PAGE TWO
MAKING SUBMARINES SAFE.
TESTS CARRIED OUT IN AMERICA.
$29
HONGKONG TELEGRAPH, MARCH 8th, 1930.
Here is the U. S. Navy's S-29 which has become a test ship for submarine safety deviera at the San Diego naval base. At the left, a Machinist's Mate is demonstrating how a silor, wearing a "mechaacial lung." grapes from a sunken sub via the turret-like escape lock, in- dicated by the arrow. Oue of the steel rings for the quick lifting of sunken subs, climinating the necessity for weary tunnelling through the mud by divers in order to pas chains under
neath, may be seen on the S-20's hull,
:
At a time when the Five-Power crews like rats in a trap if it can, to the hollom. Conference is considering whether help it.
some-
his way to the surface.
Two methods of escape from a sunken submarine have been worked out; an escape lock, and un escape hatch. They are what similar in principle, and each performs the task of getting the sailor out of a sunken sub- marine so that He can float to the surface. In the past all rescue efforts have been concentrated on raising the sunken hulk with the men inside.
been made, the sailors open a door cut low in the side of the lock, duck down through it and step out into the water, holding on to the life-line as they rise to the surface.
Must Ascend. Slowly. Extreme care must be taken not to come up too fast, for the sudden change from high pressure gives a man the dreaded "bends," which, is often fatal. So a sailor escaping from a submarine has to stop every 10 feet and breathe deeply; 10 times at the first stop, 20 times at the second, and so on.
Eventually, he reaches the sur- face and elings to the buoy there or is picked up by a rescue ship..
The escape hatch is somewhat similar, but much more simple. It! is simply a cylindrical tube extend.! ing downward through the sub- marine's deck, that is entered: direct from the flooded compart- ment by men who find temporary safely in the air pocket created acar the ceiling.
Since the last big submarine disaster, all U. S. subs have been equipped with the lungs, although only the S-22 on the Atlantic side and the S-29 here have been pro- vided with escape locks as yet,
How they Escape. is The
more escape lock elaborate than the escape hatch. It consists of a sizable turret-like room built on top of the sub- marine's hull. and entered from below by a ladder. The sailors- a large submarine carries about
In a submarine equipped with of 30 men-enter it in groups both of these devices there are, ac-
even. Once inside, they close the
cordingly, two methods for escape, trap doors leading from the com
No More Weary Tunnelling. partment below, and open a sen
The S-29 is also equipped with a valve which admits water into the lock from below,
series of "pad eyes," or rings of The water rises until it is ap-steel attached to the outer shell. proximately chest-deep, when the If a submarine is on the bottom, bubble of air which it traps holds
divers from salvage ships can at- it stationary and forms an air tach the lifting pontoons to these pocket. The sailors then put on
rings without the labourious work their mechanical lungs and All
of days in tunnelling through the. thest from the oxygen tanks.
mud to pars cabies underneath. In the effort to raise the S-51.
The two buoys are released, One, painted in bright colours, is marker or signal bucy. It floats to the surface and marks the sub. I marine's position so that rescue ships can find it easily. A tele- phone wire and instrument are in To begin with, it carries a stock cluded, so that men on the surface Making Rigid Tests. of mechanical "lungs," invented can talk to the men below, thus or not the submarine ought not to
The submarine S-29, attached to by Lieuteant Charles B. Momsen, eliminating the necessity of send be abolished in all navies, United States Navy, at its Pacific the battle fleet at the San Diego a submarine officer. The lung is ing down divers to hammer mess- a sort of a rabberized bag with a capacity ages on the steel hull in the Morse base at San Diego has been going naval base, has became ahead with the perfection of de experiment ship for these devices approximating that of a person's code as in the tragic case of the The other buoy supports the vices to make its submarines safer, and rigorous safely tests are now lungs, a rubber mouthpiece and a for the men who operate them. It being made. The 5-29 is equipped eries of valves. Before using, the is not going to have another dis- with, safety features that would wearer fills the bag with oxygen lines on which the men will go to aster like those that befell the S-1 sable its crew to escape even if it from a tank in the submarine; and the surface. and the S-51 and drowned their should become disabled and plunge this supplies him while he is on
the
S-4.
When these preparations have
which sank off Block Island several years ago, many weeks were wast- ed because the divers were forced to dig tunnels under the sunken hulk in order to pass cables and chains around it.
There are ako numerous other
less important safety features now
in use.
Sailors attached to the S-29 have
lock repeatedly, and it is believed tested the excupe hatch and escape
that sailors wearing the Momser
from submarines lying as far be- lungs could escape by these devices low the surface as 300 feet.
PICTORIAL SUPPLEMENT
In
these strenuous
days-
Dr. Johnson once said that no man could travel more than 20 miles an hour and live. What would he have thought of 5 miles a minute!
The habit of speed extends to our every-day. lives. We work in a hurry and more ztronu-
atrenuous ously. We rush from work to sport. There is no time to idle-no time to relax.
1
"
Those wonderful engines-our bodies-can- not 'keep pace with these strenuous times without special help. The bodily functions become impaired. The nerves become frayed and worn.
The rebuilding and restorative food elenients which make good the daily went and tear of the cells and tissues of the body are now
The system insuflicient for the purpose. needs more rebuilding material than ordinary food supplies.
Scientific research has discovered the meank whereby an abundance of these vital fond elements can be easily obtained. From malt, milk and eggs--Nature's best restorative foods the nutritive elements have been ex- tracted and concentrated--correctly balanced for the varied needs of the body-and pre- sented in the form of a delicious and easily- digested beverage.
That is "Ovaltine"-the perfect restorative food for brain, nerves and body. Substitute and ather cofice for tea. "Ovaltine" beverages and you will be able to maintain glorious health and physical and mental fitness in these strenuous days. It is the most economical as well as the most health- of concentrated nourishment giving form
in the world.
AP,E. L
The beautles of a winter dawn in the 'High Alps are illustrated by our photograph takon 9,009ït, up on the untracked snows of the great Roseg Glacier above Pontresina. In the background are the La Sella and the Piz Gluschaint peaks of the Bernina group, seamed with crevasses and intricate with ice-falls. Some treacherously snow-masked crevasses are visible on the right. When our picture was taken there were 50 degrees of frost, and the sky was thicken-
ing for a blizzard. (Times copyright).
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