I watched the movie Peal Harbor recently and one of the scenes got me to wondering. Here’s the setup. There are men trapped in one of the capsized ships (or maybe it wasn’t completely capsized, but had just rolled over to one side). There are men running around on the hull of the ship trying to get survivors out. They come across a small grate in the hull, with mens’ hands sticking out, waving frantically. They attempt to remove the grate, but the water level in the ship is rising rapidly, and the men inside drown before the grate can be opened.
My question is this: to all appearenaces the men standing on the hull are above the waterline. Would it be possible for the level of water inside the ship to rise higher than the waterline outside and drown the trapped men? I’ve been trying to think of a set of circumstances that would allow that to happen, but can’t come up with anything.
NOTE: I only watched the movie once, and the scene went by pretty quickly, so it’s possible that I missed important details. Assuming that I saw what I thought I saw, my gut feeling is that it’s impossible, and the movie makers screwed up.
It’s possible. Imagine what would happen if the compartment filled with water before the ship rolled.
If the ship was still rolling due to flooding, the air pocket could shift and leave the hands at the grate under water. Also, progressive flooding from another compartment could have doomed these men.
I was trained in damage control in the Navy. I am not as much of an expert as some, but I’m qualified enough to answer this question.
I guess I’d have to see the movie, but I’m having a little trouble picturing a grating in the hull of a capsized ship through which people can stick their arms.
Mr. Moto: Ahh, good answer. Thanks!
David: That was exactly the point that made me think that the ship had rolled over to one side, but not capsized. What was that about a screen door on a submarine?
I have not seen the movie, so I am speculating.
A ship could have a grating that was normally above the water line (although I know of no such feature). The compartment with the grating could have an interior bulkhead (wall) six or eight or ten feet from the hull. If the ship rolled to the point where the compartment flooded, the grating could be above water, but the bulkhead (now the virtual floor) would be six or eight or ten feet below the grating. Even a six-foot length would be enough to drown a man who was only six feet tall if he could not get something to stand on to keep his nose above the water. (And six feet was above average height in WWII.) A compartment that was eight or ten feet across would have meant that the men had to hang onto the grating to stay above water, tiring and falling off to drown as the rescue was delayed.
(Now, a sailor trained in drownproofing, in which he relaxes and floats near the top of the water, lifting his head for air only when necessary, should be able to survive for a long time in the warm waters of Pearl Harbor, but excited men who are trapped may not think of this–and I do not know when drownproofing was actually developed or when the Navy began training its personnel in that technique.)