‘The tremendous ship didn't sink for over two hours': When a Titanic passenger recounted surviving the horrifying ordeal
Eva's mother had an unsettling feeling about the voyage from the very beginning. Unlike most passengers who embraced the Titanic as an 'unsinkable' marvel, she remained deeply uneasy. 'She said that calling the ship 'unsinkable,' as the whole world was saying, was flying in the face of God. She begged my father not to go,' Eva later recalled in an interview with CBC's The Journal when the wreck was discovered in September of 1985. Her mother even refused to sleep at night, she'd said, staying awake in case something happened. And when disaster struck, that instinct saved them.
Late on April 14, 1912, the Titanic collided with an iceberg, and as panic spread, Eva's father acted quickly. He placed Eva and her mother into a lifeboat, staying behind as the ship continued to sink.
'Tears are over the sea, don't you see? No man was going to take the place of a woman or child. By the time the women and children were in that lifeboat, it was full. Absolutely,' she recalled.
From her seat in the lifeboat, Eva watched the Titanic slowly disappear beneath the waves. The night was clear and full of stars, but the sight of the sinking ship haunted her for the rest of her life.
'It was a horribly dark night—starlit, but no moonlight. The tremendous ship didn't sink for over two hours. It was a horrible sight, just a horrible sight,' she said.
In the confusion, Eva was separated from her mother as lifeboat passengers were shuffled around to balance the weight. For hours, she believed she was alone in the world.
'She thought I had been dropped in the sea. I was too terrified to understand what had happened—all I knew was that she wasn't there, and that was terrifying,' Eva said in the interview. Fortunately, the two were reunited the next day aboard the rescue ship, Carpathia.
Looking back on the tragedy, Eva believed the loss of life was preventable. The ship simply did not have enough lifeboats for everyone on board.
'It doesn't matter anymore. I know what the fault was. The fault was that the ship was allowed to go to sea with too few lifeboats. The 1,513 people who died that night need not have died. It took a disaster like that to force regulations to change, ensuring that ships must have enough lifeboats for everyone. Because nothing is unsinkable. Absolutely nothing.'
Her words serve as a reminder of the human cost of arrogance and oversight. The Titanic may rest at the bottom of the ocean, but the lessons it taught the world continue to shape maritime safety to this day.
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Indian Express
10-07-2025
- Indian Express
‘The tremendous ship didn't sink for over two hours': When a Titanic passenger recounted surviving the horrifying ordeal
More than a hundred years after the Titanic disaster, the voices of those who lived through it still resonate. One of the survivors, Eva Hart, was only seven years old when she boarded the ship with her parents, expecting to start a new life in Canada. Instead, she found herself caught in one of history's most infamous tragedies—a night of chaos, terror, and loss that would stay with her forever. Eva's mother had an unsettling feeling about the voyage from the very beginning. Unlike most passengers who embraced the Titanic as an 'unsinkable' marvel, she remained deeply uneasy. 'She said that calling the ship 'unsinkable,' as the whole world was saying, was flying in the face of God. She begged my father not to go,' Eva later recalled in an interview with CBC's The Journal when the wreck was discovered in September of 1985. Her mother even refused to sleep at night, she'd said, staying awake in case something happened. And when disaster struck, that instinct saved them. Late on April 14, 1912, the Titanic collided with an iceberg, and as panic spread, Eva's father acted quickly. He placed Eva and her mother into a lifeboat, staying behind as the ship continued to sink. 'Tears are over the sea, don't you see? No man was going to take the place of a woman or child. By the time the women and children were in that lifeboat, it was full. Absolutely,' she recalled. From her seat in the lifeboat, Eva watched the Titanic slowly disappear beneath the waves. The night was clear and full of stars, but the sight of the sinking ship haunted her for the rest of her life. 'It was a horribly dark night—starlit, but no moonlight. The tremendous ship didn't sink for over two hours. It was a horrible sight, just a horrible sight,' she said. In the confusion, Eva was separated from her mother as lifeboat passengers were shuffled around to balance the weight. For hours, she believed she was alone in the world. 'She thought I had been dropped in the sea. I was too terrified to understand what had happened—all I knew was that she wasn't there, and that was terrifying,' Eva said in the interview. Fortunately, the two were reunited the next day aboard the rescue ship, Carpathia. Looking back on the tragedy, Eva believed the loss of life was preventable. The ship simply did not have enough lifeboats for everyone on board. 'It doesn't matter anymore. I know what the fault was. The fault was that the ship was allowed to go to sea with too few lifeboats. The 1,513 people who died that night need not have died. It took a disaster like that to force regulations to change, ensuring that ships must have enough lifeboats for everyone. Because nothing is unsinkable. Absolutely nothing.' Her words serve as a reminder of the human cost of arrogance and oversight. The Titanic may rest at the bottom of the ocean, but the lessons it taught the world continue to shape maritime safety to this day.
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First Post
10-07-2025
- First Post
Indian student pilot killed in mid-air crash in Canada's Manitoba province
An Indian student pilot was killed in a midair crash in Manitoba province of Canada, according to the Consulate General of India in Toronto. read more An Indian student pilot Sreehari Sukesh was killed in a tragic mid-air collision in Canada's Manitoba province on Tuesday, the Consulate General of India in Toronto confirmed. The accident occurred near Steinbach, about 50 kilometres southeast of Winnipeg, when Sukesh's single-engine aircraft collided with another similar plane piloted by a Canadian youth, who also died in the crash. The Consulate General said it is in contact with the bereaved family, the pilot training school, and local authorities to provide all necessary assistance. Both bodies were recovered from the wreckage, according to a report by the Canadian Broadcasting Corporation (CBC). STORY CONTINUES BELOW THIS AD The students collided when approaching a landing strip while practising takeoffs and landings, the CBC report said, quoting Adam Penner, president of Harv's Air, the flying school where both pilots had been training. The Transportation Safety Board, the agency responsible for investigating aviation incidents in Canada, said it is gathering information and assessing the fatal crash. Sreehari Sukesh's age was not mentioned. The CBC said the Canadian victim was 20-year-old Savanna May Royes, who, it said, 'had always dreamed of becoming a pilot, following in the footsteps of her father.' A Royal Canadian Mounted Police (RCMP) statement said after its Steinbach unit was notified of the mid-air collision, the personnel from the RCMP, fire department and Emergency medical services attended and located the wreckage of two small, single-engine aircraft, south of Steinbach. 'The two pilots were pronounced deceased on scene. There were no passengers aboard,' it said. Nathaniel Plett, who lives near the flight school, told CBC News that he and his wife heard a loud bang on Tuesday morning. 'I said to my wife, 'That's a plane crash',' Plett said. 'There was a pillar of black smoke coming up, and a little later [we] heard another bang, and there was an even bigger pop of black smoke.'
Time of India
09-07-2025
- Time of India
Gujarat has a ‘stimulus' plan for loveless lesser floricans
This monsoon, conservation experts in the state are racing against time to save the critically endangered lesser florican, the world's smallest bustard. After witnessing a complete breeding failure last year, they are now deploying an unusual strategy involving female decoys to attract male birds. At the Conservation Breeding Centre (CBC) in Velavadar National Park, 150km from Ahmedabad, the wildlife officials are preparing cotton-stuffed cloth effigies treated with female scent to collect semen from male birds, a technique borrowed from houbara bustard breeding programmes in the UAE. The desperate measure comes after an unprecedented courtship crisis last monsoon — while the males put up a stellar show, the females not only rejected their advances but also attacked them. With fewer than 900 lesser floricans remaining across India, according to the State of India's Birds 2023 report, the sexual standoff halts reproduction and pushes the lesser floricans further towards extinction. Since 2020, when the CBC was set up for the lesser floricans, conservationists have salvaged eggs at risk from rainwater ingress, agricultural activity and predators, successfully hatching 16 chicks through artificial incubation. Currently, 12 have reached adulthood: six males and six females. But successful hatching means nothing if the birds won't breed. You Can Also Check: Ahmedabad AQI | Weather in Ahmedabad | Bank Holidays in Ahmedabad | Public Holidays in Ahmedabad "The males did everything right last season," says Dr Yash Baraiya, the centre's veterinary doctor. "We watched them transform and perform their elaborate courtship dances, but the females became aggressive instead of receptive. They attacked the males and prevented any mating attempts." This monsoon, determined not to witness another failure, the officials have crafted a clever decoy: a cotton-stuffed cloth effigy resembling a female, with wood used as needed for structure. Painted to look lifelike and adorned with real feathers, the effigy is treated with authentic female scent collected from the field. The technique, successfully tested on houbara bustards in the UAE, addresses the inexplicable hostility of the females by offering males 'a receptive partner', thus allowing officials to collect semen. However, the challenge is immense. "The females are laying unfertilized eggs, which confirms their reproductive readiness. Collecting semen from the timid male birds, though, is delicate work. Any disturbance will cause them to shut down completely. But if we can successfully collect semen, we can artificially inseminate the females during their fertile window," Baraiya adds. The team is also looking to Rajasthan for guidance. "Rajasthan has achieved remarkable success with artificial insemination in the Great Indian Bustard," says Nilesh Joshi, assistant conservator of forests at Velavadar National Park. "We have requested the Gujarat govt to arrange for our veterinary team to visit the Sudasri Breeding Centre in Jaisalmer to learn their techniques, which could be adapted for our florican breeding programme. " However, forest officials are not relying on artificial methods alone. They are also planning to introduce wild lesser florican pairs to breed with the captive population, adjusting pairings based on the birds' interactions. The centre has created a natural forest-like environment using marvel grass, which the birds prefer for nesting. Artificial shelters provide protected nesting areas, while 360-degree cameras monitor the birds continuously for signs of illness or injury. The lesser florican's future now depends on blending the artificial with the authentic, whatever measures are necessary to ensure their survival.
