The sinking of the Titanic There have been many maritime disasters. The number of people affected by the disasters usually is the significance. The most significant disasters usually stay in peoples' minds forever, even though they were not directly involved. The Titanic was a luxury liner, considered to be an unsinkable ship. Yet on April 14, 1912 the ship sank, killing 1,500 people. The sinking of the Titanic continues to amaze people, because of the many unexpected deaths, the many attempts to recover the wreckage, and the many artifacts that were found. There were many people who died when the ship sank. The death toll was