There were 1198 of the 1962 passengers and crew aboard the Lusitania died

The Lusitania's significant starboard list made launching her lifeboats difficult. The lifeboats on the starboard side swung out too far to step aboard safely ten minutes after the torpedoing when she had slowed enough to begin placing boats in the water. While it was still possible to board the lifeboats on the port side, lowering them posed a new challenge. The hull plates of the Lusitania were riveted, as was customary at the time, and as the lifeboats were lowered, they dragged on the inch-high rivets, threatening to gravely damage the boats before they fell into the ocean.

The Lusitania had 48 lifeboats, more than enough for the entire crew and passengers, but only six were safely lowered, all from the port side. Lifeboat 1 overturned while being lowered, spilling its original occupants into the sea, however it quickly righted itself and was later filled with individuals from the ocean. Lifeboats 9 (5 people on board) and 11 (7 people on board) made it to the water safely, however, both afterward picked up a large number of swimmers. Lifeboats 13 and 15 also made it to the ocean safely, despite being overcrowded with around 150 people. Finally, Lifeboat 21 (with 52 people on board) made it to the ocean and cleared the ship just before the last dive. As she sank, a number of her collapsible lifeboats washed off her decks and offered floatation for some survivors.

Two lifeboats on the port side also cleared the ship. Lifeboat 14 (11 people on board) was safely lowered and launched, but because the boat plug was not in place, it quickly filled with seawater and sank. Later, after removing a rope and one of the ship's "tentacle-like" funnel stays, Lifeboat 2 floated away from the ship with new occupants (its former ones having been spilled into the water when they overturned the boat).

At the time of the sinking, there were 1198 of the 1962 passengers and crew aboard the Lusitania died. In the hours following the sinking, acts of heroism by survivors and Irish rescuers who had heard the Lusitania's distress signals increased the survivor count to 764, three of whom eventually died from injuries incurred during the sinking.