Carpathia crew members lowered the 13 lifeboats from the Titanic down into a White Star pier, and then the ship proceeded back to her own Cunard berth. Carpathia's own passengers disembarked first, followed by the survivors she had rescued 3 days before. On the evening of their arrival, Captain Rostron was requested to be a witness for a US Senate investigation into the disaster. That investigation, held in the East Room of New York's Waldorf Estoria Hotel, began on the 19th of April. Rostron would be the third witness called to give testimony. He presented a very moving account, and at times, Rostron himself, the Senate investigator, William Alden Smith, and the entire gallery were moved to tears by the story he told. It was pointed out that the decision to take the Carpathia full speed into a large icefield was one that rested totally with himself, and that he was well aware of the dangers he was facing in doing so. He stated that he also had to consider the lives of those he did indeed ultimately save, and that he had always considered it to be an acceptable risk. When asked if any recriminations had come to him for his decision, he replied that there were none. Rostron's superb seamanship, skill, and foresight would make him stand out among all other officers who would give testimony at the US Inquiry. As a result, some of the other Officers involved in the disaster, whose testimony had yet to be heard, would be seen in a far less favorable light. For the rest of his life, Rostron never second guessed himself about the decisions he'd made on that fateful night. To the credit of Carpathia's owners, the Cunard Line refused any and all forms of compensation from the White Star Line, for Carpathia's heroic efforts, during the early morning hours of April 15th. Carpathia herself had been rapidly preparing all morning to resume her aborted voyage to Trieste. That voyage was scheduled to begin at 4PM that same day.
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Hi Scurdie, I was unable to answer your question concerning the Carpathia at the time you asked, however, having recently read an excellent account of the Titanic disaster by John Maxtone-Graham, I now know why Carpathia discharged Titanic's lifeboats before disembarking any passengers at Cunard's Pier 54. At the time the Titanic's lifeboats were taken onboard, the Carpathia was unable to stow all of them from her own davits. She simply didn't have room for all of them, so six of the lifeboats she took on ended up being stacked and stowed in the ships forward well deck. These boats blocked all access to the lines and bollards on the ship's deck and their presence made it impossible to tie Carpathia up to her Cunard Pier. Therefore, the lifeboats were offloaded into White Stars pier first. I guess the answer to your question would be that it was done strickly for the purposes of practicality.
Clyde (cunard61)
Clyde (cunard61)
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