SEVEROMORSK, /Murmansk Region/, July 3. /TASS/. All the officers who died in a fire that broke out on the submersible will be recommended for state awards, Defense Minister Sergei Shoigu said at a meeting in Severomorsk on establishing the causes of the incident.
"Seven of those dead were captains 1st rank and three were captains 2nd rank. Two were Heroes of Russia. All the dead officers will be recommended for state awards, Shoigu said, adding that the officers gave their lives to fulfil a difficult task and "eliminate the fire, save the lives of their comrades and rescue the submersible."
In a critical situation, the submariners displayed heroism and primarily rescued a civilian, the defense minister noted.
‘They evacuated the industry’s civilian representative from the compartment engulfed by the fire and sealed the hatch behind him to prevent the spread of the flames across the submersible and fought for the vessel’s survivability to the end," Shoigu said.
The Defense Ministry will render all the necessary assistance and support to the families of the dead sailors, the defense chief said.
Russia’s Defense Ministry said in a statement released on Tuesday that 14 submariners had died in a fire on a submersible in Russian waters on July 1.
"On July 1, fourteen submariners - sailors died in Russian territorial waters as a result of inhaling combustion products aboard a research submersible vehicle designated for studying the seafloor and the bottom of the World Ocean in the interests of the Russian Navy after a fire broke out during bathymetric measurements," according to the statement.
The fire was extinguished "thanks to the self-sacrificing actions of the team," the statement said.
The submersible is currently staying at the Severomorsk naval base. The causes of the incident are being investigated.
Russian President Vladimir Putin held a meeting with Defense Minister Sergei Shoigu on Tuesday in the wake of the submersible’s incident. He heard the defense minister’s report and instructed him to set off to Severomorsk to establish the causes of the incident.