# Titanic R/O Blamed



## djmorton (Apr 10, 2006)

I've just uploaded a photo of an item from the Irish Daily Mail 4/11/08 which puts the blame on the words/actions of the Titanic R/O as a reason why the nearby ship the SS Californian, only 20 miles away, missed the titanic's distress message. The article states that had the Californian received the message it could possibly have saved all onboard the Titanic. See photo in the Gallery "Titanic RO Blamed".


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## benjidog (Oct 27, 2005)

Sorry but you can't just copy an article from a newspaper on the site - it is copyright. Please review the Gallery posting rules.

You are welcome to continue this thread with a summary if you wish. The photo will shortly be deleted. I should say that this has also been covered in another thread on the site as well.


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## JimC (Nov 8, 2007)

djmorton said:


> I've just uploaded a photo of an item from the Irish Daily Mail 4/11/08 which puts the blame on the words/actions of the Titanic R/O as a reason why the nearby ship the SS Californian, only 20 miles away, missed the titanic's distress message. The article states that had the Californian received the message it could possibly have saved all onboard the Titanic. See photo in the Gallery "Titanic RO Blamed".


Rubbish!

The R/O of Californian had turned-in over half an hour before the CQD (Distress signal was transmitted). Titanic had 24/7 radio watch, Californian had only one operator and he was off duty. They are referring to an ice warning transmitted earlier by Californian who was stopped in pack ice. The R/O -Phillips - on Titanic was transmitting passenger traffic to Cape Sable and told Californian to 'keep out' as he was jambing signals.
Californian's message was a courtesy one. Titanic already had all the data about (nearly said 'on') ice in the area.

Jim. C


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## King Ratt (Aug 23, 2005)

In 1912, the foundering of the Titanic highlighted a problem. Cargo ships carried only one Radio Officer and did not keep a continuous watch. This led to the introduction of the Automatic alarm - a device which would alert the operator and bridge staff that a distress signal had been received.


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## trotterdotpom (Apr 29, 2005)

Anyone know the story from the Irish Daily Mail - what was suposed to have happened?

John T.


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## BobDixon (Oct 17, 2008)

djmorton said:


> I've just uploaded a photo of an item from the Irish Daily Mail 4/11/08 which puts the blame on the words/actions of the Titanic R/O as a reason why the nearby ship the SS Californian, only 20 miles away, missed the titanic's distress message. The article states that had the Californian received the message it could possibly have saved all onboard the Titanic. See photo in the Gallery "Titanic RO Blamed".


Strange the Irish Daily Mail article appeared the day following a programme "The Unsinkable Titanic" which included the same allegation regarding conduct of the radio staff (but only one of several issues which supposedly contributed to the disaster). "The Unsinkable Titanic" can be viewed at http://www.channel4.com/video/brandless-catchup.jsp?vodBrand=the-unsinkable-titanic for the next 3 weeks.


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## BobDixon (Oct 17, 2008)

trotterdotpom said:


> Anyone know the story from the Irish Daily Mail - what was suposed to have happened?
> 
> John T.


In the Channel 4 do***entary,

1. The Californian's R/O was supposed to have gone off in the huff after being told to stop sending (as previously indicated, Titanic was working commercial traffic at the time), switch his gear off and went off to bed !!
2. There was a dramatised indication that a received ice warning had been "parked" and not treated as worthy of urgent delivery
3. There was a question on whether another Ice Warning had ever been delivered to the bridge. 

There was an indication that several Ice Warnings had been received and delivered to the bridge - but one of the thrusts of the programme was the suggestion of a global warming effect which supposedly shifted the Gulf Stream southwards allowing Icebergs to drift much further south than normally, bringing them into the normally safe southerly route which the Titanic supposedly took. The missing Ice Warnings were supposed to have indicated the presence of the bergs in these more southerly locations.


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## sparkie2182 (May 12, 2007)

so easy to malign a memory from the safety of a studio desk.

it isnt worth dignifying with a response.


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## JimC (Nov 8, 2007)

If anyone's interested - al the details including transcripts of the witness tatements are easily found on the WWW. Look up the appropriate BOT or American Senate Enquiery.


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## BobClay (Dec 14, 2007)

I think the moral of these investigations, stories and explanations is that, isn't the 20 20 vision of hindsight wonderful ?


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## ROBERT HENDERSON (Apr 11, 2008)

The ship was going too fast, the lookouts binoculars were locked uo and the key missing, the ships were switched at H&W,wrong B&Q rivets were used and now it was the ROs fault. What next? firemen put to much coal on the fires and produced to much steam. The theories regarding the loss of the Titanic seem endless, about time it stopped. After all this time it will solve nothing.
Regards Robert


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## Tmac1720 (Jun 24, 2005)

I'm probably paranoid, but one day I fully expect to read it was *my * fault (Cloud) and the *real* reason was the sluice valves were fitted back to front with the floats upside down. Well that's what Tonga told me anyway(Jester)


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## ROBERT HENDERSON (Apr 11, 2008)

TMAC 1720

Come clean, was Tonga correct and it was your fault and not the poor ROs?

Regards Robert


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## Tmac1720 (Jun 24, 2005)

Ah Robert, you *might* think that but I couldn't *possibly* comment (LOL) All I *can* say is that Tonga made his millions flogging dodgy rivets and duff steel to H&W (Smoke) (Jester)


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## non descript (Nov 18, 2005)

*A rivet is a mechanical fastener, before it is installed in its hole, it consists of a smooth cylindrical shaft with a head at one end. The end opposite the head is called the buck-tail. * (EEK) - Frankly this description, whilst accurate, is somewhat of a worry to those of a very sheltered upbringing. (Jester) 

As for _*“Joint analysis”*_ .. I thought that was a discussion about Sunday Lunch. (Smoke)


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## BobClay (Dec 14, 2007)

Sounds to me like a good script for a porno movie .....


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## non descript (Nov 18, 2005)

ROBERT HENDERSON said:


> TMAC 1720
> 
> Come clean, was Tonga correct and it was your fault and not the poor ROs?
> 
> Regards Robert


Robert,

Whilst a fair question, I am bound by the oath of my Ancient Royal Sub-order of Engineering-riveters, and cannot talk (through it) on this occasion, even if many Titanic Idolatry Theologists do feel compelled to…. but I can drop a subtle hint that Mrs Tonga, was initially employed as a Radio Officer, but went on to even higher office….(Thumb)


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## andysk (Jun 16, 2005)

Tonga said:


> …. but I can drop a subtle hint that Mrs Tonga, was initially employed as a Radio Officer, but went on to even higher office….(Thumb)


A lady who has gone up in my estimation even higher.

But surely there is (and can be) no higher office than her previous calling ?

(tin hat and kevlar jacket on, take cover !)


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## non descript (Nov 18, 2005)

R651400 said:


> ....and I was going to say exactly the same.
> Congratulations on your excellent choice of partner Tonga. If you're not having us on, when is the good lady going to join SN and regale us with her side of the story?


Thank you Sir, it was without doubt the wisest choice I ever made; the second wisest choice was also also connected, in that I followed her down the gangway, albeit six months after she had hung up her ear-phones… Have you on? Never ,,,, but I have to confess to a slight poetic licence in that by a quirk of Ship Management, wives were not entitled to sail on the ship, but thanks to a curiosity in the manning arrangements, the ship was obliged to have a British Radio Officer, so Mrs Tonga arrived at Papeete to take up those duties and she remained on the ship for some time, with a particularly strong association with Auckland Radio for reasons that were unclear to me, but maybe they were just not used to female radio officers in those days. (Jester) As for encouraging her to join SN, that might be as unwise as giving her the 2012, 2129, and 2162 as useful frequencies… (Thumb)


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## Harry Nicholson (Oct 11, 2005)

djmorton said:


> I've just uploaded a photo of an item from the Irish Daily Mail 4/11/08 which puts the blame on the words/actions of the Titanic R/O as a reason why the nearby ship the SS Californian, only 20 miles away, missed the titanic's distress message. The article states that had the Californian received the message it could possibly have saved all onboard the Titanic. See photo in the Gallery "Titanic RO Blamed".


A company with rights to remove artifacts from the Titanic asks court to allow it to recover famous radio

https://www.cnn.com/2020/02/19/us/salvage-company-titanic-radio/index.html


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## Troppo (Feb 18, 2010)

This hoary old chestnut has been debunked many times....

Jack and Harry delivered all the ice warnings to the bridge.


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## sparkie2182 (May 12, 2007)

.... And summoned assistance despite the tx being down the previous day.


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## rknibbs (Mar 11, 2006)

The Titanic disaster was, like so many disasters, occurred because a number of incidents happened and the ***ulative effect resulted in the disaster. Focusing on one element neglects all the other contributory factors - radio, number of lifeboats, speed, lookouts, steering, rules and regulations at the time, etc. It happened, nobody wanted it to happen and it was a disaster that happened alongside many other disasters - it was the scale of loss that was different


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## J. Davies (Dec 29, 2010)

I was on board "DSSV Pressure Drop" last August when Victor Vescovo dived the wreck, the last person to do so. Parks Stephenson, probably the foremost authority on Titanic, was also on board. Plus the NOAA representative who kept a watchful eye on proceedings. All are in agreement that if RMS wish to salvage the radio room, they will have to act fast. The wreck is deteriorating at a rapid rate and returning to nature. Let it be so, and let her rest in peace. And as for dragging up old slurs about the R/Os, they should also be laid to rest.

https://caladanoceanic.com/


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## Stephen J. Card (Nov 5, 2006)

J. Davies said:


> I was on board "DSSV Pressure Drop" last August when Victor Vescovo dived the wreck, the last person to do so. Parks Stephenson, probably the foremost authority on Titanic, was also on board.
> The wreck is deteriorating at a rapid rate and returning to nature. Let it be so, and let her rest in peace. And as for dragging up old slurs about the R/Os, they should also be laid to rest.
> 
> https://caladanoceanic.com/



Some of the comments about 'steel special wireless room' etc are a bit off base. The whole of the officer's accommodation and radio room was all steel... on the Boat Deck. Of course bulkheads between would be wood. Normal. As far as trying to save some pieces of the radio equipment I think they are wasting their time. The equipment was little more than wood and some copper or brass. What would be left? 

Stephen


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## Stephen J. Card (Nov 5, 2006)

Photo of wreck showing location of Radio Room

Photo of Titanic's Radio Room with R/O Phillips or Harold Bride.


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## sparkie2182 (May 12, 2007)

Precicely.


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## Troppo (Feb 18, 2010)

J. Davies said:


> I was on board "DSSV Pressure Drop" last August when Victor Vescovo dived the wreck, the last person to do so. Parks Stephenson, probably the foremost authority on Titanic, was also on board. Plus the NOAA representative who kept a watchful eye on proceedings. All are in agreement that if RMS wish to salvage the radio room, they will have to act fast. The wreck is deteriorating at a rapid rate and returning to nature. Let it be so, and let her rest in peace. And as for dragging up old slurs about the R/Os, they should also be laid to rest.
> 
> https://caladanoceanic.com/


The same Parks Stephenson who tried to tell me that the transmitter could only be adjusted from the silent room...the installation effectively required 2 R/Os to operate it....aaahh, no.

And, yes, I used to run a webpage specialising in the radio aspects of the Titanic disaster...


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## Troppo (Feb 18, 2010)

Stephen J. Card said:


> Photo of Titanic's Radio Room with R/O Phillips or Harold Bride.


That's Harry. Taken by Fr. Brown, who disembarked at Queenstown.


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## Stephen J. Card (Nov 5, 2006)

Troppo said:


> The same Parks Stephenson who tried to tell me that the transmitter could only be adjusted from the silent room...the installation effectively required 2 R/Os to operate it....aaahh, no.
> 
> And, yes, I used to run a webpage specialising in the radio aspects of the Titanic disaster...



Hmmmmm. 'silent room'? Might be 'insulated' so the second operator could get some sleep in the adjacent sleeping cabin.

Another... how did the set be adjusted on CALIFORNIA if there was only one operator?


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