We all know the story of the ship that even God can’t sink, right? The famous Titanic was the ship that sank in April 2012, while there are hundreds of casualties, there are those who were lucky.
Or not?
One of the survivors during that fateful day was Masabumi Hosono, 42, was working as a civil servant in the Japanese ministry of transport during that time. On 1910, he was sent to Russia to research on the railway systems. He was supposed to return to Japan on 1912, but he first went to London and then Southampton, where he boarded the Titanic.
According to Hosono, on the night of April 14th, he was asleep in his compartment in the second class compartment of the ship, when he was hastily awakened by a steward. He was able to get up on the deck and was disheartened to see the lifeboats leaving one by one. He began to accept his fate and prepare for his death.
On his side, as he watched a lifeboat being loaded, an officer shouted “Room for two more”
A man, without hesitation jumped on the lifeboat and later urged Hoson to do the same. Hosono did so and that was how he survived.
When he returned to Japan, instead of celebrating that he survived, he was ridiculed and was criticized for being a coward and saving his own life while a lot of people died. He was fired from his job and his family was shamed all his life.
After all his hardships overseas, he caught himself in the middle of a media circus in his very own country.
When the movie Titanic came out, that is the time when the criticisms lessened. The people realized that in times of chaos, it is hard to think of people and the will to live becomes strong in everyone.
Eventually, he was reinstated in the ministry because he was too valuable to lose, he worked there until the day he died.
Hosono’s family said that they feel that his honor was returned when the blockbuster went out and the criticisms lessened.
Images via The National Archives
