On April 23, 1912, the recovery efforts in the aftermath of the Titanic disaster reached a somber milestone as the CS Mackay-Bennett, a cable-laying ship, retrieved 128 victims from the cold waters of the Atlantic. The ship had been dispatched just days after the Titanic sank on April 15, and it was one of the first to arrive at the disaster site. The crew, overwhelmed by the sheer scale of the loss, began the grim task of collecting the bodies from the sea. With over 1,500 passengers and crew lost, the Mackay-Bennett's undertaker, John Snow, worked tirelessly to catalog and identify the bodies, though many would remain unidentified for years. The ship’s arrival marked the beginning of a painstaking recovery operation that would last weeks.

The ship carried only enough embalming supplies for 70 bodies, a stark reminder of how unprepared the recovery operation had been for the scale of the disaster. To help address this shortage, additional embalming supplies were sourced from the Sardinian, another vessel involved in the effort. The emotional toll on the crew was immense as they carefully handled the bodies, many of which were in an advanced state of decomposition due to exposure to the freezing waters. Some bodies were only partially recovered, and many were never fully identified. This grim task became one of the most harrowing aspects of the post-disaster recovery process, as the ship’s crew struggled with both the physical and emotional weight of their duties.

By the time the Mackay-Bennett returned to Halifax on April 30, the city was already beginning to grapple with the staggering loss. As the recovery continued, the tragedy of the Titanic resonated deeply with the people of Halifax, many of whom had family members involved in the disaster. The efforts of the Mackay-Bennett became a defining chapter in the Titanic's legacy, as the bodies it recovered were a stark reminder of the human cost behind the catastrophe. The day of April 23 marked a pivotal moment in the history of the disaster, underscoring the profound grief and devastation felt by all those connected to the Titanic tragedy.

Sad deal all around, but, How did the bodies get advanced decay in freezing salt water, seems like that would have preserved them a long time?

I'm thinking fresh water in the body would freeze below 32F in salt water breaking cell walls throughout the body, then decay quickly when thawed.

That was a sad situation for sure, all those souls lost. Can only imagine how terrible recovering all those bodies must have been.