Divers progress is monitored from above

And work had begun on the difficult task of cutting a main entry hole when the operation was suspended. It is unclear if the bad weather has dashed hopes by a team of Russian, Norwegian and British divers to enter the submarine by Tuesday. The weather is expected to subside on Tuesday, giving divers at least two relatively calm days, before more violent storms are forecast at the site. Relatives' plea A BBC correspondent says the operation is fraught with danger. A test bore hole made over the weekend revealed a flood compartment, but no sign of radioactivity from the submarine's reactor. The divers, operating from the Norwegian offshore platform Regalia, will have to make seven holes in the Kursk to reach each corner of the 154-metre (505 ft) vessel.

Relatives do not want divers to take risks

Victims' relatives have urged Russian President Vladimir Putin not to risk the divers' lives by rushing an operation to raise the bodies. They face danger from the intense cold and pitch darkness 108 metres (355-ft) below, and from jagged metal debris expected to be found inside the wreck, which could puncture their survival suits. Norwegian divers have done most of the survey work and drilling, but only Russian divers would enter the Kursk. Work had been slowed down by the need to cut through high-pressure airducts and other metallic fittings in the one-metre (36-inch) space between the outer and inner hulls. All the sailors on board the Kursk died after two explosions sent the craft to the seabed during naval manoeuvres. The reasons for the disaster, which shocked the nation, have never been fully explained to the Russian public.