The Kendrick gazette. [volume] (Kendrick, Idaho) 1892-1968, 1904-03-04
FOURTEEN LIVES WERE LOST
RESULT OF FIRE ON STEAMER
QUEEN FROM FRISCO.
Origin Of Fire Unknown-6tarted $3.50
q. m-Raged Three Hours Before
Notwithstanding to Heavy Sea
lfeboats Capsized-Was 80 Miles
From Land.

From Land.
Fourteen people lost their lives as
the result Of the fire on the steamer
Queen, from, San Francisco to Seattle.
The origin of the fire is yet unknown.
It started in the social hall of the YES
sci at about 4:30 in the morning and
ragged for three hours before it was got.
ten under control. When the confagra-
tion was first discovered the lifeboats
containing women, children and many
men were launched. but three of these,
owing to the heavy seas, capsized,
spilling the passengers in the water
and causing the loss of nine lives.
Three men, walters on the vessel, we're
suffocated before they could reach the
outer air in safety from their hunks
in the glory hole, in the aft part of the
ship. and one woman died later from
exposure.
According to the stories told by pas.
sengers and crew of the Queen, which
arrived in Seattle Sunday afternoon,
the vessel was off Tillamook and about
30 miles from land when the fire was
discovered. There was heavy sea on,
and the ship was pitching badly. When
smoke was seen issuing from the So
cial hall on the aft of the main deck,
the crew was Immediately rousted out
and the hose manned, while the stew
ards went from cabin to cabin, waking
up the passengers.
There was no disorder either among
crew or passengers. When Captain
Cousins, commanding the vessel, dis.
covered the extent of the fire, which
embraced practically all the rear por-
ton Of the vessel, he Immediately or
dered the lifeboats launched. Four
filed with women and children and
sufficient men to man them were drop
ped overheard, each containing about
Is people.
The first boat capsized almost as
soon as it touched the water by get
ing under the stern of the ship. All
the passengers in this were rescued by
the other small boats with the excep-
ton of a Miss Steiner, first class
passenger, who was drowned. The sec.
ond boat capsized while being lowered.
There were no passengers in this at
the time, but the crew OF four men
.ost. A third boat filed about half
nile from the Queen, and all but four
# its passengers and crew were res.
,ued by the other small craft in the
vicinity.
List Of the Missing.
The list of the missing are as fol-
lows:
First cabin-Miss Steiner. Cle-Elum
Wash, drowned in destruction of
small boat.
Mrs. E. Adams, Seattle, a woman of
so. who died from exposure three hours
after the discovery of the fire.
Second class-D. e. Newberry and
H. Buckley, drowned.
Deckhands-A. Nilsson, ]. Nelson and
B. Frutas, drowned. :
Engineers departmentAPeter> Nuhn
and M. Flynn, drowned.
Waiters-W. lehman and N. Ray.
mond, drowned; H. Douglas and A.
Donnelly, burned and suffocated.
The lifeboats that were floated safely
and two RATS that were thrown over
board to pick up any who might be
thrown in the water remained in the
vicinity of the burning vessel, and
within view of it while the fire was be-
ing fought by the crew and those male
passengers that remained on board.
Every available stream of water was
thrown into the burning cabin. the men
working coolly and without any excite
ment The survivors state that every
man kept his head and worked hard
to subdue the flames. Despite their
efforts, however, it was after o'clock
before the fire was under control and
the signal was given to the small boats
to return to the vessel.
Passengers when interviewed this af-
everything was done by Captain Cou-
sins that was possible to insure their
safety. Had it not been necessary to
| send off the boats not life would have
been lost, but as it was dark when
the fire started, and it was impossible
| to light the vessel or to confine the wo-
men to their staterooms, it was abb
solutely necessary to send them away
to avoid panic.
Practically the entire aft of the ship
is in ruins. The intense heat Of the
flames has bent and twisted the in
terror iron work into a shapeless mass,
and sailors viewing the ruins today
state that they do not understand how
it was possible to get control Of the
flames. Were it not for the fact that
the captain, crew and passengers be-