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Gain a comprehensive understanding of the Titanic disaster, from individual narratives to broader implications, as these two videos illuminate different aspects of this momentous event in history.
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00:01It was 11.39 at night when the Titanic's lookout shouted,
00:06Iceberg, right ahead!
00:08Swift action on the bridge to reduce speed and change the ship's course didn't help.
00:12And you already know how the story ends.
00:15Since then, we've regarded what happened at Titanic as a once-in-a-lifetime event.
00:21Is it, though?
00:22The Titanic sank in 1912.
00:25Forget about fancy GPSs or weather satellites.
00:28At the time, ships were responsible for warning each other about the location of icebergs.
00:34Like a, hey man, trust me on this situation.
00:37Then the Titanic disaster happened.
00:40To call it a disaster is an understatement.
00:43So specialists felt the need to form an organization to avoid this kind of accident happening again.
00:49That's why, a year later, they created the International Ice Patrol, or IIP for short.
00:58Up to this day, this group has been responsible for giving ships advanced warnings about ice threats.
01:04IIP improved their methods over the years, from ship reports and aircraft patrols to satellite images.
01:10Recently, they've also been using oceanographic buoys.
01:14Floating devices providing real-time information about ocean conditions up to 164 feet below the surface to predict the potential
01:23drift of icebergs.
01:24Luckily, IIP is doing an excellent job in reducing ship iceberg collisions.
01:29But don't get too comfortable, because even the most advanced detection equipment can't entirely avoid an unfortunate situation.
01:38Between 1980 and 2005, there were 57 incidents involving vessels and icebergs.
01:45And the chilling truth is that today's ships are more likely to run into an iceberg than the Titanic was.
01:54Studies have shown that 1,038 icebergs crossed the area where the Titanic sank back in 1912.
02:02You might think that's a lot, but scientists say it's not really a big deal.
02:06I mean, yeah, it's on the higher side, but there have been 14 years with even more iceberg activity since
02:12then.
02:13Nowadays, the number of icebergs is going up due to the accelerated melting of Greenland's glaciers.
02:19And since more ships are heading into polar waters, the chances of ships bumping into icebergs are higher.
02:26But the real danger for captains is invisible enemies, called growlers and bergy bits.
02:34Growlers are these small icebergs that can be the size of a regular door.
02:39And bergy bits are also considered small, measuring around the size of a school bus.
02:44These icebergs might seem harmless, but they are actually tricky, since they can be completely invisible to radars or satellites.
02:51Let's see what happens when a modern cruise ship as big as the Titanic hits one of these small icebergs.
02:58Meet the Norwegian Sun, a luxurious cruise ship like Titanic, as it has the capacity to accommodate 2,400 passengers
03:07and more than 900 crew members.
03:09On July 2022, this cruise ship was on its way to Hubbard Glacier in Alaska when it found itself in
03:16the middle of a dense fog.
03:18Suddenly, passengers felt an impact and were terrified as the ship experienced a severe jolt.
03:24The fog immediately cleared, and they realized what had happened.
03:28The Norwegian Sun had collided with an iceberg of the growler type.
03:32But the outcome was entirely different from Titanic.
03:36Thankfully, there were no injuries, and both the passengers and staff reached the Alaskan docks safely.
03:42Expert divers checked the condition of the boat, and they discovered that the ship had suffered some damage after the
03:48collision.
03:49So, the rest of the trip was canceled.
03:54Now, don't stress about packing for your next trip across the Atlantic,
03:57because accidents like the one with the Norwegian Sun are really rare.
04:01I mean, it's common for ships to encounter ice, but what's unusual is for it to be a problem.
04:07Most modern cruise ships wouldn't get physically damaged by an iceberg, and there's a reason for that.
04:13You see, the steel used in the Titanic also played a significant role in the disaster.
04:19The unsinkable ship, after all, was not so impact-resistant.
04:24Back then, the Titanic's hull was constructed using around 2,000 steel plates,
04:29which are believed to have been produced in an open-hearth furnace.
04:33As a result, the steel contained a high concentration of phosphorus, oxygen, and sulfur.
04:39High levels of these elements make steel brittle at low temperatures, causing it to fail upon impact.
04:45While the steel used on the Titanic was of the highest quality available at the time,
04:51it wouldn't meet the safety standards of modern ships,
04:53and it was approximately 10 times less safe than what today's vessels use.
05:01But the most significant difference between the design of the Titanic and a modern ship
05:06lies in how the hull is put together.
05:09You see, the Titanic was built using over 3 million rivets for its hull and upper deck structure.
05:14So, when it struck the iceberg, the rivet started a chain reaction,
05:19causing the entire section of the hull to collapse simultaneously,
05:23causing an uncontrollable flood of water.
05:26In contrast, modern ships use a method called submerged arc welding,
05:31which fuses the edges of metal pieces together, creating a strong and continuous bond.
05:36This is safer because if any part of the ship gets damaged,
05:40the tear doesn't spread, making things worse.
05:43The damage remains contained within that section.
05:46Okay, so small icebergs are becoming more common,
05:50and vessels have been adapted to deal with them.
05:52But there's still one more scenario to consider.
05:55What if a huge cruise ship hit an iceberg the size of a 5-story building?
06:02Imagine we've just created the world's largest cruise ship on the planet.
06:06Um, let's call it the Bright Seaside.
06:09Our floating resort is massive, four times the size of the Statue of Liberty.
06:14It's longer than the Titanic by 318 feet and carries about three times more passengers and crew.
06:21And just like the Titanic, our fictional ship can cruise at a top speed of around 23 knots.
06:28Now, picture this scenario.
06:30The Bright Seaside is cruising at full speed in freezing waters.
06:34It's the middle of the night, and the captain doesn't realize that all the iceberg-detecting equipment on board isn't
06:41functioning.
06:42It stopped working three days ago.
06:43But it's very foggy out there, and the lookout also fails to spot a 45-foot-tall iceberg.
06:51If that whole situation played out, and the ship smacked into the iceberg head-on,
06:56well, it could potentially lead to a sinking.
06:59But you can see how unlikely that is, right?
07:02That's why experts are quite confident in saying that ice isn't likely to sink modern cruise ships.
07:08It's also worth mentioning that safety measures have improved a lot since Titanic.
07:13A modern large vessel can take days to sink, which provides enough time to keep everyone safe.
07:19Crews are definitely better prepared to handle evacuation procedures,
07:23and passengers should also go through safety training before cruising.
07:27I know, I know, it is annoying to do that when all you want to do is drink a lemonade
07:32or some other beverage by the pool.
07:34But, you know, all these safety tips are what saved the MS Explorer from becoming a modern Titanic.
07:43You see, back in 2007, all 154 people on board this Antarctic cruise ship managed to get into lifeboats after
07:52the ship hit an iceberg.
07:53Now, imagine their panic as they waited for help for four hours.
07:57The crew did an excellent job in keeping everybody safe, no doubt.
08:01But a report that came out two years later said that the MS Explorer accident had happened
08:07because of the inexperience of the captain, who had pushed the ship too fast into a wall of ice in
08:14the freezing waters of Antarctica.
08:16That means that no matter how much tack a ship's got or how fancy its materials are,
08:22if you've got a careless captain and a crew that doesn't know how to handle an iceberg yet,
08:26yep, a disaster similar to Titanic could happen again.
08:30But, hey, you shouldn't stress over it.
08:33Trust the professionals and keep in mind the odds.
08:36In the last 30 years, the MS Explorer was the only cruise ship that sank thanks to an iceberg.
08:42And everyone survived.
08:44So kick back and enjoy your sea vacation.
08:48It seems like we all cried watching the heartbreaking goodbye of Jack and Rose from the Titanic.
08:55Oops, spoiler, sorry.
08:57But the real-life stories from the sinking of the famous ship were no less touching.
09:02Joseph LaRoche was born in 1886 in Haiti to a wealthy family.
09:06He was growing up without a dad.
09:08But his mother was a self-made woman and a respected merchant.
09:12His uncle was the head of his country.
09:15Joseph was fluent in French, Creole, and English.
09:18At the age of 15, Joseph realized he wanted to become an engineer.
09:22There were no engineering schools in Haiti, so he moved to France to get his education.
09:27The journey took him a whopping 83 days.
09:30Still, in his student years, Joseph met Juliet in a suburb of Paris through a mentor.
09:36They soon became friends, and then it grew into something bigger.
09:39The couple decided to get married.
09:42There was only one problem.
09:44Joseph couldn't find a well-paid, qualified job even after completing his studies because of racial discrimination.
09:51The intelligent young man realized he could do better.
09:54Plus, he needed to provide for his growing family.
09:57His third kid was on the way.
09:59His uncle back in Haiti promised he'd help Joseph secure a job as a mathematics professor.
10:04His mother was overjoyed that her son and his family would be living in Haiti.
10:10She bought them first-class tickets for the French liner La France as a reunion gift.
10:15But that liner had really weird rules separating parents from their offspring for meals.
10:21The La Roches didn't want to leave their youngsters and make them feel sad on a trip across the ocean.
10:26So, they decided to trade their first-class tickets for La France for second-class tickets for RMS Titanic's maiden
10:34voyage.
10:35The Titanic was all the hype, and it didn't separate families.
10:39So, it looked like a great deal.
10:41They planned to change for another ship in New York that would take them straight to their final destination in
10:47Haiti.
10:47The family boarded the Titanic on April 10, 1912, at Cherbourg.
10:53They had three days to enjoy the luxurious staterooms, a dining salon, a library, and three outdoor promenade decks, available
11:01to second-class passengers.
11:03Juliet sent a letter to her father from Titanic's final stop in Queenston, Ireland.
11:08She told him they were more than happy with the accommodation.
11:11They had two bunks in their cabin and a couch that converted into a bed for their youngest family members.
11:17The family made friends with some nice co-passengers, with whom they had traveled together from Paris.
11:23She thought they had been the only other French people on board, so they sat together for meals.
11:29Juliet mentioned they had all spent time together on the deck of the liner.
11:33She also wrote the people on board were friendly.
11:35Although, some sources say the family had gone through quite a lot of mean stares, gossip, and remarks.
11:42On the night of April 14, their exciting journey came to an abrupt end.
11:47Even though Titanic's wireless operators had received warnings about drifting ice from nearby ships, the liner continued to plow ahead
11:56at full throttle.
11:57It was around 11.40 p.m. when Titanic's hull collided with the iceberg around 370 miles off the coast
12:05of Newfoundland.
12:05The practically unsinkable ship was severely under-equipped with lifeboats, enough for only about half of its 2,200 passengers.
12:14The nearest rescue ship, the Carpathia, was too far away to help.
12:19A steward woke up the LaRoche family and took them to the lifeboats, as Juliet remembered later.
12:24She couldn't speak any English, so everything that was going on seemed even scarier to her.
12:29A little after midnight, the crew received the order to give priority to women and children when boarding the lifeboats.
12:37Juliet later remembered a terrible panic had begun, as people had been pushing each other to get to the desired
12:43seat.
12:44At some point, she felt they had pulled away her older daughter and thrown her into the abyss.
12:50A moment later, she had joined her Simone in the same emptiness.
12:53So, pregnant Juliet and her two daughters got spots in lifeboat 14.
12:59But they had to say goodbye to Joseph, as the boat was being lowered into the sea.
13:04He wrapped his coat around Juliet, saying she'd need it,
13:07and promised to get in another lifeboat and see her in the little ones again in New York.
13:13The 25-year-old Joseph LaRoche didn't manage to stay true to his word.
13:17In a couple of hours, Titanic sank underwater, taking the lives of almost 1,500 people.
13:25Joseph was one of them.
13:27Juliet and the girls were among the 700 survivors who had been rescued by the canard liner Carpathia several hours
13:34later.
13:35Once they reached New York, they were looking through the crowds of people, hoping to see Joseph again.
13:40When it became obvious they wouldn't find him, it was time for them to decide what to do and where
13:46to go.
13:47Without any knowledge of English or money that had gone down with the ship,
13:52Juliet managed to survive in America only for three weeks and then had no other choice but to go back
13:58to France.
13:59Joseph's uncle was no longer able to help them, as others had taken his life four months after the Titanic
14:05tragedy.
14:06In December 1912, Juliet gave birth to a son who she named Joseph after his father.
14:12For the rest of her life, she couldn't get over the loss of her beloved husband.
14:17That's why she didn't like to speak about what had happened on Titanic and told her children not to mention
14:23it.
14:24In 1995, a member of the Titanic Historical Society interviewed Louise,
14:30who was the last remaining La Roche child and the last French survivor of the sinking.
14:35And that's when the world first heard about this heartbreaking story.
14:39It inspired some plays and articles, but it never got the same attention as the story of other passengers.
14:46You probably remember the elderly couple going down together in their bed on the Titanic.
14:52It was inspired by Isidore and Ida Strauss.
14:55They were both born in Germany and emigrated to the United States as kids.
14:59They met in New York and got married five years later.
15:03Isidore started a china and porcelain business with his brother that grew into the glassware department at Macy's
15:09and turned them into multi-millionaires.
15:12Isidore and Ida were well-known in New York, not only for their wealth and charity,
15:17but also for their love and devotion to each other.
15:20In 1912, the couple decided to run away from the New York winters and headed for Europe.
15:26By that time, they'd already been married for 40 years.
15:30In early April, it was time for them to sail back home to New York.
15:33They normally traveled on huge German liners,
15:36but at that time, they couldn't resist the hype of everyone talking about that new luxury liner, the RMS Titanic.
15:44That's how they ended up in one of the first-class private suites at the top of the ship.
15:49The Strauss couple spent their evenings dining in front of a live orchestra
15:53in a hall filled with fancy furniture and expensive wooden paneling.
15:58On the night of April 14th, they felt a slight tremor
16:02and then left their private suite and waited for instructions from the crew.
16:06They told the passengers not to lose their passes,
16:09as they'd need them when everyone got back on board.
16:12But the ship was going under.
16:14The Strauss couple were standing next to lifeboat 8.
16:17Mr. Strauss, who was 67 at the time,
16:20was offered a seat with his wife because of his age.
16:23He refused it, saying he was not too old to sacrifice himself for a woman.
16:28He wanted to wait and make sure no women and kids were left behind.
16:33Ellen Bird, Ida's maid, hesitated before getting on the lifeboat.
16:37But Ida told her to go.
16:39She took the easy decision not to leave her husband on the sinking ship.
16:43Ida took off her beautiful mink coat and handed it to her shivering maid,
16:48saying she wouldn't be needing it anymore.
16:52Isidore didn't manage to convince her to save herself,
16:55so they stayed together till the end.
16:58Some of the surviving first-class passengers later remembered
17:01they had seen the couple standing peacefully on the deck,
17:05holding hands, just waiting.
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