The curious story of a Titanic survivor

A Spanish couple told several of the details of the fateful maiden voyage aboard the Titanic. This couple, who lived for many years in Havana, Cuba, kept some secrets and ghosts from the history of the Titanic for decades. Details of what happened to them on the supposed “unsinkable” that was headed to New York and that took the lives of hundreds of people.

Julián Padrón Manent and his wife Florentina Durán were on that boat and spoke with a journalist, who years later asked them many questions about that trip in order to answer some of the mysteries that have surrounded it for a century. One of the man’s memories was shocking:

The interview took place in 1955 and was published in the Magazine “Bohemia”. The person in charge of asking was the then journalism student Rodolfo Santovenia.

The stories of the Titanic castaway

Padrón said that during that trip there were many tensions he suffered. He and his wife had boarded the Titanic in France on April 11, 1912. It was said to be the safest ship in existence. This was due to the 16 compartments into which the hull was divided. She had all the makings of a giant lifeboat.

Julián Padrón pointed out that the luxury cabins were occupied by prominent personalities, as the owner of the Macy And Company stores (Isidor Straus) and the CEO of the English company White Star Line (Bruce Ismay).

“On the fourth day of sailing the weather was very good, clear and cloudless. It was very cold on deck and the sea was calm. Everyone was very happy and no one knew that a tragedy was coming.“he continued.

“During dinner that night, several gathered to smoke and play chess or cards. I went to bed and, half sleepy, I heard a knock, but I didn’t give it any importance. and I continued sleeping. That happened with many more.” This is how he describes how the tragedy began.

The evacuation of the Titanic

The story continues when one of his playmates knocked on the door of his cabin and alerted him to the danger.. They ran to the deck, where many passengers were already wanting to find answers. An officer told them it was a minor problem, but the water kept coming in.

After a while the order was given to put the women and children in the boats and the men to put on life jackets. Some laughed, others cried, there were those who refused to put on the vest or ladies who did not get on the boats. The rescue was done very slowly.

Julián Padrón said that “the confusion was growing. I did not hear the music band at any time, forgive me those who said otherwise. The seconds seemed like ages, the water didn’t stop and there were no more boats available.”

“Some men jumped into the void, others did not decide. I fall into one of the boats that was being lowered, where almost everyone was crew. “They quickly moved away from the Titanic, which looked like a whale about to sink.” It was the end of the Titanic.

The rescue

“I saw how it was submerged slowly but then faster and faster, suddenly the lights went out and the boilers exploded, there were people screaming, a whirlpool in the water and suddenly, darkness. The ship had sunk in a matter of an hour.”

“We spent the night on the boat until we ran into the ship Carpathia. We arrived in New York on Thursday evening. “I will never forget the people waiting on the dock, families of survivors and missing people.” This is how the story of the survivor of the tragedy ended.

Some facts about the Titanic

The liner was carrying 11,000 pounds of fish, 75,000 pounds of meat and 2,000 liters of ice cream. It had four funnels, its hull was black, the top white and the waterline red.

To be able to launch it into the water, 3 tons of soap, bait and train oil were required., so that it would slide towards the sea. In one minute he dropped 1800 feet and was stopped by anchors and chains weighing 80 tons.

On its maiden voyage (first and last) it carried 2,230 people, including passengers and crew. It had traveled 546 miles at the time of hitting the iceberg, around 12 midnight. The chief officer and the builder took a look at the damage and realized that it would inevitably sink.

At 2 in the morning the water was very close to the deck and the commander ordered the men to save themselves. Many of them froze to death rather than drowning. Total, 705 people were saved and 1,522 died.

In 1985 it was located at the bottom of the sea, in the North Atlantic, at 3800 meters and 900 kilometers south of Saint John’s, in Newfoundland, Canada. Three underwater expeditions were carried out to capture the valuable remains, including a shipment of diamonds.