On November 26, 1914 the battleship HMS Bulwark was moored in the river Medway, part of a fleet assembled in anticipation of a possible raid against London by the Imperial German fleet when, without any warning, as one witness reported, “there was a flash, a cloud of smoke, and the ship vanished.”
The first class of nuclear submarines were a learning experience for the Soviet Navy. The November class boats experienced numerous difficulties and accidents, culminating in what has been described as a potential “Underwater Chernobyl."