Titanic: Fire & Ice (Or What You Will)

Question: Did a coal bunker fire lead to the sinking of the Titanic, or increase the loss of life?

Answer: No.

In January 2017, a program entitled Titanic: The New Evidence aired , first in the UK, and later in the US on the Smithsonian Channel. In this show journalist Senan Molony built a case – based on two photographs from the newly discovered Kempster album that showed a mark on Titanic‘s hull – that a coal bunker fire led to the tragedy and even the number of lives lost. The show also implied that the Olympic and Titanic were badly-built ships, where ‘corners were cut’ and they were rushed to sea in spite of the fire in order to stick to the schedule.

Unfortunately, the program was filled with historical errors, and the press eagerly repeated the errors in many articles which followed.

In January 2017, a program entitled Titanic: The New Evidence aired, first in the UK, and later in the US on the Smithsonian Channel. In this show journalist Senan Molony built a case – based on two photographs from the newly discovered Kempster album that showed a mark on Titanic‘s hull – that the coal bunker fire led to the tragedy and even the number of lives lost. The show also implied that the Olympic and Titanic were badly-built ships, where ‘corners were cut’ and they were rushed to sea in spite of the fire in order to stick to the schedule. Please click the image below to read our formal rebuttal article to the claims made in the show:

Titanic: Fire & Ice (Or What You Will)

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