The Fairmont West Virginian. (Fairmont, W. Va.) 1904-1914, 1905-01-03
CREW WAS BLOWN INTO ETERNITY.
TOWBOAT. DEFENDER BLEW up
WITH HORRIFYING RESULT

a
side. saw the glare of a steamer.
and heard her chus.chug as she
fought l.er way through the foes.
Suddenly mass of fame burst
into the air. and the whole river
| seemed TO heave with the force of
terrific explosion The next minute
the place where the steamer had been
there was nothing but huge bon
| fire.
Il called 10 -neishbor of mine, who
has boat alongside of mine. and the
two of us jumped into sltiff and
made for the blazing steamer. which
was about half mile below my boat,
in midstream. We pulled hard. but
| 1t was fully twenty minutes before
we could make the distance as the
river was at fioodtide and running
swift.
THE scene when we reached her
side was of such horrifying nature
that Will never forget 1T. Several
charred bodies were floating alongside
| while from the steamer itself, above
the kissing of the flames as they
struck the water you could hear the
shrieks of some poor devil who.
though still alive, had nothing but a
| horrible death ahead of him. And
there we lay helpless. 1t was moth
ing short of madness to attempt to do
| anything for the poor boys on the
Defender. She was a furnace, and in
spite of the zero chill of the night, it
blistered your face If you got within
fifty feet of the vessel
| II don't know how many were kill
cd, but do know that none could
| outlive the seething furnace. Resi-
dents all over the city were awaken
ed by the concussion of the explo-
sion. which was felt as far as the
Chesapeake and Ohio depot full
mile from the Shore
Details Hard to Get.
| Details of the disaster are as yet
unobtainable. At the offices of the
| Monongahela River Consolidated Coal
and Coke Company. to which the
wrecked boat belonged, no list OF the
dead and injured could be secured.
At five o'clock this morning Captain
1
Monongahela Consolidated Coal and
Coke Company in this city by phone
| and gave the following meagre details
of the accident:
1--WE were two miles above Hunting
! ton on the way to Pittsburg when the
accident occurred. The trouble was
caused by two defective fiues in the
larboard boiler. The list of the dead
and injured l do not know as yet. Pi-
lot Weldon is alive and only slightly
| hurt. We are lying near Guyandotte
and there is three feet of water COW
| ering our docks. The steamers head
| is partly out of the water, her stern
| being entirely submerged. She is
| quartering badly. The Exporter came
along about two or three hours after
| the accident and picked up our tows."
1t was also stated at the offices that
owing to the fact that men were hired
as they applied on the steamer prior
to her departure for Cincinnati there
| wars no list of those aboard except
that kept by the captain.
An official of the company said the
ooIISIS OIL Lue cOIlpdly were IuoE-
oughly inspected two months ago at
which time they were reported in per.
feet condition. The examination was
was made by the government inspec.
tors. The boilers were put in new
| little over five years ago. 1t is be-
| lieved that no time will be lost in
investigating the cause of the disas-
ter. Jurisdiction in the case comes
under the Gallipolis district and must
be conducted by the government in
spectors there They are Captain
Edward Maddy and Captain Edward
Morgan.
Death List.
HUNTINGTON, w. Va, Jan. A.
The list of dead in the explosion of
boilers ON the towboat Defender, on
the Ohio river in front of this city last
night viii. according to the statement
made by Captain woodward, reach
ten, with some fifteen or more wound
ed The list of dead or missing ae-
cordfng to Captain Woodward fol
lows.
PERRY SPENCER. of Point Pleas
ant, mate
THOMAS DUFFY. Of Pittsburs.
fireman.
S~.ss..., =.,.-st.