The Hartford herald. [volume] (Hartford, Ky.) 1875-1926, 1913-10-15
Another Sea Horror-136
Persons Lost.
AWFUL STORM BARRED RESCUE
OF Many-Details of the Pan.
ic and Struggles For
Life Boats.
CREW CROWDED BACK WOMEN

London, Oct. 11.-Not since the
Titanic sank has Europe been so
thrilled as by wireless message to-
day telling of the burning of the
steamship Volturno in mid-Atlantlc
with a loss, so far as is at present
known. of 1856 lives, and the rescue
of 521. The survivors are now
aboard a fleet of steamers summon
ed by the Volturno's call for help.
some of which are bound eastward
and others westward.
The Volturno, sailed from Rotter-
dam on October 2 for New York.
According to the official statement
she carried twenty-five first cabin
passengers. 53S steerage and crew
numbering ninety-six
The rescue ships reached the
scene of the disaster in plenty of
time to save all, but for hours stood
by the blazing vessel, impotent be-
cause of the storm to reach the
agonizing men, women and children
crowding the afterpart of the ship
and within a stones throw.
All night Thursday the lifeboats
made a desperate effort to get along
side the Volturno, but the waves
beat them back again and again, and
not until the storm abated at day
light Friday did the rescuers sue
coed in removing the survivors from
the doomed ship. Even now only
the fringe of one of the most thrill
ing tales Of the sea is available. Ex-
actiy how the rescue was effected is
not known. The VolturnO was well
equipped with boats, sufficient. the
agents say. for a thousand persons,
but the boisterous sea or lack of
boat drill, or panic among the pas
sengers, prevented the successful
employment of them. The rescue
ships were able to lower lifeboats,
but apparently most of the boats
launched from the Volturno were
smashed or upset and the occupants
drowned.
The steamer Carmania, bound
from New York for Liverpool, was
seventy-eight miles away when the
call for help flashed. Capt. Barr,
ordering full steam. in spite of the
gale, drove through the seas at
twenty knots an hour and was first
of the feet to reach the burning
vessel. She was followed by La
Touraine, Minneapolis, Rappahan-
mock, Gar, Narragansett, Devonian,
Kroonland. Grosser Kurfuerst and
Seydlitz at various hours through
out the day. But try as they might,
the rescuing vessels could get Meth
er line nor lifeboat to the VolturnO,
the forward part of which was all
most hidden by dense cloud of
smoke. when the Carmania arrived
Further Details.
London, Oct 13.-The latest ac-
counts of the disaster to the steam
ship volturno. burned and abandon
ed in midocean on Friday morning,
confirm that the loss OF life will be
limited to about one hundred and
thirty-six. The Carmania. first of
the rescuing ships to reach the
burning steamer. arrived off Queens
town this morning. but owing to the
gale. proceeded direct to Fishguard.
where she is due to arrive at II a.
m.
A graphic story by the solitary
survivor aboard the Carmania was
received by wireless. and presents
terrible picture of the horror. the
panic and confusion aboard the
burning liner, Walter Trintepohl,
g German. who tells the story. how
ever. is suffering from the stress OF
illness and awful experience, and his
story is too incoherenf to be accept
ed in every detail. Most important.
II true. is his denial that two boats
got away from the yolturno. Ac-
cording 10 other accounts. Capt. Inch
was the last to leave his. vessel,
which was s'ill burning late Friday
night. and was a danger to nayiga-
ton.
Arthur Sturgeon, 2 passenger on
the carmanja. In wireless dispatch
supplements his own description of
the race Of the carmania to the
baspipx vessel and the rescue Of the