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"The Rescue
Ship"
RMS Carpathia Facts
(1902-1918)
Facts about the Ship
* Built by Swan, Hunter and Wigham Richardson, Newcastle, England
* Year Built: 1902
* Length: 558 Ft
* Width: 64 Ft
* Displacement: 13,750 Gr Tons
* Propulsion: 8 Cyl Quad. Expans. - Twin Screw
* Passenger Capacity: 2,550
100 First Class
200 Second Class
2250 Third Class (After 1905)
Story about the Ship
The Carpathia was owned by White Stars rival, Cunard.
Launched August 6th, 1902, Carpathia's maiden voyage was
on May 5th, 1903. She sailed Cunard's Liverpool - New York or Boston route in the Summer.
Between November and May, she carried immigrants (mainly Hungarian) from Trieste and Fiume to America.
Carpathia's moment of glory came when she steamed full speed through the icy Atlantic in the middle of the night, responding to a distress call from the sinking
Titanic. Carpathia well exceeded her top speed and was was the first vessel to arrive on the scene of the disaster.
Picking up all of Titanic's survivors, Carpathia, outbound for the Mediterranean prior to the distress call, ferried the survivors to New York.
When World War I broke out in Europe, Carpathia sailed only briefly under Cunard's flag.
On September
5th, 1914 she was fined by the Italian government for carrying immigrants without a license and in 1915 requisitioned by the British government and converted to a troopship.
After her military refit she was able to carry more than 3,000 officers and troops with 1,000 tons of supplies, or 1,000 men and cavalry.
On July 17th, 1918 Carpathia was steaming in a convoy bound for Boston when a German submarine attacked 120 miles west of Fastnet.
Two torpedoes slammed into Carpathia's side and she immediately began to sink.
While the crew evacuated the 57 passengers aboard, a third torpedo struck the ship.
Despite the pummeling she took, Carpathia stayed afloat long enough for all but 5 crew members to escape.
Those 5 lost were killed in the torpedo impacts. Carpathia went down at
12:40 a.m. Her survivors were picked up by H.M.S. Snowdrop and taken to Liverpool.
In the spring of 2000, a team led by author Clive Cussler found the wreck of
Carpathia 220 miles off the east coast of Ireland in 540 feet of water.
The wreck lies upright and is in good condition. There are huge tears in the side of the ship's hull and the boilers appear to have exploded as the ship sank, but she is one piece.
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