Survivor relives Soviet submarine nightmare

LONDON, (CNN) -- As attempts to rescue the stricken Kursk nuclear submarine continue, a Russian who survived being trapped after an explosion on board a Soviet submarine relived his own personal nightmare.

Yevgeny Aznabayev was serving on board the Yankee-I class nuclear-powered ballistic missile submarine when an explosion and fire occurred as the vessel sailed in the Atlantic Ocean, 680 miles northeast of Bermuda on October 6, 1986.

The accident happened when sea water leaked into a seal in a missile hatch cover, reacting with fuel residue from the torpedo tubes and causing an explosion and fire.

Book details survivors' story

Three of the 130 people on board died instantly. Another died after successfully securing the nuclear reactor.

"About three to four minutes after the explosion, we managed to begin climbing until we were about 60 metres above the surface of the ocean," Aznabayev told CNN.com.

"Once we began rising… there was a great feeling of relief on board because we then understood that we would survive."

No chance of survival

A book, Hostile Waters by Peter Huchthausen, Igor Kurdin and R. Alan White, details the story of the K-219 and the battle to save the crew. It was later made into a film starring Rutger Hauer.

Speaking, as the rescue mission continues to save those on board the Kursk, the 48-year-old submariner said the scenario facing him and his colleagues was slightly different to those on the Kursk.

The Atlantic is much deeper than the Barents Sea, where the Kursk lies, and if the K-219 had sunk in the same way, the crew would have had no chance of surviving -- the submarine would have just broken up, Aznabayev said from St Petersburg.

The men spent more than 17 hours on board from the time of the explosion until leaving the vessel, and Aznabayev said experience counted in dealing with the psychological trauma.

Relief

He said the crew, not knowing how long they would remain under water, were economical with the oxygen supply and only spoke when it was absolutely necessary.

And he described the tremendous feeling of relief when the crew saw the ocean, the sun and the boats above.

Aznabayev also paid tribute to the captain of the K-219, Igor Britanov, who he said conducted himself "heroically", and was the last to leave the submarine, taking the vessel's Soviet flag with him.

As for the drama being played out in the Barents Sea, Aznabayev said: "We can't blame anyone for the accident on the Kursk, but as for the general state of our naval fleet -- I put the blame on the Russian leadership."

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August 18, 2000

S.-Petersburg Submariners Club (SPSC)
Submarine World Network
U.S. Peacetime Submarine Accidents
Jane's Information Group
World Navies Today: Russian Submarines

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