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KFWB NEWS 980 -- ALL NEWS ALL THE TIME
Tuesday, July 02, 2002
Kursk Accident Caused by Explosion of Fuel in Torpedo
MOSCOW (AP) 7.1.02, 1:03p -- The Russian government said
Monday that leaky torpedo fuel caused the explosions that
destroyed the Kursk nuclear submarine, wrapping up nearly two
years of sensitive investigation into one of the country's
worst post-Soviet disasters.
The announcement that the vessel was destroyed by an internal
malfunction -- and not a foreign submarine as had once been
theorized -- was an uncomfortable admission for Russia's
struggling military. The Kursk was one of the navy's most
advanced submarines when it sank in the Barents Sea in August
2000, killing all 118 men aboard.
Industry and Science Minister Ilya Klebanov, who led the
commission investigating the disaster, said a leak of hydrogen
peroxide used to fuel the 65-76 Kit (Whale) torpedo was at
fault, according to the Interfax news agency. The conclusion
was reached unanimously at the commission's last meeting
Saturday, Klebanov said.
"The reason for the accident was a thermal explosion of
torpedo fuel components. It occurred as a result of a leak of
hydrogen peroxide and the ignition of materials in the torpedo
apparatus," Klebanov was quoted as saying.
The torpedo fuel caused one explosion that killed all crew
members in the submarine's first compartment and some in the
next compartment, another commission member, parliament member
Vice Admiral Valery Dorogin, was quoted by Interfax as saying.
Then the fire and increase in pressure caused other ammunition
on the submarine to detonate, resulting in a huge, second
explosion, signaling doom for the entire craft, he said.
Outside observers, including U.S. and Russian experts, had
long ago reached the same conclusion about what destroyed the
Kursk. But the Russian government investigation dragged on,
and Russian officials refused to rule out the theory of a
collision with a foreign submarine -- possibly American or
British -- until recently. Klebanov's office refused to
comment Monday on the announcement, and calls to Dorogin's
office went unanswered.
"We knew this a long time ago," said Igor Kudrin, a former
submarine officer who heads the Submariners' Club in St.
Petersburg, a relief organization of mostly retired officers
that has lobbied on behalf of the victims' families.
While Kudrin said it was some comfort that the commission
agreed with other experts' findings, he added it "will not put
an end to the Kursk story for the relatives."
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