Complex sentence: The forward funnel collapsed under its own weight, crushing a number of people as it fell into the water and only narrowly missing the lifeboat, missing Lightoller himself by inches and creating a wave that washed the boat fifty yards clear of the sinking ship.
Split into simpler sentences: The forward funnel collapsed under its own weight, crushing a number of people as it fell into the water and only narrowly missing the lifeboat. It missed Lightoller himself by mere inches and created a wave that washed the boat fifty yards clear of the sinking ship.