The release said that the Russian operation, which preceded the international rescue effort on August 7, consisted of five stages. It began August 4, with the unmanned robotic vehicle Venom descending to the seabed to inspect the mini-sub, which was trapped about 190m (620ft) down off the Kamchatka Peninsula. The Venom tried to slice through the nets entangling the submarine, but failed. On August 5, the sub's exterior was inspected by the Tiger underwater TV camera. In the two subsequent days, repeated attempts were made to drag the Priz to shallow waters by looping a towboat cable onto her, but they also proved unsuccessful.
Late on Saturday, August 6, a British rescue team arrived at the accident site along with a remote-controlled rescue vehicle, Scorpio 45. The British craft spent five hours using its state-of-the-art cameras and robot arm to bring the stricken submarine to the surface.
