Dalbeattie Town History

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Murdoch of the 'Titanic'

	4. Collision & Aftermath
Logo on White Star Deck Rug From lifeboat recovered by 'Carpathia'.		Lt. W.M. Murdoch RNR RMS 'Titanic'.

Return to Events aboard 'Titanic', 10th - 13th/14th April 1998

The recent release in the United Kingdom of the film 'Titanic' has yet again brought the actions of her crew under public scrutiny. Unfortunately, this has also perpetuated myths about the principal officers such as Captain Smith and his First Officer William McMaster Murdoch. The film has incorrectly portrayed Murdoch as a man who committed suicide by shooting himself after killing passengers.

In this page, the events of the 14th and 15th of April 1912 have been reconstructed, centering particularly on those involving Murdoch. There is also a summary of later events up to the British Board of Inquiry under Lord Mersey. The Inquiry, and the effects of the death on Murdoch's family, are dealt with elsewhere on this site.

Sunday 14th April 1912

11:40 p.m. : Collision :

Given that this must have occurred within a maximum of 25-40 seconds, the most verifiable sequence of events appears to be as follows :-

Frederick Fleet sights the iceberg directly ahead at a distance of about 500 yards. The bell is rung three times [collision warning] and the bridge telephoned. Message is "Iceberg right ahead !" On the wing bridge, Murdoch hears the bell and runs to the enclosed navigating bridge. He probably could not see the iceberg, but if he had been watching the port bow and the mysterious light, he would know that it would be safe to take avoiding action into clear water on that side.
Sixth Officer Moody takes the message from Fleet, says "Thank you." By now, about six seconds will have passed since the bell was rung, and the 'Titanic' is closer to the iceberg. Lee, the only lookout looking at the iceberg at that moment, believes he sees the bow swing to port. Fleet is still on the telephone at that point.
Within six to eight seconds of the bell, Murdoch enters the navigating bridge and Moody tells him "Iceberg right ahead." Murdoch goes to the engine telegraphs setting them to 'Stop engines', then to 'Full astern together' and orders Quartermaster Hichens to put the helm "Hard a-starboard". Hichens hears the engine telegraphs ringing, but cannot see them from his wheelhouse.
[Because of the tradition with sailing ships, the ship's wheel mechanism is so set that putting the helm over to starboard (right) turned the ship to port (left), a fact which is not understood by some people today. Murdoch did not order the ship to be steered into the iceberg, nor did he have the choice to do so, as shall become obvious.]
Murdoch may in fact (Pete Elverhøi's theory) have first stopped and then reversed the PORT ENGINE, to help the rudder. The starboard reciprocating and centre (turbine) engine would still have been at 75 - 78 revolutions forwards, in that case. Ilya McVey considers that such a reversal, using a Stephenson Linkage, and possibly venting steam, could have been done in seconds. If William Murdoch did make an error, it may have been in not allowing for the additional thrust from the turbine, which may still have been forcing the 'Titanic' forwards. A minimum of ten to twelve seconds have elapsed since Fleet sent his message, - maybe as many as twenty.
Hichens turns the wheel, acknowledges "Hard a-starboard, sir." as Murdoch presses the alarm for closing the lower watertight doors in the bulkheads and then operates the lever of the hydraulic system that automatically lowers the watertight doors into closed position. Normally, the bulkhead warning bell would be rung for ten seconds, but the writer suspects that Murdoch may have pressed the bell and pulled the lever nearly simultaneously. Moody tells Murdoch that the wheel is hard a-starboard, and within 15 seconds of pulling the emergency lever, the bulkhead lower doors are shut. According to later testimony by the naval architect William White, it would take from 20 to 30 seconds for the steam-powered steering-engine to finish rotating the rudder, - far too late to affect the ship's course. Murdoch cannot avoid the collision with any kind of helm order, so his only real choice is to try to reduce the energy of impact by slowing the ship down, possibly also using the reversed port engine to help port around the berg.
After a delay of some 8 or 12 seconds from ringing the bell, according to Lookout Lee, 'Titanic' starts swinging to port, slowing down slightly, as her starboard bow and bilges strike the side of the iceberg. Olliver later gives evidence that he was just entering the bridge (from the wheelhouse) when he felt the shock. The resulting noise and vibration of the collision, - and of frantic attempts to go astern, - are heard throughout the ship. So, Murdoch is closing the watertight doors whilst the ship is scraping along the iceberg, and the iceberg itself may have turned the ship two points to port. Hichens, unable to see Murdoch, may have thought that Murdoch was still working the telegraphs. Boxhall, entering the bridge, saw Murdoch at the bulkhead doors lever but still had no idea just what was going on.
According to Hichens, Murdoch then ordered him to port his helm, apparently with the intention of swinging the vulnerable propellors and rudder away from the edge of the iceberg. In this, Murdoch succeeded. So far, Murdoch and Hitchens have been the only bridge staff to take any action. In their crows' nest, Fleet and Lee can only watch in helpless horror as the ship scrapes along the side of the iceberg. Murdoch tells Boxhall that they have struck an iceberg, but it is only at the moment of the collision that he seems to have been certain about it. Olliver looks to starboard out of the navigating bridge door, and sees the dark blue top of the iceberg passing the starboard wing bridge, - a height of about 75 feet above the sea. If, in fact, he actually looked forwards and down over the bridge windbreak, the top of the iceberg would have been no more than 60 feet above the sea. This would then tie in with the upper estimates of other witnesses.

About two tons of dirty ice from the high exposed section of the iceberg are jarred loose, falling onto the forward well-deck between the forecastle and the front of the bridge-island. As the iceberg continues along the side of the ship for 200 feet, more ice falls into the promenade decks. Underwater, the rivets part along several seams as the plates buckle and are pressed inwards by the ice. Later tests indicate that the chill of the sea may have been sufficient to so embrittle the rivets that a glancing blow knocked the heads away. Underwater examination in September 1998 revealed a series of six such plate separations, rather than one long gash. The inflow of seawater is steady but catastrophic, as six watertight compartments are flooding, from the forepeak as far back as No. 6 Boiler Room. As yet, the full damage is not apparent. A stoker later remarks that the inflow of seawater was 'like a fire hose', i.e. a narrow and steady flow, rather than a flood from a massive gash.

As ship comes to a halt, the iceberg is seen by Quartermaster Rowe from the docking bridge aft. It is a dark colour. Passengers in saloons and cabins saw a grey-white mass in the lights from portholes and saloon windows. The ship comes slowly to a halt, the iceberg some way astern.

c. 11:41 p.m.

Captain Smith comes onto the bridge to find out what is going on, whilst the iceberg is moving past the ship. According to Boxhall, Smith says, "What have we struck ?" Murdoch replies "We have struck an iceberg." He added. "I put her hard a-starboard and ran the engines full astern, but it was too close; she hit it. I intended to [steer to] port around it, but she hit before I could do any more." Smith may have said "Are the watertight doors closed ?" as Murdoch said "The watertight doors are closed, sir." Smith also asked if Murdoch had rung the warning bell, and Murdoch replied "Yes, sir." It is unclear whether Boxhall heard 'engine' or 'engines', according to some sources.

Elizabeth Gibbons surmises that the Captain put the ship telegraphs to 'Half Ahead', then to 'Stop', to avoid reversing into the iceberg and bring the ship to a halt. It is possible that Murdoch himself would have done this.

Hichens (although an unreliable witness) claimed that Murdoch told Alfred Olliver to make a note of that in the log book, 'at 20 minutes [short] of 12.' This is the primary evidence of the time of collision. The three senior officers went onto the starboard wing bridge to look aft.

11:50 p.m.

Seawater rises 14 feet above the keel at the bows. The depth in Boiler Room 6 is already 8 feet (it is 5 feet above the keel). Ship starts to list to starboard. Boxhall sent by Smith to check the forward compartments, but was sent to ask the Ship's Carpenter to sound the 'well' (the bilges). The Carpenter has already found water pouring into the six forward compartments. The shipbuilder Thomas Andrews was sent for, and together with Captain Smith inspected the damage.

Monday 15th April

12:00 Midnight

Mail Room in fourth watertight compartment is awash, the bags floating. Approximately 24 feet above the keel. The foreholds (1, 2 and 3) are all flooding rapidly. Smith is told by Andrews that the flooding of six compartments will infallibly sink the ship within one to one and a half hours. This is because the bulkheads and decks cannot contain the flooding, and that it will spill over the bulkheads into undamaged sections. Radio operators ordered by Captain Smith to send 'CQD' -'All Stations, Distress'- the old warning signal. The estimated position (calculated by Fourth Officer Boxhall) is 41 degrees 46 minutes North latitude, 50 degrees 14 minutes West longitude. Reluctantly, Smith has to consider lowering the lifeboats, but hopes a ship will be near enough to reach 'Titanic' before she goes down.

[This may have been several miles too far north as the Labrador Current was deflecting the ship and icefield south. The wreck was found by Ballard well south of her expected position.].

The boilers are shut down and steam vented from the funnel relief pipes, the almost deafening noise making communications difficult upon the Boat Deck. Boilers further aft are kept in steam to power the pumps and the ship's generators, to ensure that there is light to help evacuating the ship and to keep the radios working at full power. Chief Engineer Bell and his men are fighting to keep the ship afloat for as long as they can. They win at least another hour, maybe longer, all but a very few engineering crew going down with their ship.

12.05 a.m.

Squash court in compartment five now flooding, 32 feet above the keel. Smith orders lifeboats uncovered and passengers and crew to lifeboat stations. For the moment he hides it as a 'contingency measure' that he wants the lifeboats swung out.

Murdoch, as First Officer, is in charge of the launching on the starboard side. To help him he has Third Officer Herbert Pitman. Wilde, as Chief Officer, is in charge of the port side. He has Second Officer Lightoller to help him, - a bad choice, as they dislike each other. Fourth Officer Boxhall is still on the bridge

Between 12:10 and 1:50 a.m. on the 'Californian':

Crew members on the 'Californian', stopped in ice 10-19 miles away, see lights of a steamer, and unsuccessfully try to make contact with an Aldis lamp. Rockets are seen later, but they appear low, make no sound, and do not seem to be distress rockets. The other steamer appears to sail off into the distance, her lights going below the horizon. In fact, 'Titanic' is sinking lower in the water until only her stern is really noticeable. Had her radio been on, 'Californian' would have been told and would have responded.

Between 12:15 and 2:17 a.m. on the 'Titanic':

Phillips and Bride contact the following ships, at various distances :-

'Olympic', 500 miles away and heading east. Captain Haddock reverses course and heads for 'Titanic' at full speed, but he is still a day's sail distant.
'Mount Temple', 49 miles distant.
'Frankfort', 153 miles distant. Later informs 'Californian' of the sinking, enabling Captain Stanley Lord to come to help 'Carpathia'.
'Birma', 70 miles distant.
'Baltic', 143 miles distant.
'Virginian', 170 miles distant.
'Carpathia', 58 miles distant. Rated speed 14.5 knots, but this old Cunard liner comes racing to the rescue at 17.5 knots. This is a tribute to her engine-room staff.

Forward to events on Monday 15th 1912 from the loading of Lifeboats at 12:25 a.m. to the ship's sinking and the Death of First Officer Murdoch and the 'Titanic'.

This page was prepared with editorial assistance and information from Samuel Scott Murdoch, the nephew of the First Officer of the 'Titanic', and from Ernie Robinson, maritime historian.

Back to Murdoch Homepage	Life of W.M. Murdoch	The White Star Line	RMS Titanic	The Board of Enquiry

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Monument to William McMaster Murdoch on Dalbeattie Town Hall

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