Two attempts to rescue the 116 crewmen trapped in the Russian nuclear submarine Kursk were unsuccessful last night, due to bad weather and poor visibility. After nearly four days at the bottom of the sea, the crewmen on the stricken vessel are known to be running short of oxygen.
In the latest rescue attempt, early this morning, a Russian rescue capsule hovered directly above the sunken submarine but was unable to dock, according to reports. Visibility in the Barents Sea was limited to just two metres, and navy officers guiding the capsule from the surface ship, Rudnitsky, were unable to steer the craft to an emergency hatch on the submarine 350 ft below.
Earlier, the navy reported that its first rescue attempt last night had also ended in failure. The first rescue craft was unable to connect to the escape hatch because of stormy weather.
Reports said that storms in the area had subsided, but that visibility in the water remained poor.
Yesterday evening, Moscow announced it was sending a team of senior admirals to NATO headquarters in Brussels to discuss the situation, marking a U-turn in its earlier refusal of all offers of Western help.
The navy chief, Admiral Vladimir Kuroyedov, reported to President Putin that the chances of a successful operation were slim because of stormy conditions.
"Our hopes are receding daily," Admiral Kuroyedov said last night. "Experts believe the submarine will run out of oxygen before August 18th. We must act fast . . . The only certainty is that people inside the submarine are alive and sending SOS signals."
Navy officers and government officials said three main causes of the incident were being considered: that the submarine had hit a second World War mine; that it had collided with another vessel, perhaps a foreign surveillance craft; or that there had been an accident on board while firing torpedoes, which had caused the front of the vessel to flood.
Reconnaissance photographs showed that the submarine's missile silo cover had been blown off, the conning tower dented, and material from the vessel scattered across the seabed.
The Russians are said to have 11 rescue vessels, all ageing, each capable of carrying 20 men. The capsules resemble mini-submarines equipped with special lighting and video equipment.
Admiral Kuroyedov was quoted as saying that the navy would try to lift the crippled submarine to the surface with inflatable pontoons if the escape capsules were not successful.
Preparations were being made last night to send a British submersible to the Kursk's aid. The British government has chartered an aircraft, which is due to arrive at Scotland's Prestwick airport this morning to pick up the submersible.