Hopes dashed, relatives of Argentine submarine crew turn to grief and anger

[sandensea]

For more than a week, as the days passed with little news, relatives of 44 sailors aboard an Argentine Navy submarine that went missing on Nov. 15 hoped for a miracle.

On Thursday morning came the crushing news: An explosion had been recorded deep in the Atlantic Ocean near where the submarine was traveling, only a few hours after the vessel’s last communication. Some relatives fainted. Some screamed at the naval officers. Others sobbed loudly.

“The commander of the Mar del Plata base confirmed that they are all dead,” Luis Tagliapietra, father of one of the missing crew, Lt. Alejandro Tagliapietra, said. “The explosion was at a depth of over 200 meters (656 ft). There is no human being that can survive that.”

There was also anger. Families said the navy had mismanaged the situation by waiting to start a full-scale search and by dangling reports of possible satellite phone calls from the ship, which turned out to be false.

As if to add insult to injury, the explosion came to light only after analysts from the United States government and an international nuclear weapons monitor detected it and told the Argentines.

Vessels from 11 nations, including the United States, have been combing the seas as part of the search; the Argentine Navy’s four P3-B maritime patrol aircraft have been grounded and unavailable for deployment.

While the Navy has not formally given up hope of finding the crew, relatives began referring to their loved ones in the past tense. If the sailors perished, it would be the deadliest submarine catastrophe since the sinking of the Kursk — a Russian vessel brought down by a misfired weapon in 2000 — and the Argentine military’s largest loss of life since the Falklands War of 1982.

The disappearance and likely loss of the vessel, the ARA San Juan, could turn out to be the greatest national tragedy to unfold under President Mauricio Macri, who came into office nearly two years ago vowing to invest in Argentina’s underfunded armed forces.

Argentina's $5.5 billion defense budget was 4% of federal spending in 2017, and 0.9% of GDP.

At: https://www.nytimes.com/2017/11/23/world/americas/argentina-submarine-explosion.html

[shenmue]

1. ...

[Judi Lynn]

2. How hideous for the people in the vessel, and so unbearably sad for their loved ones on land.

This event won't be forgotten for a very long time by people around the world, and those who loved them will never really get over it.

Devastating news for everyone involved, and everyone with a heart.

[sandensea]

3. It is indeed, Judi. One of the victims' family said it best: "They lied to us."

Macri had been sitting on this information since Friday - and he would have continued doing so had the explosion not been revealed by the CTBTO, based in Vienna.

They no doubt knew they were all dead since then, which is why Macri and his Defense Minister (former dictatorship official Oscar Aguad) have left it to this poor guy, Navy Spokesman Enrique Balbi, to do all the talking.

It was more important to them that the public not blame them for cutting back on already-paltry maintenance budgets, than even to keep the families themselves duly informed.

On a lighter note, allow me to wish you, and yours, the happiest of Thanksgivings, Judi. All the Best!

[Judi Lynn]

4. In a just world, Macri would be judged so harshly for putting people through needless days of agony

before informing them their worst fears are realized.

He was not putting his country's interests first, before his own political scheming, was he? Everyone should remember that for the rest of his time in politics, and act accordingly. He is not worthy, never was.

Sympathy for the ones who've discovered they've lost their good friends and loved ones in their prime, and make the adjustments needed to rebuild their lives, after recovery.

Here's hoping your holiday is warm and enjoyable this weekend, bringing warmth, comfort, and peace. It's a good time for assimilation, reflection, and looking forward, isn't it?

It's always deepening, and enlightening reading your comments and observations, sandensea. Your awareness surely adds so much more than our own reach, you honor us with your presence.

[sandensea]

5. Likewise, Judi. You're much too kind.

And yes, the way Macri handled this was Machiavellian even by his own standards.

As you might expect, he (and Clarín) are busy as we speak trying to throw the Navy under the bus.

They're even trying to pin it on Cristina Kirchner - though that fell apart quickly when she posted a 2016 report published by Macri's own chief of staff lauding the San Juan's condition at the time, as well as the Navy shipyard's work (which Néstor Kirchner renationalized in 2007, after it had been stripped to the bone by its Menem-era buyers).

Here's hoping someone finds the San Juan, and soon. Perhaps then we might know what really happened.

In closing, I thought you might like this newsreel of the San Juan from six months ago. It's in Spanish; but it gives you a good idea of the interior (antiquated, though apparently well-maintained).

Both crew members featured were lost in last week's tragedy. The lady featured at 0:57 is Lt. Eliana Krawczyk, the country's only woman submarine officer.