Video: 'Titanic (Iceberg Complete Scene)'

(Sunday, April 14, 1912, 11:40 p.m. ship’s time; during the Sinking of the Titanic) — Four days into her maiden voyage from Southampton to New York City, the British liner RMS Titanic — the largest ocean liner in service at the time with an estimated 2,224 people on board– collided with an iceberg tonight in the North Atlantic and began sinking.

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Titanic had received six warnings of sea ice today but was traveling about 22 knots when, at 11:39 p.m. (ship’s time), lookout Frederick Fleet — located in the crow’s nest, 95 feet above the deck — spotted an iceberg in the ship’s path and rang the lookout bell three times and telephoned the bridge to inform Sixth Officer James Moody.

Video: 'Titanic Iceberg Collision Mini-Documentary'

Fleet asked, “Is there anyone there?” Moody replied, “Yes, what do you see?” Fleet replied, “Iceberg, right ahead!”

Unable to turn quickly enough, the ship suffered a glancing blow that buckled her starboard side and opened six of her sixteen compartments to the sea. Titanic had been designed to stay afloat with four of her forward compartments flooded but no more, and the crew soon realized that the ship would sink. They used distress flares and radio (wireless) messages to attract help as the passengers were put into lifeboats.

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In accordance with existing practice, Titanic‘s lifeboat system was designed to ferry passengers to nearby rescue vessels, not to hold everyone on board simultaneously; therefore, with the ship sinking rapidly and help still hours away, there was no safe refuge for many of the passengers and crew with only 20 lifeboats, including 4 collapsible lifeboats. Poor management of the evacuation meant many boats were launched before they were completely full.

The ship would go under two hours and 40 minutes later with the loss of 1,514 lives.