Canadian submarine crew describe 'brutal' fire

1.00pm - By TERRY KIRBY


Crew members of the Canadian submarine which burst into flames under the North Atlantic last week have described the 'brutal' fire which filled the vessel with choking fumes and caused the death of one of their colleagues.

They were speaking in Glasgow after Bill Graham, the Canadian defence minister, confirmed that it had not ruled out the possibility of suing the British Government, which sold HMCS Chicoutimi to Canada in a controversial multi-million pound deal.

But Mr Graham, who met Geoff Hoon, the British Defence Minister, yesterday afternoon, stressed that it was important to wait for the results of the formal board of inquiry into the incident.

The fire broke out last Tuesday while the vessel was heading for Nova Scotia, spreading through two decks and cutting out its power; it was eventually towed into Faslane naval base on the Clyde on Sunday after a hazardous rescue operation in rough seas.

The crew told a press conference how they fought the fire in complete darkness as the powerless vessel was tossed around in rough seas.

Lieutenant Chris Saunders, 32, a father of two sons, died from smoke inhalation after being airlifted to hospital in Ireland; two other crew members are still recovering in hospital. Six more were treated on board.

The Commanding Officer, Luc Pelletier, offered his condolences to the family of Lt Saunders, who he said had been overcome 'at an early stage' and whose death was 'very saddening.'

He said: "When you have a small cylinder with a considerable amount of people throughout and fire breaks out, the smoke has nowhere to go. Within two or three seconds, we were in total blackness. We couldn't even see the fire but could feel the heat."

One of those affected by smoke, Lieutenant Commander Douglas Renken, 38, said the fire began in an instrument control panel just ten feet away from him: "I took two or three gulps of bad air before I got a mask and there was a point where I thought I wasn't going to be able to take another breath. That was going to be it. I'm still a little shaky but grateful to be here. I will never forget it. I heard huge popping sounds and [saw] sparks and flames shooting out of the electrical space. It was brutal. The smoke was thick to the point we could barely see the lighting we did have on."

Petty Officer Francis Couture, 36, a father-of-two said he had feared for his life: "At first we heard cracking noises and I thought somebody had fallen down. Then I turned around and saw the flames. The alarm sounded and we started breaking out the masks but by that time the power had gone off. We knew we were in for something quite bad. It was scary. I thought I was going to die."

Speaking earlier after a tour of the vessel, Mr Graham praised the "extraordinary courage and professionalism" of the crew and thanked the Royal Navy for the rescue operation.

He said: "There's an unimaginable degree of damage. It's black. But I don't think anybody could appreciate, unless they have talked to the crew members, when it's totally black and you can't see in front of your face and that boat is pitching about in the sea and you have to get the boat under control so you survive. If it hadn't been for the courage and determination of the crew, this could have been much worse. Canadians are proud of them and how they behaved on the Chicoutimi."

Asked whether his country would sue Britain, Mr Graham, whose government has been under pressure from opposition politicians over the deal, said: "I'm not ruling out any single thing."

He went on: "There is a board of inquiry that will tell us what future actions we should take between ourselves and the UK. I don't think we should make judgements about who's responsible until we know the facts."

The submarine, formerly HMS Upholder, was the last of four diesel electric submarines built in the late 1980's and sold in a deal which has suffered delays, technical problems and cost overruns.

Although the Canadian Navy has insisted they believed the vessel was seaworthy when it was handed over, some reports have suggested HMCS Chicoutimi was so badly corroded, its ability to dive was affected and that it had been 'cannabilised' to provide spare parts for the other three.

- INDEPENDENT