Gilpin observer., 1914-06-04
934 BURIED BENEATH WAVES
Go Down With Steamship Empress Of Ireland in the
St. Lawrence River


twin screw liner Empress of Ireland
was rammed amidships in thick fog
of Father Point in the st. Lawrence
and sunk by the Norwegian collier
Storstad.
Four hundred and three survivors
were picked up from floating wreck
age and two lifeboats
And only IL of the saved are wom-
en-.
Gathered piecemeal from survivors
the horror Of this wreck grows with
the telling.
The doomed ones had little time
the onrushing waters that swallowed
the big ship inside of 10 minutes from
the time she was struck
The wireless operators on the EN-
press, sticking to their posts to the
last, had time only to send a few IS.
O.. g." calls for help when the rising
waters silence their instruments
That silence told the rescuers miles
away more potently than a bugle that
doom had overtaken the ship.
Only six hours before this fateful
collision the passengers sang as a
goodnight hymn God Be With You
Till We Meet Again." played by the
Salvation army band on board.
The members Of that band and most
of the 165 Salvationists were among
the lost.
Survivors, Tell Of Fog.
It was foggy, according to survivors.
when the Empress of Ireland, a steel
hulled. steelbulkheaded ship of more
than 5000 tons, left Montreal at 4:30
in the afternoon in command of H. G.
Kendall of the Royal Naval reserve,
one of the most skilled of transatlan-
tic navigators.
Forest fires also obscured the atmos-
phere and the big ship in charge Of
a pilot. proceeded slowly on her way
to sea. At midnight the pilot aid left
near Father Point, shouting merry
Bon Voyage" as he went down their
ladder to his waiting boat.
The darkness at this time was in
tense and the ship under the slowest
speed possible with steerageway held
her course. Her decks were deserted.
The passengers had all sought their
berths with no thought of impending
death.
Out of the darkness, on the port
side, soon after 2:30 In the morning
there loomed the little Norwegian col
lier, not half the size Of the Empress,
but fated to be her destroyer.
Not until the collier was almost
abeam of the big liner was the danger
known on either ship The fog had
blotted out the lights as well as the
port and starboard lights Of both
ships.
Quick orders trumpeted on both yes
too late,
Strikes Ship Anidship.
The steel-pointed prov of the Stor-
stad struck the liner amidships and
then forged aft, ripping and tearing
its way through the Empress Of Ire
land.
Clear to the stern of the Empress of
Ireland was this great steel shaving
cut from her side, from the top of the
hull far below the water line. Into that
rent the water poured with force OF a
Niagara.
The bow of the Storstad smashed
it's way through berths on that side
of the ship, killing passengers sleeping
in their berths and grinding bodies to
pieces.
Reaching the stern of the big liner,
the Storstad staggered off In the dark
ness, her bow crumpled by the impact.
Her commander was ready few min
utes later, when he found his ship
would float, 20 aid the crippled and
sinking Empress, but he was too late
to save the majority of those on board
Carried to Bottom.
The Empress of Ireland recoiled al
most on her starboard beam ends from
the blow of the collier and passengers
were flung from their berths against
the walls of their staterooms.
Many were stunned and before they
had time to recover were carried to
the bottom with the ship.
The vast torrents pouring into the
great cash on the port side, aft, filled
the corridors and flooded every state
room abaft the midship section inside
of four minutes.
There was never a chance for the
helpless ones In the after cabins and
stateroom of the liner. With her port
side laid open for half its length from
the midship section to the stern, a
seive had more chance to float than
the Empress OF Ireland, and the
trapped passengers in that after Sec
tion were doomed from the moment
the Storstad struck.
Keeling from the blow the ship be-