Death Cruise

Horror on the Volga River

The last light of evening still glowed on the Volga River, but few passengers aboard the cruise ship Alexander Suvorov were paying much attention. Most of the travelers had crowded into a large room on the uppermost deck to watch a movie. They never saw the end. While navigating a narrow channel near Ulyanovsk (pop. 650,000), the river port 425 miles east of Moscow where Lenin was born, the vessel apparently rammed into a railroad bridge with such force that the entire top section of the boat was sheared off. The number of casualties is still not certain, but as many as 400 may have died.

The Soviets seldom announce airplane, train or boat accidents. Thus many Soviet television viewers were taken by surprise last week when newscasters read an official statement that the Alexander Suvorov had been "wrecked" the day before with "loss of life." The Kremlin also announced that First Deputy Premier and Politburo Member Geidar Aliyev was leading a commission to investigate the accident. The statement did not give any casualty figures. The following day, however, a representative from Intourist, the state travel agency, provided a few unofficial details. He speculated that the ship's pilot may have steered the boat off course or misjudged how much room he had to maneuver because the water level of the Volga was higher than usual. The official put the death toll at 170 and added that no foreigners were killed.

The Alexander Suvorov could carry as many as 468 passengers, so the death toll may be higher. According to another unconfirmed report, a freight train was crossing the bridge at the time of the crash and several cars toppled off, possibly crashing through to the ship's jammed upper deck. Witnesses claim that only 40 people were rescued. Said a distraught resident of Ulyanovsk: "There is great chaos in the city. People are crying in the streets." This file is automatically generated by a robot program, so viewer discretion is required.