Ice & Iron (Titanic)

Chapter 16

As some of the men aboard the lifeboat began to row us away from the Titanic, I looked at the once mighty ship, now helplessly sinking. At the stern, four rows of lights could be seen above the waterline. But at the bow, only two rows could be seen. The bow was being pulled under due to taking on water by an alarming rate. I remembered Murdoch telling us that Thomas Andrews thought the ship would stay afloat for at least two hours. One had already passed.

"We have to get as far away as we can," Alfred Hogg said. "When the ship goes under, the suction will be so great, that anything near it will go down as well."

As we were rowed away from the Titanic, I took off one of my gloves and leant over the edge of the water, dipping my fingers in. Immediately I pulled my hand away and wiped them on my coat. The water was freezing! And so was the night air, which I hadn't noticed the chilly factor in it until now. Everyone's breath was visible in the icy night air. We didn't know how long we would be sitting in these lifeboats for.

I looked back at the ailing Titanic. Especially at our launch area along the starboard side. I could see Murdoch and the other officers launching another lifeboat. At least for now I could still see my stepfather. In that moment, I was proud of how he was trying to save as many people as he could from the sinking ship.

"We can still see him," I whispered to Mother. She put her arms around me and hugged me close.

"What's going to happen to us now?" another passenger asked.

"All I know is that the ship did make contact with another ship," Hogg said. "They are too far away to prevent the sinking, but they'll rescue any survivors when they arrive."

Talking about survivors. That meant people would die tonight. I suddenly thought of everyone I knew aboard the Titanic.

Joe and his parents.

Annie and her family.

Ellen and her family.

Hazel.

Mother friends; Margaret, Ruth and Mary.

And finally...Murdoch.

How many would survive, and how many would die this fateful night?

Soon, Alfred Hogg decided our lifeboat was far enough away from the sinking ship that we would be safe from any suction. Now all we could do was sit and watch and wait.

The water was now up to the edge of the bow's railing. None of that part of the hull could be seen. I could see two more lifeboats making their way towards us. Back on the Titanic, Murdoch was small figure in the distance. The way only to distinguish him was the passengers was the officers uniform.

As time passed by, the bow disappeared under the surface of the water and the stern started to rise. Looking at where the bow had once been, my mind went back in time to when everything was perfect. Titanic was sailing to New York, she was fit and strong, not ailing and helpless. I remembered the orange glow of the sunset over the horizon, standing on the bow. I could no longer see the area where Joe and I kissed, it was under water. Doomed. Like whatever friendship Joe and I had.

A bright red light cast an eerie glow over the Titanic and the water. Another distress flare signal. Surely other ships would see it and come to the rescue?

As the ship's stern begin to rise out the water, passengers were ending up in the cold water. Were they jumping or falling?

Like I was frozen in time, I could only watch the horror that was unfolding in front of me. I had a front row seat to this nightmare, and I wish I could wake up. All the lifeboats seemed to have launched, still leaving many people on board. It was a harsh reality, that only a small percentage of Titanic's passengers floated around in the small, wooden lifeboats.