The sinking of the Kursk submarine was initially attributed to a collision with NATO forces, but it was later revealed that faulty equipment played a major role in the disaster. According to a report by The Guardian, a faulty torpedo containing a substance called HTP caused a hydrogen peroxide explosion on board the Kursk.

Russian Prosecutor General Vladimir Ustinov explained that the explosion was triggered by an unusual sequence of events involving the oxidizing agent reserve of the torpedo. These findings were shared with reporters.

The seismic activity resulting from the explosion was detected by both American Intelligence and Norwegian monitoring systems, as reported by The New York Times.

The Navy Times reported that 95 sailors perished instantly when the Kursk’s hull ruptured and the submarine was flooded. The remaining 23 sailors managed to survive the initial blast and sought refuge in non-flooded sections of the vessel. Tragically, they eventually succumbed to suffocation when rescue forces failed to reach them in time. An emergency marking buoy, which could have facilitated their rescue, was not deployed. It took a week for Norwegian divers to reach the damaged submarine and gain access, but by then, all 118 crew members had lost their lives.