Russians Angry, Anxious About Sub

Aug. 16, 2000 -- As more than 100 Russian sailors sit trapped in a crippled submarine, anger and anxiety is wracking their nation.

One father, who served 22 years in the Soviet navy himself, tells ABCNEWS he holds out slim hopes for his son.

“The chances aren’t good,” he says. “The temperature is very low inside [the submarine]. The oxygen must be low too.”

“They said this ship was one of the best, the safest,” says another parent, the mother of a sailor thought to be on board the Kursk, which was taking part in military exercises on Saturday, when some sort of mishap sent it to the bottom of the Barents Sea, north of the Arctic Circle.

“The worst is not knowing what’s happening to him now.”

‘We Don’t Know Anything …’

Navy officials have given very little information about the situation on the submarine and seem confused, says the wife of a senior officer thought to be on board.

“We don’t know anything about what’s happening inside [the Kursk],” said the woman, who asked to be identified only by her first name, Oksana. “I can’t imagine what could have gone wrong.”

The navy has not released a list of the men aboard the Kursk, many of whom are young conscripts who are sometimes moved from ship to ship with little warning.

Emotions are running highest in Murmansk, a seaside town where many of the residents have relatives and friends onboard the trapped Kursk. It is the city closest to the naval base of Severomorsk.

“It’s shameful, shameful. We’re supposed to be a great power,” says one young man at the seaport.

“I have been very worried. I have even had difficulties falling asleep because I feel they are like my kids those trapped in there and also because Murmansk is so close and that submarine, it is you know, nuclear. It has a nuclear reactor,” says Anna, another resident.

Fear and Anger in Murmansk

Families of sailors thought to be on the vessel have begun arriving in Murmansk. Anna Kubikova, the mother of a sailor, said she was trying to find out if her son was aboard the crippled submarine.

“We turned to the military commandant for more accurate information, even as to whether our son is on the submarine or not,” she told the RTR television network, wringing her hands nervously.

Navy veterans living in Murmansk are glum about the chances of rescuing the crew. Those with experience aboard submarines say underwater escapes are very difficult and rarely succeed.

“It’s like a huge metal house, full of people, that lies under water, with no light and no air supply,” says Dmitry Rakitin, head of a navy officers’ association.

“And nothing is known about what’s happening inside — that’s the most frightening thing,” he said.

Ready to Help Any Survivors

Yet, emergency wards in Murmansk are racing to prepare themselves for any survivors.

“First of all I must say that our hospital is highly specialized, highly qualified in giving surgical, emergency treatment to a completely modern standard. So we are completely prepared to accept and give treatment to those who may need it according to the highest modern standards,” said Dr. Ruslan Khadbievich, head of surgery at Sevryba Hospital.

Many Murmansk residents are incredulous that foreign offers of help in the rescue effort have not yet been accepted.

“There are many variants why the Americans want to help,” said resident Alexander Antonov. “The submarine is a secret but I think the people are the most important thing.”

ABCNEWS’ Hilary Brown and The Associated Press contributed to this report.