DATE=8/20/2000
TYPE=CORRESPONDENT REPORT
TITLE=RUSSIAN SUB 2ND UPD (L)
NUMBER=2-265667
BYLINE=LAURIE KASSMAN
DATELINE=MOSCOW
CONTENT=
VOICED AT:
INTRO: Russian T-V reported Sunday that divers
suspect a crew member of the damaged Russian submarine
Kursk may be trapped in the air lock inside the rear
escape hatch. A Norwegian diving team also has
confirmed damage to the rear escape hatch of the
Kursk, which has been lying for days at the bottom of
the Barents Sea. Correspondent Laurie Kassman brings
us up to date from Moscow.
TEXT: Russian state T-V says that Norwegian divers
checking on the condition of the escape hatch believe
there may be a man trapped inside the transition
chamber. But they do not know if he is dead or alive.
On Saturday the chief of staff of the Northern Fleet
said it was unlikely there are any survivors among the
118 sailors on board the Kursk nuclear submarine more
than one week after it plunged to the bottom of the
sea.
The Norwegian diving team is also trying to unscrew
the bolts of the outside hatch to get into the air
lock and check meters there that would indicate the
air pressure inside the vessel.
Pictures from a remote surveillance camera show a
severe crack in the hatch that has prevented Russian
submersibles from latching onto it. Russia's Deputy
Prime Minister Ilya Klebanov, who is in charge of the
rescue operation, told state T-V he does not think a
British mini-submarine will fare any better.
Britain dispatched the mini-submarine to the accident
site after Russian President Vladimir Putin finally
accepted foreign offers of help last Wednesday, four
days after the accident.
Twelve Norwegian divers, working in relays of three,
are also tapping along the sides of the hull of the
Kursk, to find out which, if any, of the submarine's
compartments might still have some air left. State T-V
says the rescue team suspects two or three of the rear
sections may not yet be flooded.
Earlier Sunday, anxious relatives of the crew attended
church services in the port city of Murmansk. Many had
arrived there after two days travel by train from far-
off villages, angry over what they see as the
government's slow response to the disaster. President
Vladimir Putin now says the rescue operation will
continue to the last moment even as hopes fade of
finding anyone alive. (Signed)
NEB/KS/DW/KL
20-Aug-2000 11:37 AM EDT (20-Aug-2000 1537 UTC)
NNNN
Source: Voice of America
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