The semi-weekly messenger. [volume] (Wilmington, N.C.) 1897-1908, 1902-12-05
Steamer ProgreSo Wreck.
ed, Wldrf Burned.
ana Lives Lost.
GREAT DAMAGE.
The Vessel Was Being Changed from
Coal to an Oil Burner, When
One of the Tanks Exploded With
Serious Rcsults-Theory Advanced
IN That Gas Was Generated in One
of the TaEl.s, and This Caused the
Explosion.
Explosion

San Francisco Decembe' g. While
the steamer Progreso was lying at the
wharf of the Fulton Iron Works at
Harbor View this morning, an explo-
sion occurred. AS = result twelve
men are missing. A score We're more or
less seriously injured and property
valued at $4,000 was destroyed.
The disaster occurred at 45 o'clock
while forty mechanics Of the ION works
on board. Below the decks the me-
chanics were busy completing the work
of changing the vessel from q coal
burning coal carrier, to an oil burning
oil carrier when sud- .nly enc of the
tanks blew up. Mel were hurled
against the steel VIII and 4 sheet of
| flame came sweepiT : into their faces.
On the upper deck. men were hurled
into the air or thrown into the water.
Three sailors engaged IN washing paint
| outside the pilot house disappeared
as the cloud Of black smoke came up
Following the expulsion. the ship
sagged in the center, showing that she
had broken in two. In the office of
the iron works twenty feet away, ev-
cry window was shattered and flying
glass cut the faces and hands of many
OF the officials and cIerKs.
AS they rushed out INTO the open,
survivors, who were able to help them
selves, were leaping from the ship. A
great crowd of mechanics came run
ming out of the works. AS soon as
the panic had subsid"d, these men set
to- work to rescue men from the burn
ing vessel A stream Gf burning oil
running from the tanks, spread out
until the ship lay on waves Of fire.
The flames crept under the wharf and
soon the timbers were blazing, adding
to the difficulty of the work of rescue.
AS the ship was built of steel, the
fire was nearly all below the deck.
There were fourteen oil tanks con-
tanning about four hundred barrels of
oil in all. and despite the efforts of
the fire department. this continued to
burn fiercely for hours after the eX-
ploson.
Several minor explosions. due to the
flames going from tank to tank. occur
red at short intervals. but all the in
jury and loss of life was caused by
the first.
One popularity of the explosion was
that several men vino Were on the
other side of the bulkhead from where
it occurred, were uninjured, while
others further away Were BADLY hurt
Several men in the yards were injured
by flying debris
The loss to the Fulton Company by
the wrecking of the building and the
burning of the wharf will exceed s20,-
600. 1t is estimated that the Progreso
was worth about s175,0G0.
The explosion shook al the buildings
at Harbor View and the shock was
felt a mile away. In 4 few instances
windows were broken several blocks
away.
James Spiers, Jr.. manager of the
Fulton Iron Works, is positive that the
explosion was due to the oil and not
to the bursting of the boiler. His the
ory is that gas was generated in one
of the oil tanks. 1T was certainly the
explosion of the tank" he said.
IF it had been a boiler explosion "a
cloud of steam would have arisen. but
there was no steam. Instead. it was
black smoke from the oil. There was
only n small pressure Of steam at the
time"