The Hawaiian gazette., 1915-03-26
ONLY CREW MAY
TELL WHY WASP
:. . FAILED TO RISE
There Are Many Reasons Ad-
Vanced As To What Went
Wrong With Submarine

No one but the O lcors and members
| OF the crew of the submarine FL will
I've able to tell what caused the acct.
dent that sent that vessel to tho bot.
tom Of the channel with it's imprisoned
cargo of living freight yesterday
morning. If any member of the crew
ScaPes ahvP he perhaps will be able
to tell what went wrong, and with his
story he will al 20 the knowledge of
submarine naN EatIol something IL
docs not possess what really happens
when one of these amphibian vessels
becomes disabled while under water.
There could he hundred or more
reasons advanced n to what went
wrong and kept the "a from rising, !"
| said one of the members of the sub
marine Gotiila yesterday. "The rea.
SON we do not know anything definite
is that so far in the history Of the de.
velopment of the submarine there have
been no survivors from submarine mis-
haps and only those who go down in
these boats really hnow what goes
wrong.
"a bursting air tank could have
caused it. The hrlmsman NAV have
lost control of the Loaf and IL NAV
have gone below its depth and
rum led up under the terrific pressure
encountered at great depths. This bat.
torlos may have exploited and the fuel
tanks may have ioaked If the sub.
marine was NAVIGATING close to the bot
tom it is possible il may have struck
m obstruction, and far under the
water the strong plates of these boats
are under such pressure that il would
require but little additional weight to
break them in. Ihru all chances of
saving the. occupants would be gone.
But we are confident that both Off.
GERS and crew are still alive. If thew
were not we would not have been able
to pick up traces of their location so
quickly this morning. The one certain
sign of signaling to the surface il to
pump out the fuel oil in the tanks
This quickly rises., to the surface and
spreads over such an area that it is
bound to attract attcntion from craft
passing anywhereonear. The air bub.
bleS, too, which we saw today Indicated
that the well traincd crew was hard at
work pumping out the submarine in
the hope that in thus tightening it it
would rise to the surface
Unless the craft is puncturcd and
flooded there win be no trouble in lift
ing it to the surface, once it is located
The slightest lifting pressure viii gen
eraiy bring them to tlie surface, at least
when the depth is not too great.
Each of the submarines is fitted,
monR other things, with a submarine
agNal outfit, consisting of a powerful
pciS which has a signaling radius un-
Ter water of about sixty miles. The
1act that we have not heard this signal
does not necessarily signify that tn,
officers and crew have persisted. bu.
that the F-4 has gone beyond her depth
and that the terrific pressure is such
that they find 1t impossible to have the
gong strike the diaphram of the bell.
Another means of signaling from
Heneath the surface consists of line
5uoy,' which can be released and with
4 line attached sent to the surface. IL
80 wav direct telephone communion
ton could be established if the foating
buoy would rise to the surface, and il
it was discovered if it did rise. This.
however, has proved a very uncertain
nothod beyond a slight depth. Under
present conditions the chances nr,
fifty per cent against the buoy rising
o the surface because the line would
become entangled.
- Another chance, but one which has
never yet been tried, would be for AN
officer or member Of the crew to volun
'cer to be shot through the torpedo
tube. Put this would mean practically
"ertnin death to the person who would
-ry it, with the chances that not even
The body of the volunteer would come
to the surface in time TO give seurrhrrA.
an opportunity to reach the imprisoned
men in time to save them.
The type Of submarines in use here
are believed to be the most modern
VOW in use, fitted with every life sa, ing
appliance that has been found prarti
"al in submarine work. Despite the in
,lcations tonight that the crew of the
"A has persisted, the 'boys on the top
have not given up hope and will kecr
up the search until all chance of res
cue is passed, and that means TIVE
weeks, and even more, Sailors and
soldiers never abandon hope. To-Day :
mishap is but n part of the game tn,
""Nmarine boys pity daily, Knowing
full well the chances they are tnkiny.