How Many People Died When the Titanic Sank?
On April 14–15, 1912, the Titanic sank. While the exact number of people killed is unknown, it is generally believed that of the ship’s approximately 2,200 passengers and crew members, some 1,500 perished. The lack of certainty over the death toll is due to several reasons. Original passenger and crew lists were rendered inaccurate by such factors as misspellings, omissions, aliases, and failure to count musicians and other contracted employees as either passengers or crew members. Adding to the difficulty was the international nature of the disaster, essentially involving a British-registered liner under American ownership that carried people of many nationalities. According to the U.S. committee investigating the sinking, 1,517 lives were lost, while its British counterpart determined that 1,490 died. The crew had the most casualties, with about 700 fatalities. Third class (steerage) also suffered greatly, as only 174 of its approximately 710 passengers survived.
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