Omaha daily bee. (Omaha [Neb.]) 187?-1922, 1905-10-15
FIVE SWEPT INTO OCEAN
Gigantic Wave Rslls Over stssrags Dsok
Of the CampaniA.
MANY OTHER PASSENGERS ARE INJURED
wall of water Rising on Heavy
Sea submerEes vessel So that
Upper Decks Are
Awash.

NEW YORK, oct l4-Five lives are
known to have been lost and more than
thirty persons injured, one of them
fatally on the Cunard line steamer Cam
pania last Wednesday, when a gigantic
wave rolled over the steamer and swept
across a deck thick with steerage passen-
gers. So sudden was the coming of the
disaster and so great the confusion which
attended and followed it, that even the
officers OF the steamer themselves were
unable to ray upon the vessels arrival
here the full effect of the tragedy. 1t is
possible the five persons known to be miss
ing from the steerage may not constitute
the full number of the dead. When the
Campania reached quarantine ten of the
| injured passengers were still in the ships
hospital, some of them seriously hurt, and
| a score of others were nursing minor in
juries.
John Graham of Milwaukee was one of
the passengers washed overheard and lost
He was travelling in the steerage. The
others who are known to have lost their
lives were two Irish girls and two other
women.
The Campania was blowing under full
Roadway last Wednesday afternoon A
heavy Quartering sea was running, but the
weather conditions were far from unpleas-
ant, and the big boats decks were
| crowded with passengers. The steerage
deck was covered with merrymakers and
there was nothing to indicate the approach
ing disaster, when suddenly the big
steamer lurched to port and scooped up
an enormous sea. The wave boarded the
steamer about amidships on the port side
| and swept clear across the steerage deck
| completely filling the space between that
| deck and the deck above and carrying
| everything with it.
Upper Deck is Flooded.
The steamers side was buried so deep
that the passengers on the deck above the
steerage were submerged to their waists
as the immense volume Of water rolled aft
and then surged forward.
All the cabin passengers on the upper
deck succeeded in cllnging to supports
while the waters surged around them and
were saved, but the unfortunates on the
steerage deck found themselves utterly
helpless. The irresistible rush of waters.
sweeping toward the forward part of the
ship, carried everything before it. Net
tings, heavy ratings and other distractions
which had been arranged near the ratings
to prevent passengers being washed over
board served their purpose only in part
So great was the volume and force of the
| rushing waters that a door in the rail
was smashed, and through this opening
five of the helpless who had been caught
by the wave were swept to their death
Others were dashed against the rails and
like distractions and escaped death, but
many of them received severe injuries.
One young woman had both legs broken
at the thigh and several persons suffered
broken arms and ribs, while more than a
score were bruised and battered.
Doctors Have Much Work.
When the wave cleared the vessels for
ward part of the deck was strewn with
injured and for hours DIR. Verden, the
ships surgeon, aided by a number of ply
sicians among the cabin passengers, was
busy attending to their hurts. In the
meantime an inspection of the storage
was made by the ships officers and it
was learned that five OF the passengers
| were missing.
No other information regarding the ship
was given out. From one of the steerage
passengers it was learned that the lives
of several children were saved by stew
ardess Miss Cotes, and a deck steward
The little ones were playing about the
| deck when they were caught In the swirl
Of water and carried aft with the others.
|
dren were being carried directly toward the
open door through which the five who lost
their lives had been carried when Miss Cotes
and the steward rushed to their rescue
! and dragged them back to safety.
| Wednesdays disaster marks the first
| time in the Cunard lines history of more
than sixty years that a passenger has
been lost from one Of its steamers by &C
| cident.
Many steerage passengers upon landing
at the dock today fell upon their knees and
offered up prayers of thanksgiving over the
safe arrival.
Although some OF the passengers thought
the Campania should have stopped in an
attempt to save those who were washed
overheard the officers say that this was
practically impossible. Both passengers and
officers say the waves in Wednesday after
moons gale were the highest they have
ever seen. At times they broke as high as
the top Of smokestacks An hour before
the accident a second officer on the bridge
was struck by the descending crest of a
wave. knocked down and rendered uncon.
| scious.
Names of Dead.
In addition to the name of John Graham
the Cunard line officials today gave out the
| lbiONlub VI 5NctidBt passengers
who were washed overheard:
| MARGARET CLEARY.
| MARY COSGROVE.
| NELS EKBERG.
| ELIZABETH GRUNADOTTER
Another ship In storm.
The Philadelphia, which ran into the same
storm last Wednesday that swept FIVE OF
the Companies passengers overheard, ar.
rived here today and reported that the
storm was one OF the worst the Philadel.
phia had ever encountered Scarcely wa
the Philadelphia out of the storm zon,
when a wireless message apprlsed its Off
GERS of the disaster on the Campania Thi,
news was withheld from the Philadelphia,
passengers until they arrived at port today
All passengers on the Philadelphia wer,
kept inside during the storm. which lasteS
foTty-eight hours Especial precautioni
were taken TO keep the steerage passenger
OF the decks.
Milwaukee Men Coming Home.
MILWAUKEE,. Oct. 14-John Graham o
this city, who was washed overheard from
the steeTage deck OF the steamer Campania
was returning from a visit with his wifi,
to his parents in Scotland. He leaves /
wife and eight children, seven daughter
and one son.
Two brothers Of Mrs. A. p Edquist, wifi
Ns4Na -