Deseret evening news. [volume] (Great Salt Lake City [Utah]) 1867-1920, 1904-02-29
Occurred on Steamer Queen, Ma.
jOrity of Victims Drowned by
CapSiziug Of LifebOat.
THREE SUFFOCATED TO DEATH.
Passengers Say a Heavy Sea Was on
And Ship Pitching When
Flames Started.

Seattle, Wash, Feb. 2s,--Fourteen
people lost their lives as the result OF
the fire on the steamer Queen from San
Francisco to Seattle early yesterday
morning. The origin OF the fire Is as
yet unknown, II started In the social
hall of the vessel at about i;30 IN the
morning and ragged for three hours be.
fore II was gotten under control.
When the conlagration was first dis
covered the lifeboats containing the
women and children and many men
were launched but three Of these, ow-
Ing TO heavy seas, capslzed spilling the
passengers In the water and causing
the loss Of nine lives. Three men,
walters on the vessel, were 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 expos
ure.
According to the stories told by pas
stngers and crew OF the Queen, which
arrived In this port at 8 o'clock this al.
ternoon, the vessel was on Tillamook
and about 30 mines from land when
the fire was discovered. There was a
heavy sea on and the ship was pitch
Ing badly. When smoke was discovered
coming out of the social hall on the az
ter main deck Of the vessel, an alarm
was sounded and the crew and passen =.
egrs all tumbled out In wild alarm.
When Capt Cousins, commander OF
the vessel, discovered the extent of the
IRE, which embraced practically all the
rear portion of the vessel, he imme-
diately ordered the lifeboats launched.
-Four filled with women and children
ana sufficient men 10 man them were
dropped over from the leeward side OF
the vessel, each containing about l6
people The first boat capslzed al
most as soon as II touched the water
by getting under the stern OF the ship.
All the passengers IN this were res
cued by the other small boats, with the
exception Of a Miss Staner, a frst-
class passenger, who was drawn under
the ship when the boat capslzed The
second boat capsized while being low
cred. There were no passengers In this
at the time, but the crew OF four men
who were aboard were spilled out and
lost, A third boat spilled about half a
mile from the Queen and all but four
OF It's passengers and crew were res
cued By the other small craft In the
Vicinity. The list OF the missing is as
follows:
First Cabin--Miss Steiner. Cleelum,
Wash, drowned In destruction Of small
boat, Mrs. H. Adams, Seattle, wo-
man of 50, who died from exposure
three hours after the discovery Of the
fire.
Second Class-D. e, Newberry and
II, Buckley, drowned
Deck Hands-A. Nilsson, j. Nelson
and h. Frutas, drowned
Engineer Department--Pete Nuhn
and NJ. Flynn, drowned.
Waiters-W, Heineman and Ray.
mond, drowned; NJ. Somers. II. Doug.
las and A, Donnelly, burned and suffo-
Gated.
The lifeboats that were hoated safe
ly and two RATS that were thrown over
to pick up any who might be thrown In
the water, remained in the vicinity OF
the burning vessel and within view Of
II while the fire was being fought by
the crew and those among the male
passengers who remained on board.
Every available stream of water was
thrown into the l.rning cabin, the
men working coolly and without eX-
element.
The survivors state that every man
kept his head and worked hard to sub
due the flames Despite their efforts
however, II was after I o'clock before
the fire was under control and the sig
nal given to the small boats to return
TO the vessel
Passengers. when interviewed this
afternoon, stated without exception
that everything was done by Capt,
Cousins that was possible to insure
their safety. Had II not been neces.
sary to send off the boats not q life
would have been lost, but as II was
dark when the fire started and II was
impossible TO light the vessel or to con-
fine the women to their staterooms. It
was absolutely necessary to send them
away to avoid a panic,
Practically the entire after part OF
the ship Is IN ruins, The intense heat
of the flames has bent aud twisted the
Interior iron work into shapeless
mass, and sailors viewing the ruin to-
lay, state that they do not understand
how II was found possible to get con-
irol OF the flames. Were II not for the
act that the captain, crew and passen-
GERS behaved with the utmost GOODNESS,
he vessel would have undoubtedly been
destroyed and the loss Of life been enor-
nous. The vessel carried more than
100 passengers,