To avoid running aground himself, the captain of the vessel that made a hole in our "Rinuzha" and was towing the "injured" steamer to the shallows ordered his sailors to release all mooring lines and leave the sinking steamer to the mercy of the waves.
Continuation. Beginning HERE
Oars in the water!
While we were moored alongside the Finnish steamer "Rundal", thanks to the leveling of the vessel, we managed to lower the lifeboat from the starboard side.
We brought the lifeboat to the port side and the evacuation of the crew began. It was dangerous to descend from the starboard side, as the vessel could capsize at any moment.
But now — everyone is in the lifeboat. I was assigned the duty of being an oarsman. But it was hard to work: the lifeboat was full of people. And not only that. Our resourceful crew member Vityok, to avoid wasting food, threw several bags of flour and sugar into the lifeboat from the side of "Rinuzha". And for the smokers — cardboard boxes with packs of "Shipka" cigarettes. And for those with a sweet tooth — many watermelons, just received from the base in Liepaja. The watermelons soon floated away on the waves, but we had to struggle with the bags.
Captain of long-distance navigation Oleg Shovgenya.
But now, the oars are in place, the command sounds: "Oars — in the water!" We row towards the Finnish steamer, which is quite far away.
Suddenly, we hear the sound of a motor approaching us. It’s a motorboat from the steamer "Rundal" hurrying to the lifeboat. Soon we are on board the steamer, where we are warmly welcomed and given hot tea.
While on board the steamer "Rundal", we sadly watched as our "sea home" sank into the water. Life on the ship continued almost until the end: only part of the superstructure remained above water, and the radar antenna was spinning. The next day, one of the Danish newspapers featured the headline: "The radar was working, but the vessel sank"...
On our approach to Copenhagen, a tugboat took us off the steamer and delivered the crew of "Rinuzha" to the capital of Denmark. In Copenhagen, we were accommodated in the "Esplanaden" hotel. In the morning, we bought newspapers at the hotel kiosk, featuring the latest photographs of the sinking "Rinuzha". We recalled the seaplanes and tugs that circled the area of the shipwreck, meaning the photos were taken from them…
On September 24, the passenger ship "Nadezhda Krupskaya", from the "Mikhail Kalinin" series, arrived in Copenhagen. Several such ships operated on the London-Havre-Copenhagen-Stockholm-Helsinki-Leningrad route. And the combat members of our crew suddenly became passengers on this ship, heading from the Danish capital to the northern capital – the Russian one.
Both are to blame!
But not everyone boarded the "Nadezhda Krupskaya". Several crew members remained in Copenhagen. They were to give testimony in court. Below are excerpts from the memories of the second mate Oleg Shovgenya (now a captain), who was on watch when the collision occurred:
"Most of the day was spent rewriting documents, extracts from logs, written testimonies of witnesses. A representative of the shipping company, a former captain, Viktor Volkov, arrived in Copenhagen to oversee these matters. He gave no one a minute's rest — from morning until late evening, usually until 11:00 PM. Mostly, we were rewriting papers due to mistakes and typos. This happened due to extreme fatigue and lack of sleep. Three days after the disaster, the second mate had a birthday, but he didn’t even remember it.
However, once the documents were submitted to the court, the tension eased, and sometimes we could allow ourselves to take a walk around Copenhagen. <...>
The court took place, testimonies were given. We answered questions. <...>
In general, there were no claims against the crew of the "Rinuzha", and particularly against the navigation team. It was clear that the collision was the fault of the steamer "Rundal", but still, they found a point for doubt: "Last-minute maneuver." They deemed it unnecessary to give full astern when the steamer "Rundal" appeared visually. They thought it would have been more advisable to give ahead and turn the vessel to the left to collide head-on, thus avoiding the sinking of the vessel. Maybe it could have been done. But, on the other hand, in that case, it would have been easy to shift 100% of the blame for the collision onto the "Rinuzha".
So in the end, the court decided that the losses should be shared equally."
We are passengers!
But let’s return to September 24 on board the passenger ship "Nadezhda Krupskaya". We were accommodated in third-class cabins, on the very bottom "deck". At exactly 2:00 PM, the ship departed from the Copenhagen pier and headed towards the Swedish capital.
During this crossing, nothing happened. The "chief officer" of our crew, in the absence of the captain and other commanders, was appointed the first, that is, political, assistant to the captain. First of all, he suggested that everyone who had bought newspapers in Copenhagen describing the collision destroy them. He said that Western printed materials should not be brought to the USSR. Immediately, we all expressed our dissatisfaction. The first officer understood that it was not worth insisting, and most likely he himself had such "printed materials". A compromise was reached: to keep only the front pages of the newspapers.
The steamer "Nadezhda Krupskaya" is navigating under the pilot's guidance.
Soon, the first officer announced that everyone should write a statement to the shipping company listing the property lost during the sinking of "Rinuzha", requesting reimbursement for its value. And submit this paper to him.
We fantasized a bit, but within realistic limits, and submitted the statements to the first officer. And that evening, he again made a suggestion: to repeat the statement for compensation for the lost property. Don’t forget anything! We didn’t forget and submitted copies of what we had written in the morning. Let the first officer compare.
It’s a job like this!
And now we are free passengers, even went to the music salon in the evening. Like some aristocrats. And I managed to befriend an English teacher heading to work in the Finnish city of Kemi. We found common interests in postcard collecting. His name was Donald Stewart and he was from Scotland. Such a famous name and surname.
On September 25, in the afternoon, the "Nadezhda Krupskaya" docked in Stockholm, and by evening it was already at sea, heading to Helsinki. The weather was excellent. The ship was navigating under the pilot's guidance. The sailors of "Rinuzha" were happy about the upcoming meeting with their home.
And suddenly, for several minutes — a terrible sound! — as if the ship had turned into a huge tractor going over stones.
And soon, "by compulsion", the voice of the breathless passenger assistant of the "Nadezhda Krupskaya" sounded:
— There has been a technical inconvenience. Please — do not worry! The situation is under control! There are no grounds for concern…
After each word, the speaker took two or three breaths.
But there was a reason to worry: the "Nadezhda Krupskaya" had punctured its hull in the Swedish skerries.
Vladimir NOVIKOV
To be continued
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