Film reveals massive damage to sunken submarine

Hopes of saving any of the 118 sailors entombed aboard the Russian nuclear submarine Kursk dwindled as evidence mounted yesterday of a massive explosion which tore apart the front of the vessel.

Hopes of saving any of the 118 sailors entombed aboard the Russian nuclear submarine Kursk dwindled as evidence mounted yesterday of a massive explosion which tore apart the front of the vessel.

Film taken by Russian rescue capsules shows massive damage to the submarine from its bows to its conning tower which would have sent it to the bottom of the Barents Sea in seconds. Navy spokesman Captain Igor Dygalo, said: "The accident happened so quickly we can say it was like a flash." A Russian television reporter said it was now apparent "it is impossible to avoid casualties".

The control room is directly below the conning tower, suggesting sailors working there would not have escaped when the accident happened last Saturday. Captain Dygalo said the submarine's escape module, attached to the conning tower, was also damaged.

The Russian President, Vladimir Putin, came under searing criticism yesterday for failing to return from holiday on the Black Sea when all of Russia is following the disaster on television and radio. The likely explanation is that he does not want to take a high profile position when the likelihood is that few if any of the crew of the submarine, the pride of the Russian navy, will be saved.

US naval submarines monitoring the Kursk during Russian naval exercises last week said they heard two explosions, the second much larger. Russian officers say the most likely cause of the sinking was the explosion of one torpedo, possibly as it was being fired, which set off other torpedoes. The Kursk carries 28 torpedoes each with a 1,000-pound warhead.

Russian underwater rescue capsules failed again yesterday to latch onto a hatch to enter the Kursk. They are finding it impossible to link up because of swirling underwater currents and very poor visibility. A British rescue submarine is not expected to be in position over the Russian submarine until mid-day tomorrow.

It is still unclear how much air is on the Kursk. Admiral Alexander Poboi, the deputy chief of the Russian naval staff, visiting Nato headquarters in Brussels, said the sailors might survive up to three weeks. The Russian navy had said they would run out of oxygen today.