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Lisa Nakamura
Guest
I am a college professor interested in giving a lecture on the Titanic in my modern British history class, and I need some help on the technology of the Titanic. I'm confused about what the "watertight compartments" really were, and why they failed, and I'd really appreciate feedback from the experts. Were the watertight compartments flawed because they had doors and hatchways that were always open? What about the large doors that were supposed to be shut in the event of a collision? Did the designers plan the compartments to be watertight because they had doors that could be quickly closed--and then FORGOT that they had put in open stairwells, etc., that had NO doors? Or did crewmen leave doors on stairwells and passageways open during the voyage that allowed water to flow out inspite of the fact that the watertight doors had been closed? When people say the bulkheads "didn't go all the way to the top" what does this mean--that they ended in mid-air?! How many compartments on the Titanic could have been totally open to the sea without sinking the ship--I've heard anywhere from 2 to 4. If the Titantic had collided head on with the iceberg, would the bow compartments have been watertight enough to keep her afloat, or was the problem that the glancing side blow damaged too many compartments to maintain integrity? I probably sound totally confused (which is true!) but my interest in the watertight compartment-problem stems from the interest I have in whether the sinking was mainly due to human error (excessive speed, the decision to reverse engines and steer away, etc) or if there were fatal design flaws? It seems to me that if the Titanic were designed to stay afloat even if 4 compartments were open to the sea (because doors or hatchways into them could be quickly closed and there were no open stairwells)then why fault the designers, especially if it was rare in collisions for more than 1 or 2 compartments to be damaged?
Thanks for helping out a confused professor!
Thanks for helping out a confused professor!