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Norwegian Divers Open Inner Hatch of Russian Sub
Norwegian divers opened the inner hatch of the sunken Russian nuclear-powered submarine Kursk's ninth unit at about 1 p.m. Moscow time (0900 GMT) Monday, Russian media reported.
Navrotsky said that the unit was filled with water. They are now considering the possibility of examining the unit with a video camera, Interfax quoted spokesman for the Northern Fleet Vladimir Navrotsky as saying.
If it is established that air remains there, the government commission, operating on the Pyotr Veliky cruiser, will decide what divers should do next, Itar-Tass said, citing Russia's Northern Fleet press service.
The operation is supervised by commander-in-chief of the Russian navy Vladimir Kuroyedov and the head of the government commission, Deputy Premier Ilya Klebanov.
The press service stressed that the British LR-5 mini-submarine cannot dock with the upper escape hatch. Therefore, it will not be lowered to the submarine Kursk.
Earlier Monday, the Norwegian divers opened the emergency hatch of Kursk's ninth compartment at 7:45 a.m. Moscow time (0345 GMT), and nobody was found in the docking area, which is flooded, Russian Northern Fleet commander Vyacheslav Popov told the RTR state television.
Experts said if the valve to the inner hatch is opened, that would mean that hatch is also flooded. That scenario would most probably prevent any attempt to get anybody out alive.
Measurements by the divers showed that there is no radiation danger inside the ninth section of the Russian submarine.
The Kursk, with 118 crew on board, went down to the bottom of the Barents Sea on August 12. Russian authorities said most of those aboard probably died within minutes when the accident occurred.
With the sub stranded at 100 meters undersea for more than a week, hopes are getting dim for finding any survivors.
On Sunday, the divers located some spaces that are not filled with water, but the pressure in those air pockets might just be too high to sustain human life.
The "Kursk" was commissioned for the Russian Navy in 1995. It has a displacement of 14,700-23,860 tons and can dive to depths of up to 500 meters. The submarine is armed with torpedoes and "Granite" cruise missiles.
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