Unsinkable page 12

Unsinkable page 12 by ric Gustafson


The boat train started out of London and went through Surbiton, Woking, Winchester, Eastleigh and then Southampton. The train sped across northwest Surrey and then beyond Basingstoke. It went through the short tunnels of the Hampshire Downs at 70 miles per hour. It passed Winchester and then coasted into Southampton. It went through the Terminus Station and across Canute Road. Then it came to a halt at the White Star Line's ocean dock. There lay the Titanic.
For more than a week, provisions and foodstuffs were being brought aboard. For a five day voyage to New York, the amount was staggering. fresh meat 75,000 lbs, fresh fish 11,000 lbs, poultry and game 25,000 lbs, salt and dried fish 4,000 lbs, bacon and ham 7,500 lbs, sausages 2,500 lbs, fresh eggs 40,000, flour 200 barrels, sugar 10,000 lbs, coffee 2,200 lbs, tea 800 lbs, cereal 10,000 lbs, fresh cream 1,200 qts, ice cream 1,750 qts, potatoes 40 tons, onions 3,500 lbs, rice 10,000 lbs, lettuce 7,000 heads.
Workers stocked Titanic's cellars with 20,000 bottles of beer, ale and stout. 1,500 bottles of wine, 15,000 bottles of mineral water and 850 bottles of spirits. While all this was going on, the ship was stocking up on the coal it needed for the voyage. The Coal Strike was in it's sixth week and supplies were short. It was decided to use coal from other White Star ships to fill up it's bunkers. The coaling was finished the day the ship sailed, April 10th. The crew did not have time to wet the coal down and a fire broke out in Boiler Room 6. The bunker smoldered the entire voyage.


research help: ' Unsinkable' by Daniel Allen Butler


Peace and God's blessings. Love Ric