The Sun.
London, England, 1866-09-08 00:00:00

Fatal Boiler Explosion in Chatham Dockyard.

Shortly after the hour for the commencement of
work in Chatham, dockyard yesterday a terrific ex-
plosion occurred in the steam hammer-shop, by
which two of the workmen lost their lives, while
between 20 and 30 others sustained more or less
serious injuries. The scene of the calamity was a
building in which the steam was generated for work-
ing one of the large four-ton steam hammers, as
well as for driving some of the machinery used in
the metal mills. It would seem that steam had
been got up in the large boiler, when from some
cause which at present seems altogether inexplicable
the boiler, which was of 20-horse power, and capable
of working up to a pressure of 601 b to the square
inch, burst shortly after half-past 7, when all the
establishments were in full operation and the yard
crowded with workmen. The results which fol-
lowed the explosion were most fearful, nearly the
whole of the buildings adjacent to the steam ham-
mer-shop being laid in ruins. The top of the boiler
itself, which was calculated to weigh between six
and eight tons, was lifted high into the air over the
roofs of the foundry and smithery, in the passage-
way between which, marvellous to state, it fell,
without effecting any damage beyond tearing away
a small part of the foundry wall. Had this portion
of the boiler in its descent swerved only a very few
feet either to the right or left it must have fallen on
one of the shops, each of which was crowded with
workmen, when the consequences would have been
most calamitous. The boiler-house, a portion of
the foundry, and the hammer-shop were levelled
with the ground, and the boiler in the adjoining
building turned completely round, while portions
of the iron roofs of the buildings destroyed were
carried to a considerable distance, pieces of angle
iron weighing several hundredweight being hurled
on to the roof of the adjoining building sheds.
Immediately the occurrence became known all the
available members of the dockyard police force,
under the direction of Mr. Superintendent Strength,
together with numbers of the dockyard hands, were
on the spot to render assistance, and to search among
the ruins for the bodies of those workmen found to
be missing. After searching for about an hour the
body of Robert Stallwood, one of the stokers, was
discovered, and an hour or two afterwards that of
Frederick May, also a stoker, was found, both men
being very much mutilated, and quite dead. The
bodies were afterwards removed to Melville Hos-
pital to await an inquest by the coroner.
As intelligence of the occurrence became known
in the town crowds of the wives and other relatives
and friends of the workmen congregated in front of
the dockyard to ascertain any particulars respecting
the injured, but every precaution was adopted by,
the dockyard officials to allay the anxiety mani-
fested, the whole of the workmen employed in the
departments where the accident occurred being sent
to their homes. •

Among those who received the most serious in-
juries were Mr. Hooper, foreman of smiths, who,
while engaged at his dUty, was struck by a portion
of the building, a stone from which was hurled
through the smithery, striking him on the thigh,
which was broken; Edward Willmott, severe burns
from the scalding water and steam ; and William
Shackleton, who sustained a compound fracture of
the arm. The whole of the above were immediately
removed to the Melville Naval Hospital. Among
the workmen who sustained less serious injuries
from being struck by portions of the exploded boiler

or the debris of the buildings were H. Fuller, R
Reed, W. Brewer, A. Bennett, A. Cooper, C.
Brewer, J. Hillman, W. Brown, T. Barnes, T.
Scott, F. Boatman, H. Hastrick, E. West, G. Phil-
lips, W. Pitt, Record, R. Overy, J. Fowler, J.
Terry, IL Sinclair, J. Meagher, W. West, J. Hodges,
A. Lovett, R. Harris, W. Colesworthy, and W.
Webster. These were removed to the dockyard
surgery, where their wounds and injuries were
promptly attended to, after which they were con-
veyed to their homes.
With regard to the causes which led to the ex-
plosion of the boiler no satisfactory reason can at
present be assigned. An examination of the broken
portions made immediately after the occurrence by
the writer proved the plates of which the boiler was
composed, as well as the rivets, to be of very supe-
rior workmanship, while the boiler itself had not
been comparatively a long time in use. The safety
valve was found in its proper state, and therefore
negatives the supposition that it had been tampered
with by the engine-driver or stokers to make up for
a deficiency of steam. A minute inspection of the
remains of the boiler appears to lead to the con-
clusion that the water had been allowed to get too
low, and that caused the explosion.
During the whole of yesterday a large number of
workmen were engaged in clearing away the ruins
of the buildings destroyed and in taking down those
portions which were considered to be dangerous, the
operations of those employed being superintended
by Major Pasley, the superintending engineer at the
dockyard. The lofty chimney-stack, which escaped
destruction, way found to be in such a tottering
condition that it was decided to throw it down, and
the work was effected, without accident, during the
morning. The still loftier stack at the metal mills
appears to have been shaken by the explosion, and
it is not improbable that, from prudential reasons,
it will be decided to take it down. For some con-
siderable distance round the scene of the accident
the yard was strewn with rubbish, while scarcely a
single whole pane of glass remains in any of the
adjacent buildings. The whole of the machinery in
the shop adjoining the boiler-house in which the ex-
plosion occurred has been rendered useless, while
the roof and sides of the building itself have been
blown down, and altogether the large workshop so
shattered and shaken that it will require to be re-
built. The extent of the property destroyed by the
explosion may be inferred when it is stated that it
will occupy several months to re-erect the buildings
entirely and partially swept away.

Last night Mr. T. Hills, the coroner for Chatham,
opened an inquest on the bodies of the two men
killed.

The coroner, accompanied by the jury, proceeded
to the scene of the accident. They found the boiler
which burst lying on its side among a mass of brick-
work and rubbish. One of the safety valves had
been thrown some distance, but the other remained
attached to the disconnected part of the boiler. An
examination of both the safety valve and steam-box
proved that they were in good working order. The
plates of the boiler were three-eighths in thickness,
and, with the exception of one or two which will
doubtless be found to have led to this accident, were
as nearly as possible perfect. The inquiry by the
jury will, therefore, resolve itself into the exact con-
dition of the boiler, and the quantity of water it
contained at the moment of the accident, the latter
being not the least important point to be kept in
view.

The coroner said as it would be necessary to ob-
tain professional evidence as to the condition of the
boiler, he proposed to adjourn the inquiry until the
following week, and this course was acceded to by
the jury.
From inquiries made at the hospital last night it
appears that all the sufferers are going on favour-
ably. The official report of the accident was trans-
mitted to the Admiralty last night.