Rigel, the real hero of Titanic

When the Titanic went down the first officer's large black Newfoundland, Rigel, stayed behind on the ship with him.  However, once the ship sank Rigel treaded the icy waters for hours, trying to find his master.   It was reported that he aided people, by bringing them debris from the ship to float on. 

After some time the SS Carpathia came speeding to the scene in search of survivors.  In the darkness nobody saw a lifeboat directly in the path of the SS Carpathia.  The passengers on the lifeboat were too weak to shout or signal their presence.  Eyewitnesses said that Rigel swam out in front of the life boat barking continuously, until the Captain of the SS Carpathia heard him.  They shut down their engines and the lifeboat drifted alongside the SS Carpathia.  Everyone including Rigel was taken aboard the ship.  Rigel seemed physically unaffected by his ordeal, but he kept barking for his lost master.  One of the Carpathia's sailors adopted Rigel.

Ironically, the Titanic sank just 400 miles off the coast of Newfoundland, where Rigel's breed originated from.  Their coat is similar to that of a Polar Bear. This helped enable Rigel to swim in freezing waters without too much discomfort for hours!