Belfast’s Titanic museum sinking

Paul McRingo | Nordy Correspondent

Belfast City Council has confirmed that the Titanic museum is slowly sinking after discovering the foundations have started taking in water from several leaks due to poor construction and soil erosion.

The hugely popular tourist attraction was opened in 2012 to proudly celebrate the building of a ship that sank on its first voyage. Unfortunately the museum is now also sinking and experts say it could be completely submerged under water within weeks.

News of the museum’s fate will come as a huge blow to Belfast and the surrounding area as it has become the most popular visitor attraction in Ireland and brings in millions to the local economy.

Around 15,000 men worked on the construction of the famous ship and the museum pays tribute to their hard work and dedication in a 3-hour self-guided tour that includes 10 interactive galleries. What it doesn’t mention however is the fact that they were overwhelming Protestant and violently sectarian.

In July 1912, just three months after the Titanic’s doomed voyage, Protestant workmen attacked their Catholic colleagues at the shipyard, forcing 2,500 men to flee for their lives and leave their jobs, never to return. A few years later, after the First World War, returning Protestant servicemen expelled Catholic workers and took their jobs.

Still, at the time of its maiden voyage in 1912, the Titanic was the largest passenger ship ever built and was known for its luxurious amenities that set a new standard for ocean liners of the era. They just forgot to make it iceberg-proof.

The Titanic’s tragic loss of life on its maiden voyage remains one of the world’s most famous historical disasters and the discovery of its wreckage as well as a certain Hollywood Blockbuster movie have all contributed to its continued fascination and enduring appeal in popular culture.

In reality, the Titanic story could actually be summed up in six words – We built it, then it sank – but in the Belfast museum’s story of the most famous ship in the world this awkward fact has been very carefully steered around. Like Captain Edward Smith should have done with the iceberg.