The morning news. [volume] (Savannah, Ga.) 1887-1900, 1895-07-07
PUT INTO PORT ON FIRE.
THE SPANISH STEAMSHIP IDA FOUR
DAYS At SEA WITH HER
BUNkERS BURNING.


BUNKERS BURNING.
on Cape Florida Bound From Pensa-
cola TO Liverpool when the Fire
Was DiscOvered-StRrted Across,
But the Fire Got Too Hot and the
Captnfn Headed for POrt-The Fire
men Poured Water Into the ship
All Day. But the Fire StiII Burn
tnE-one HundrtsH Bales Of Damag-
ed Cotton Taken Out.
The Spanish steamship Ida Of Bilbos
came up to the city yesterday morning for
assistance in extinguishing a fire which
had been burning in her hold for several
days.
Capt Arano thought the FIRE was con,
fined to one Of his coal bunkers and was
not a very serious matter. He wanted TO
continue the voyage across. but his engi-
neer refused TO continue at his work If
the vessels course was not changed.
1t was well for Capt. Arano that he put
into port. or his vessel might never have
been heard from again had he continued
his voyage across, as the fire proved to be
much more serious than was at first
thought to be the case.
The Ida left Galveston week before last
with 1912 bales of cotton and mixed
cargo of cottonseed, cottonseed meal cake
slaves and copper ore She put into Pensa-
cola, where she took on a deckload Of
1si 200 feet of lumber. She sailed from
Pensacola Saturday. June o. for Liverpool
While off Cape Florida. July >, it was
discovered that there was fire in one of the
coal bunkers. The fire appeared to be at
the bottom Of the bunker, and could NOT
be gotten at. The voyage was contin-
ued until about 200 miles off Savannah,
when it was decided to put into port. The
ship arrived at Tybee Friday afternoon.
She came up the river yesterday morning
about 9 o'clock and anchored at the City
Exchange dock.
The Ida was loaded in Savannah by
Strachan & Co. last season. and Capt
Arano telegraphed the firm from Tybee OF
his condition. Chief Puder was notified
of the arrival of the vessel and the state
of affairs aboard, and Immediately called
out his engines by telephone. The fire
being confined to a small space, only two
engines were kept at the dock, and the
Others were sent back. The engines were
set to work and pumped the bunker full
of water This did not seem to extingush
the fire, and a survey was called consist
ing Of Lloyds agent, the Marine Under
writer's agent a port warden and the
captain of the barkentine Rigal The
board ordered that the cargo be dis
charged from the bunker sufficiently to
allow of some idea Of the extent OF the
fire.
Stevedore Harmon went to work with n
gang of men to break the cotton out Of
the hold in order to get at the coal. This
work went on pretty much all day. on
account of the water which had been
poured into the hole and the dense smoke
the work was very difficult. About 100
bales were removed up TO last night. Many
of the bales were charred on the lower
ends, showing that the fire had communi-
Gated to them from the coal. There was
enough evidence TO convince the firemen
that the fire had spread to a considerable
extent among the cotton. The firemen
were unable to locate the center OF the
fire. and probably will not until more of
the cotton is unloaded.
The chief engineer is the only man
aboard who can speak English. To a
Morning News reporter he said that the
coal caught fire at the lower part of the
bunker and burned upward, which was
the reason 1t was so difficult to get a..
There were % tons of coal in the bunker,
he said, which had been there since The
vessel left the other side. He was asked
about the report that the coal caught
fire from the furnace.
THAT cannot be So" he said, "as thu
bunker in which the fire is is some dis
lance from the furnace. You can't tell,
how coal catches fire, from friction,
say-spontaneous combustion, you call IL.
There is no telling how long that coal
has been smolderng."
A coal fire is very hard to put out with
water and that is the reason the firemen
have found the fire aboard the Ida such
an unsatisfactory job. The gas created by
the heat resists the action of the water
The smoke was still issuing from the
hatchway last night and Chief Puder left
squad Of firemen on duty with the big
engine from headquarters. The work will
be continued to-day and until the fire is
entirely out 1t will probably be necessary
10 remove 300 to 400 bales of cotton. The
cargo is protected in the foreign marine
insurance companies as is also the vessel.
The damage to the latter will probably be
very slight
The opinion was expressed by number
of people yesterday that the firemen We're
entitled TO salvage for their work on the
Ida. The vessel put in here and received
services for which she would have had to
pay literally had she remained at Tybee
and depended upon the tugs to extinguish
the fire As it was she was able to dis
pense with the services of the tugs. The
case. it is held, is different from a vessel
taking fire while in the port. The Ida did
not receive her cargo here and had no
connection with this port,