MILLVINA Dean died Sunday, May 31, 2009 at the Care Home in Hampshire, Southampton, England after a lingering bout with pneumonia. She was 97 years old. Her death coincides with the 98th anniversary of the launching of the RMS Titanic which was dubbed "practically unsinkable". She was the last survivor of the ill-fated liner when it sank after ramming an iceberg at 11.40 PM, Sunday, April 14, 1912 on its maiden voyage from Southampton, England to New York, USA. Millvina who was barely 2-month old "was wrapped in a sack and lowered into a lifeboat" in the icy North Atlantic waters.

The pride of the White Star line, the RMS Titanic has a nice smoking room, a swimming pool and a squash court. The ill-fated liner carried 20 lifeboats more than the requirement of the maritime rules. Based on ship tonnage as was then the prevailing law in 1912 the RMS Titanic was required only 16 lifeboats. But immediately after the sinking of the Titanic, the rules were revised mandating all ocen-going ships to carry lifeboats enough to load all their passengers during calamities Quote from a caption of an illustration lowering its lifeboats, said- "many passengers were reluctant to leave Titanic, thinking that the risk was less than in the boats". This answer the questions why some of the lifeboats were lowered to the sea half-filled with passengers. Made in Belfast- Ireland, weighing 46,000 tons and costing 1,500,000 pounds to build- the unsinkable British Liner, RMS Titanic went down at 2:20 AM- 15 April 1912.

Millvina can recall nothing when asked about the sea tragedy. Georgetta- Millvina's mother and Bert- Millvina's 2-year old brother were likewise saved. Millvina's father- Bertrand- was unlucky. He perished together with 1,517 others. Millvina, Georgetta and Bert were among the group composed mostly of women and children numbering 706 who survived.

Millvina- though innocent of the things that happened during the tragedy- said it had shaped her goals in life. She should have stayed in the US instead of going back to UK. She was quoted as saying, "If it hadn't been for the ship going down, I'd be an American".

Millvina's dad sold his pub and was planning to open a tobacconist's shop in Kansas. It was their main reason for boarding the Titanic.

When the sunken liner was found in 1985- Millvina- who was already in her 70's- became an overnight celebrity on both shores of the Atlantic. "I think sometimes they look at me as if I am the Titanic", she quipped after paying a visit to a Titanic Convention in America.

RANKING RMS TITANIC SURVIVORS (See thunbnail pictures in Photo Capsules)

1] BARBARA JOYCE WEST DAINTON Born: 05-24-1911; Died: 10-16-2007. She's from Truro, England. She was ten-month old when the sinking of the RMS Titanic happened. She completed 96 years of age and considered the 2nd last survivor.

2] LILLIAN GERTRUD ASPLUND [1907-2006]. She's the last American survivor of the RMS Titanic sinking. She was 5-year old then and lived to the ripe age of 99. She's from Shrewsbury, Massachusetts.

Source: Internet, BBC