I've seen seen scenes in movies and documentaries where they show survivors in the lifeboats waving around flares. Did they have flares in the lifeboats?
4th Officer Boxhall took with him into emergency boat No. 2 green flares which he used as a signal.
Carpathia saw the green light and steamed toward it.
(Flares were not provisions for lifeboats).
In the movie by James Cameron it is 5th Officer Lowe who had and used them, one of the facts he changed a little.
I read an article that said there were no flares and that a few of the survivors who hand taken lamps or flashlights were told to turn them off so people in the water wouldn't attempt to swamp the boats. I haven't been able to verify this. Anybody know anything about it?
The article which is only a theory can be found on ET. I completely disagree with it, there is no single proof for such a claim. At last 4 lifeboats had a lantern, in other boats people use whatever they had (flashlight, pocket watch light, matches, cigar lighter etc.). No one mentioned that they turned them off or out.