Titanic: complacency. No one thought hitting an iceberg, a rare occurrence, would result in the catastrophe that played out in the end. It did and as a result it showed a whole lot of assumptions and judgments were wrong about the ship. And OceanGate made the same mistake in thinking its submersible was safe and reliable. Neither was cursed but suffered from the same fatal flaw that doomed both.

Suggested Reading

Behe, George TITANIC: SAFETY, SPEED AND SACRIFICE, Transportation Trails, Polo, IL 1997

Behe, G. (2012). On board RMS Titanic: Memories of the Maiden Voyage. The History Press.

Brewster, H. (2013). Gilded Lives, Fatal Voyage: The Titanic’s First-Class Passengers and Their World. National Geographic Books.

Eaton John P. & Haas Charles, TITANIC TRIUMPH AND TRAGEDY, SECOND EDITION, W.W. Norton & Company, New York, New York, 1995 First American Edition

Lord, Walter, A NIGHT TO REMEMBER, Holt Rinehart and Winston, New York, New York, 1955. Multiple revisions and reprints, notably Illustrated editions (1976,1977,1978 etc.)

Lord, Walter, THE NIGHT LIVES ON, Willian Morrow and Company, New York, New York, 1986 (First Edition)

Titanic News Channel is a participant in the Amazon Services LLC Associates Program, an affiliate advertising program designed to provide a means for sites to earn advertising fees by advertising and linking to Amazon.com.

Titanic Wedding Blues

RMS Titanic pictured in Queenstown, Ireland 11 April 1912
Source:Cobh Heritage Centre, Cobh Ireland/Wikimedia Commons

According to the U.K.’s Daily Mail, newlyweds have received stinging rebukes on social media for a Titanic-themed wedding. Their uncle shared a photo of the two posing on a homemade Titanic bow celebrating their nuptials. It quickly drew criticism from people who were mad at how this trivialized the tragedy. The comments were all over the place, but the message was clear that they had crossed a line.

There have been many tacky things over the years from Titanic shaped ice cubes, knick-knack of all kinds, and even children’s slides. And there have been lots of people who have tried to recreate the famous scene from the James Cameron movie, sometimes just in jest. There was a famous advertisement some years back for a Red Bull, an energy drink. It showed a carton of it being loaded onto a ship. The captain asks about it and the crewman says it is an energy drink that gives you wings. The captain scoffs saying they only serve champagne on his ship, and you do not need wings on a ship. As the carton is lowered back down, the ship’s name is revealed as Titanic. You can view it on YouTube.

There were some who criticized the commercial for being in bad taste, but it was just a lighthearted joke to sell a product. Does anyone criticize James Cameron for having that bow scene in that famous movie? Not that I have heard. Here we have a fiancée who knew his future wife loves that scene. With some assistance from a relative, they build one so that they can both stand on it for the reception. How many times has this happened already? Probably a lot where couples got married in a Titanic-themed setting. The Titanic themed exhibition in Pigeon Forge offers wedding packages where they can get married at the outdoor fountain or at the Titanic Grand Staircase. And all the marriages are done by an ordained minister dressed as the Titanic Captain. I hardly think that is tacky and I bet whether at the fountain or on the staircase, it is a wedding to remember. They do not offer one with a bow setting because that is from that movie. It also may be difficult to pull off as well.

At the risk of sounding like William Shatner in the famous skit of his on SNL, get a life. They were recreating a scene from a movie. A movie, I must remind, that though depicting historical events, was fictional as were the characters of Jack and Rose. That is what they are recreating, two fictional characters standing on Titanic’s bow in a romantic scene. It would be different if they were dressed as Isidor and Ida Straus for the wedding and saying to each other “where you go, I go” type of vows. That would trivialize their deaths and others as well. The fact so many people got worked up into a frenzy is quite astonishing. And that some of the comments were quite vicious as well. Those who have been around the Internet for a long time have a feeling of déjà vu as it reminds one of the old flame wars on the old Internet groups and email discussion lists.

The newlyweds should not be ashamed, nor made to feel so. I wish them nothing but happiness for their life together. Enjoy the Celine Dion song here.*

*Due to restrictions imposed by creators who post on YouTube, some videos and music can now only be played at YouTube. YouTube will generate a message that the content is unavailable and must be played on their site. Rather than seeing that ugly message, we will provide the direct link for you to view.


SUNDAY TITANIC NEWS-DID AURORA BOREALIS CAUSE PROBLEMS FOR TITANIC?

Aurora Borealis by Frederic Edwin Church (1826–1900)
Public Domain (Wikipedia Commons)

The Daily Mail had an interesting report about a claim concerning the Northern Lights (aurora borealis). An independent weather researcher is arguing that the presence of the Northern Lights that night contributed in its demise. The compass would have been off by a degree and wireless communication would have affected  as well. It would make receiving them more difficult or not at all. It is certainly interesting and certainly adds something new to the events of that night.

Solar Flare May Have Contributed To The Sinking Of The Titanic By Throwing Off Compass Readings And Causing Radio Interference, Study Suggests (Daily Mail, 15 Sept 2020)