IRISH PASSENGER I fell into a mass of people. Everything I touched seemed to be women�s hair. Children crying, women screaming. Their hair in my face. My god, if only I could forget those hands and faces. HAROLD BRIDE He told me that apparently we�d struck something. SHIPMATE Iceberg dead ahead. ICELANDIC WOMAN I didn�t become alarmed. IRISH PASSENGER There was no danger,they said. JOSEPH BOXHALL I told her to come at once. We were sinking. ICELANDIC WOMAN Then came the terrible cry Women and children, women and children. MARJORIE COLLYER Two men lifted me up and put me in a boat. JACK THAYER It really was every man for himself. VIOLET JESSOP My heart stood still FRED BARRET If we�re gonna die, best to die gripping something. HAROLD BRIDE It was a terrible sight. Men sinkin and swimmin. ICELANDIC WOMAN I�d been brought up to believe in a hell after death. But now I think I went through a hell that night. JACK THAYER Titanic largest ship the world had ever known. The last word in luxury. The ship palatial. The food delicious. The rudder alone weighed 100 tonnes. I sailed first class from Southampton. We called at Cherbourg from there to Queenstown. Everyone was counting the days �til we�d see the Statue of Liberty. My father and mother were invited to dinner that night so I dined alone. Afterward I took a few turns around the deck. Being 17 years old I was all over the ship. CHARLOTTE COLLYER I had never been on an ocean voyage. I was afraid of the sea. But Harvey, my husband and our eight year old daughter, Majorie and I decided to go to America that way. The first few days I was a bit seasick and kept to my cabin most of the time, but on Sunday April 14th I was up and about. After I�d eaten I listened to the orchestra for a little while, then I went back to my cabin. JACK THAYER There was no moon. A brilliant starry night. I�d never seen the sea smoother. It had become much colder. VIOLET JESSOP It was indeed a night for bed, warmth and cozy thoughts. How good it was to be in my bunk at last devouring magazines. At 23 I was the youngest stewardess on the ship. I was enjoying the trip tremendously. The first three days were very calm. We were another three days before we would reach New York. LUCY DUFFGORDON It was a pleasure to go to bed. My pretty little cabin with its electric heater and pink curtains. I hadn�t meant to sail on the Titanic. Urgent business in New York forced me to take the first available boat. Everything aboard this lovely ship reassured me. CELINEY YASBECK My name is Celiney Yasbeck. My husband and I were on our way to America to make our home. He had been to America before, where he had a business. CELINEY YASBECK I was a bride of 50 days. CHARLES LIGHTOLLER I joined her in Belfast while she was still in the builders hands. The biggest and finest ship in the world. On that night of April 14th the First Officer took over from me. We both remarked on the ship�s steadiness; how comfortably she was slipping along. We knew perfectly well we were entering the region where ice might be sighted, and had taken precautions. As none of these bergs lay on our course well, they didn�t directly concern us. I passed on the course, speed, weather conditions, wished him joy of a few perishing cold hours and went below. HAROLD BRIDE I joined the Marconi staff last July and was transferred to the Titanic at Belfast. I didn�t have much to do aboard except to relieve Phillips, the Senior Operator. I went to bed. I was conscious of waking up and hearing Phillips sending telegrams. From leaving Southampton we�d gotten through about 250 telegrams. CHARLES LIGHTOLLER It came out that vital messages received in the wireless room that night had never been delivered to the bridge, warning all ships of heavy ice in an area right ahead of the Titanic. What was still worse, not far away. FRED FLEET Frederick Feet, Sailor, Look Out Man � Southampton, England. Twenty five next October. We are there to report anything we see. A ship or anything. Watch was nearly over. I had done the best parts of two hours. It was not very large when I first saw it. A black mass. It kept getting larger as we were getting nearer it. JOSEPH BOXHALL I was Fourth Officer. I was just coming along the deck and almost abreast of the Captain�s Quarters when I heard a report of three bells. That signifies something that has been seen ahead. FRED FLEET I struck three bells first. Then I went straight to the telephone and rang them up on the bridge. Iceberg, dead ahead!. JOSEPH BOXHALL I heard the First Officer give the order. FRED FLEET The wheel was put to starboard. She started to go to port whilst I was on the telephone. I mate saw it and he told me he could see the bough coming round. FRED FLEET Yes, cos we were making straight for it. FRED BARRET And a red light goes up and the ship is supposed to stop. This red light came up and I�m the man in charge of the watch so I shouted, Shut all dampers to shut the wind off the fires. The crash came before we had them all shut. HAROLD BRIDE I didn�t even feel the shock. I hardly even knew it happened. There was no jolt whatsoever. JACK THAYER I was about to step into bed when I seemed to sway slightly. If I�d have had a brimful glass of water in my hand not a drop would have spilled. LUCY DUFFGORDON I was soon awakened by a long grinding shock. CHARLOTTE COLLYER There was a backward jerk followed by a shorter one. MARJORIE COLLYER And the ship started to back like a train. VIOLET JESSOP Then a low crunching ripping sound as Titanic shivered. CELINEY YASBECK I was fast asleep. It almost threw me off the bed. Suddenly I heard a tremendous noise. Immediately I knew the ship had been hit hard. FRED FLEET When we were alongside it, it was a bit higher than the forecast led. Fifty feet I should say. FRED FLEET No, just a slight grinding noise. FRED FLEET I thought it was a narrow shave. FRED FLEET Yes. FRED FLEET A lot of people were about two feet from where I was standing. The shipside was torn from the third stock hold to the forward end. Open the door! The doors locked instantly, automatically. We got through to the next section and then the watertight compartment closed up. JOSEPH BOXHALL The Captain said, What have we struck?, Mr Murdoch, the First Officer said, We have struck an iceberg, I put her hard to starboard but it was too close, she hit it. He also said, I intended to port around it but she hit before I could do anymore. We walked out onto the bridge to take a look at the iceberg. It seemed to be a small black mass, not rising very high out of the water. The ship was past it then. It couldn�t have extended above the ship�s rail. JACK THAYER The engine stopped. The sudden quiet was disturbing. VIOLET JESSOP I lay still. I waited for Ann, my cabin mate to speak for I knew she was awake. I looked over the side of my bunk at her and she returned by saying in her calm way, Sounds as if something has happened. CHARLOTTE COLLYER I could hear the footsteps of people on the deck above my head. And there was some stamping and queer noises as though the ship�s tackle was being pulled about. My husband said there must have been some slight accident in the engine room. He put on his coat and left me. JACK THAYER It was bitterly cold. I moved around the deck trying to discover what had happened. There were quite a few people standing around questioning each other in a dazed kind of way. There were many prominent people on the passenger list. And because it was her maiden voyage, those responsible for building the ship. VIOLET JESSOP Tommy Andrews, Designer for Harland & Wolff, he was respected by everyone. A great ship builder and a real gentleman. A perfectionist. JACK THAYER She was a fabricated steel vessel of gigantic dimensions. She was a wonderfully safe vessel. ELEANOR CASSABEER In answer to many questions, Mr Andrew assured everybody that we were absolutely safe. She would stay afloat indefinitely. JOSEPH BOXHALL This one man had a piece of ice, and I took it out of his hands wondering where he�d got it from, I tried to make him understand that there was nothing the matter, Go down to bed and go to sleep again, I didn�t take it very seriously. CHARLOTTE COLLYER After what seemed a few moments my husband returned, and he was quite excited. He exclaimed, We have struck an iceberg, a big one but there�s no danger, an officer just told me so. This story reassured me. If these people weren�t worried why should I be? FRED BARRETT We went up an escape and down to the boiler room but we couldn�t get in. There was 8 feet of water in it. JOSEPH BOXHALL I went right down below into the lowest steerage as far as I could go without going into the cargo portion of the ship, and I inspected all the decks as I came up into the vicinity where I thought she struck. I couldn�t hear any noise, I couldn�t see any damage. DANIEL BUCKLEY I boarded Titanic in Queenstown. I�m 21 years old, I wanted to come to America to make some money. There were three other boys from the same place sleeping in the same room with me. I jumped on the floor. The first thing I knew my first were getting wet. I told the other fellas to get up, that there was something wrong. Then we laughed. One of them says, Get back to bed, you�re not in Ireland now DANIEL BUCKLEY I turned on the light, and to my surprise there was a stream of water running along the floor. JOSEPH BOXHALL I met the carpenter coming up absolutely out of breath and he said, She�s evidently making water fast, number one tarpaulin is ballooning, go tell the captain. JOSEPH BOXHALL I met the mail clerk coming up and he said, Mr Boxhall, the mail room is filling. I got back to the boat deck and I saw the captain, and I said, The mail room is filling, sir. JOSEPH BOXHALL He walked away and left me. He went off the bridge, as far as I remember. JOSEPH BOXHALL No. JOSEPH BOXHALL Then came the order to clear the lifeboats. ELEANOR CASSABEER There was a frightful noise of escaping steam. LUCY DUFFGORDON I was uneasy. I rushed to my husband. Go up on deck and see what has happened. He got out of his bed rather unwillingly. LUCY DUFFGORDON My husband was back looking rather grave. I�d been up to the bridge and I�ve seen Colonel Astor, he said. He told me that he was going to ask his wife to dress, and I think you better do the same. I hurriedly put on the warmest clothes I could find. As I was dressing, my secretary, Mrs Frangatelli came into the room very agitated. HAROLD BRIDE I woke up of my own accord. I promised to relieve Phillips earlier than usual. I asked him how he was getting on. PHILLIPS I think we�ve struck something. I felt the ship tremble. HAROLD BRIDE He told me that he felt the ship tremble and stop. He thought she�d got damaged in some way. Suddenly the captain put his head in the cabin. We�ve struck an iceberg, the Captain said, and I�m having an inspection made to tell what its done. You better get ready to send a call for assistance but don�t send it until I tell you. The Captain went away, Phillips resumed the phones. CELINEY YASBECK My husband and I jumped up and ran out to see what had happened. We were still wearing our night clothes. JACK THAYER We walked around to the portside, and the ship had then a fair lift. We stayed there looking over the side for about five minutes. The lift seemed very slowly to be increasing. JOSEPH BOXHALL I saw the Captain, it was then I realised it was serious. The Captain looked over, he said, We are sinking. VIOLET JESSOP Suddenly orders came down. Everybody to the boats. HAROLD BRIDE We sent an urgent distress call and said we were sinking by the head. CHARLOTTE COLLYER My husband stepped over to an officer and asked him a question. I heard him shout back, Keep calm, there�s no danger.