Divers prise open watery tomb

Norwegian divers confirmed early today that all of the 118 crew of Russia's stricken submarine Kursk are dead, after entering the main part of the vessel and finding it flooded.

The Norwegian announcement was the final crushing blow to relatives of the men who, despite official Russian pronouncements that most of the crew had probably died following the accident 10 days ago, had held out hopes that some may have survived.

The Norwegians provided the final proof as their divers opened the inner hatch of the submarine, lying 108m down in the Arctic waters of the Barents Sea, and looked inside.

"The inner section is full of water. The commander of the operation believes there is no one alive aboard," a Norwegian armed forces spokesman said in Oslo.

He quoted Rear Admiral Einar Skorgen, head of the Norwegian side of the military operation, as saying the search for survivors should cease "unless political authorities decide otherwise."

Hopes for the men had steadily faded after the nuclear-powered submarine plunged to the bottom of the sea on August 12 following an accident, as yet unexplained. Officials say it was caused by a collision or explosions, or both.

Russian officials had said hours before the international rescue team arrived at the weekend that they believed no one on board had survived.

The Norwegians' near-final verdict was likely to lead to widespread recriminations against Russian authorities for their reluctance to accept outside help.

It took four days for the Russians to accept aid, and only 48 hours for the Norwegians to enter the submarine.

The anger could possibly spread to President Vladimir Putin himself, lambasted by the media for inaction in the early days of the crisis.

In an opinion poll released yesterday, more than two-thirds of Muscovites denounced Russia's initial refusal to accept foreign help in trying to save the submariners.

The rescue work was carried out amid complaints by the Norwegians about holdups caused by Russian bureaucracy.

The Norwegians entered the inner hatch after prising open the outer door. Despite reports that a body lay between the two hatches, they found no one.

If the rescuers go further into the vessel, what they will see can only be compared to a horror film.

Norway has offered to send a camera into the submarine to record details that might help Russian efforts to raise the bodies or salvage the vessel.

A British rescue mini-sub is standing by but will probably not be used now.

Russian officials believe the most likely scenario for the accident was that a small first blast wrecked the front of the sub and sent it to the seabed at high speed. The impact detonated the Kursk's torpedoes, a much bigger blast.

They insisted there were no radiation leaks.

- REUTERS

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