Ottumwa tri-weekly courier. [volume] (Ottumwa, Iowa) 1903-1916, 1913-10-16
Complete Account of Burn
ing Of Steamer Volturno
Is Finally Received
CAPTAIN INCH OF
BURNED BOAT TALKS
Eye Witness From Deck Of
the Grosser Kurfuerst
Relates Incidents

AtS1CSGN AxxNXNNxAOS
| New York, Oct. 15.-Between eighty
and ninety passengers on the volturno
were trapped in compartment No. l
/ by the first explosion on the vessel
Thursday morning and either perished
at once or were burned alive. This
news was brought to port today with
the docking OF the steamship Grosser
Kurfuerst bearing 105 survivors of the
disaster.
The North German Lloyd steamer
Grosser Kurfuerst with 100 survivors
Of the fire which destroyed the steam
err Yolturno at sea last week, was
abreast of the Fire Island light at 7
o'clock this morning, few hours run
distant from port. It was expected
she would dock shortly before noon
today.
The best story came from the lips
Of Waldron Disselman, third officer Of
the Volturno, one Of the rescued
The Grosser Kurfuerst docked In
Hob0ken this afternoon. Committees
of the Red Cross and Jewish organiza-
tions and friends and relatives OF the
dead and living awaited her coming.
Ten automobiles and an ambulance
were on hand to bring the unfortunate
ones to places Of temporary refuge In
Manhattan. Y $s:t ss,.issa. III y2Aa u
N broken 11ns aennxn, 4
sluiet hammered ma 0f about sS6 Years.
told OF the experience during the Is
hours he was aboard the Are swept
vessel. The cause Of the hre ne estab-
lished as an explosion Of q drum con-
tanning chemicals or oil In the forward
| rt Of the vessel.
Il was Just going to the BRIDGE" he
said when the frst explosion occurred.
The Volturno trembled as II she had
been struck by heavy she'll Almost
Immediately other drums began to ex-
plode. There was rapid fire Of. ex-
plosions that sounded like cannonad-
ing. .Sa
Captain Inch was on the bridge.
heard him shout out to man the life
boats"
MANY passengers came running In
panic to the decks. The sailors sprang
to the davits. A gale was bowling and
the seas were sweeping In great roll
lers around us. The passengers crowd
ed the rails 80 that the sailors had DIFF
flculty in lowering the boats. Mean
time the small drums and cases Of
chemicals were exploding by the doz-
en- every minute. No one thought the
slip could last five minutes.
Flames swept up from No. COM
rartment forward and leaped to the
fcrecastle. Within a few minutes It
was blazing. The gale famed the
blaze.
"A boat was lowered and made
size every minute. We lost 1t time at
ter time in the rough Of the sea. An
other was smashed against the davits
before 1t could be lowered. The car
penter's boat, filled with men. women
and children, put off. Each boat re-
quired complement Of sailors to
man it and as each got away it left us
with fewer men to lower the remaining
boats
Then the steering gear on the
bridge blew up with loud explosion
We began to drift The carpenters
fixed up handsteering gear. We
didn't want to drift for fear the Car
mania could not find us. told the
passengers that the Carmania would
reach us in an hour and that quieted
them.
"The Carmania sent us a message to
steer southwest by west to meet her
but we had to steer before the wind to
keep the flames forward.
".The captain fought the flames hard
and within an hour or two thought he
had them under control. went up to
take an observation and fix our posi-
tiOn. AS came down the wireless op-
orator shouted that the Carmania had
been sighted"
Tells Of Heroes.
More instances Of bravery shown by
the crew Of the Volturno during the
mid-ocean battle with the fire and
storm are related in wireless mes
sage from j. Haslup Adams of Balti-
more, who is a passenger on the
steamer Grosser Kurfuerst His wire
less message directed to the New
York Times was as follows:
"Second Officer Lloyd Of the Vol
turno made a great record for brav-
cry on the burning ship. He fell ten
feet while repairing the wireless ap-
poratus on Thursday morning. Then
he fought the fire in the hospital.
preventing an explosion and spread Of
fire to the whole ship. Later he made
his way In small boat to the Kur-
fuerst and bravely got through, though
the boat was smashed in launching