The Birmingham age-herald., 1913-08-29
FLAMES SWEEP BIG
STEAMER WITH 1881
PASSENGERSADOARD
The Imperator Is Greatly
Damaged by Fire-One
Officer Killed by
SuffOcatiOn

New York August zs.--Flames swept
the steamer Imperator today early as it
| lay at its Hoboken dock with its crew and
11a steerage passengers aboard and before
the fire was subdued tons of water had
| been poured into the hold of the vessel.
The ballast and cargo had listed it 10 de-
grees.
| Second Office Cobrick perished when
| he led volunteers into the hold to fight
the more dangerous flames. His retreat
was cut off and he was suffocated
| When the crowd In the steerage board
| the cracking of the flames they rushed
| to the pier where they were surrounded
by armed guards because they had not
| been inspected by immigration authori-
| ties.
| Later these We're taken to Ellis Island.
All Asleep
| The Imperator was dark with all aboard
asleep save the watch officers when
smoke ascending from the provision room
was discovered. silent alarm was
| sounded.
Commodore Russer, commander in chief
Of the Imperator. was among the first to
| respond.
| The crew of 11S0 men were in their
places within minute. complex fire
| fighting apparatus of the vessel was set
| to work.
Every compartment was ordered closed
| except those which 1t was necessary to
| leave opda for the steerage passengers to
get on the wharf When the steerage pas
sengers stampeded toward the deck ships
officers and scores of the crew lined up
along the route to safety guiding the
terror stricken men and women to the
pier.
Then with the ship clear the entire force
turned its hand to extinguishing the
flames. For is minutes they fought the
fire with only the Imperator's own ap-
paratus.
Alarm Sounded
general alarm was then sounded In
the first sharp skirmish with the flames
Second Officer Herman Gobrecht and Sea-
man Otto Struntz caught in the with
ering breath of a belch of fame were
cut off from the door by which they
had entered.
Their companions were driven back to
the open. Although they stormed the
flames again and again, the wall of smoke
kept them from rescuing Gobreeht and
Struntz. When the fire was checked their
bodies were recovered.
ond cabin was the sign of discovering
the flames Soon it grew to a cloud. Soon
the cloud was observed by the Hoboken
fremen. These dragged their hose after
them. The dining room in the second
cabin suffered the greatest damage from
smoke. The handsome appointments OF
the saloon were u wreck when the smoke
cleared and after the passing of the fire
men,
Flames Gain Headway
Despite the work of the firemen the
flames gained headway rapidly A tug
steaming down the river reused the water
front with its marine intelligence through
the whistle. F1reboats from New York, a
fleet of tugs and battery of fire en-
gines from Hobolxen rushed to the pier
|. A dozen tugs stood by the Imperator
to tow her oue to midstream as the
flames threatened momentarily at their
height to destroy It,
Preparations We're made to cut the
steamers moorings when the fire pumps
began throwing water into the hold With
half hundred streams of water being
poured on the flames the blaze lost inn
petus and the Imperator began to list
to one side. The streams began TO be
reduced after the fire was seen to be
subdued.