U.S. survivors of 1939 sunken sub fear for trapped Russians

In this story: Without a diving bell, 'they don't have a chance' Memories of Thrasher, Scorpion in the '60s 'We had very little oxygen' RELATED STORIES, SITES

From staff and wire reports

NEW LONDON, Connecticut -- Allen Bryson knows what it's like to be in a submarine trapped underwater, low on oxygen, just like more than 100 Russian sailors whose nuclear sub sank in the Barents Sea. But their situation is even more serious, says Bryson, one of the survivors from the USS Squalus, which went down 13 miles off the New Hampshire coast in 1939.

"They're in deeper water and, as I understand, they have quite a list," he told CNN, referring to reports the Russian submarine Kursk may be leaning on one side on the sea floor.

ALSO For Kursk crew, a cold, dark, scary wait Sinking theories surround Russian sub    VIDEO In 1939, a U.S. sub went down. One survivor talks with Correspondent Kate Amara Play video (QuickTime, Real or Windows Media) CNN's Brian Nelson explores the background of the crippled Russian submarine Play video (QuickTime, Real or Windows Media) CNN's Steve Harrigan describes the rescue effort and provides details about the sub Play video (QuickTime, Real or Windows Media)     AUDIO Listen to CNN anchor Bill Hemmer interview Allen Bryson, a surviving crew member of the USS Squalus 1.1MB/50 sec. AIFF or WAV sound Paul Beaver of Jane's Defence Weekly assesses the situation 2.6MB/63 sec. AIFF or WAV sound     MESSAGE BOARD Submarine rescue     RESOURCES Comparative size of stranded sub. Submarine position underwater Details of the Kursk CNN Cold War Special: The frightening world of nuclear accidents

The more list the ship has, the less likelihood a pressurized diving bell or some other submersible could be angled into position to carry out a successful rescue, he explained.

"You have to get a seal between the escape chamber and the submarine before you can open the hatch," said Bryson, who lives in New London, Connecticut.

Bryson, 82, was a 21-year-old machinist's mate second class when the Squalus sank. He is among six of the 33 survivors of the American tragedy who are still alive.

Twenty-six crewmen perished when the U.S. sub went down in 250 feet of water during its trial run. The Russian ship is at about 350 feet.

The latest sub disaster "brought back instant, unpleasant memories," said Dan Persico, another Squalus survivor. Now 82, he lives in Amsterdam, New York.

Persico and several other of the survivors held out little hope for the trapped Russian sailors.

"If they don't have a bell or something, they don't have a chance," Gerald McLees, 85, of Portsmouth, New Hampshire, said of the rescue chamber used to pull the survivors from the Squalus. "I would say these boys are in some real trouble."

The drama of the Russian sub also kindled memories for a former Connecticut seaman. Kimo Ward, a retired sonar technician, helped search for a pair of U.S. nuclear subs lost at sea -- the Thresher in 1963 and the Scorpion in 1968. No one survived either disaster.

Ward served aboard the Thresher until 1962 and was scheduled to be on the sub during its last voyage in April 1963 -- but had been delayed. He knew half the men on the doomed sub.

"You wake up and 60 of my shipmates that I had been with for two years, all of a sudden they were gone," he said. All 129 men aboard perished.

The Squalus sank when valves used to draw water when the sub was on the surface opened without tripping warning indicators in the control room. Investigators later blamed a mechanical malfunction.

The crew then waited 23 hours before another sub arrived carrying a nine-ton diving bell. The bell was lowered to a hatch on the sub and used to rescue the survivors.

McLees was one of the first to ride up; Persico and Bryson were in the last group.

The other remaining living survivors are Carlton Powell of Lompoc, California; Carol Nathan Pierce of Louisville, Kentucky; and Warren Smith of Livingston, Texas.

"During the initial hustle and bustle of activity, you don't have time to think, you have to stop the water from coming in," recalled Bryson. "Then you have to worry about air."

Bryson said the oxygen aboard the Russian sub will run out faster because the boat is in deeper water. "We didn't have enough," Bryson said. "We had very little oxygen."

Said McLees, then a 25-year-old chief electrician's mate, "We were given orders to lay down and take it easy on the oxygen."

Aboard the Squalus, Bryson, McLees and their shipmates worked to seal off the forward battery compartment. But water was not the only menace they faced as the sub tilted, bow up, and descended.

One of the crew noticed that sea water had shorted out one of the ship's two batteries, creating a rapid voltage drain. He wedged himself into a narrow crawl space to shut off the power.

"It's probably a little colder out there (in the Barents Sea) than what we had, but we had no lights," McLees said.

Despite the danger facing the Russians, Persico, a seaman first class aboard the Squalus, offered reason for optimism. Despite being one of the last seaman rescued, "I never gave up hope," he said.

Ward, of Montville, Connecticut, served in the Navy during the height of the Cold War before retiring in 1975. But he identifies with the trapped Russian sailors.

"All submariners are like a brotherhood," he said. "We're a very small group. Even though we were enemies at one point, we all share something most people don't."

The Associated Press contributed to this report.

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REMEMBERING: Links To Submarine Memorial Pages
Deep Submergence Rescue Vehicle - DSRV
World Navies Today: Russian Submarines
Project 949 (Granit) - Oscar-I class
Project 949 A (Antey) - Oscar-II Class
Russian Government Internet Network
Russian Ministry of Defense (in Russian)
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Gray's military sea page
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