Albuquerque morning journal. [volume] (Albuquerque, N.M.) 1903-1926, 1914-01-06
Remarkable Accident to Okla
homa Results in Terrible
Catastrophe Eight Mem
berS Of Crew Rescued,
HEAVY WEATHER MAKES
RESCUE WORK DIFFICULT 7
Origin of Accident Is Matter
Of Conjecture, as Vessel
Bearing Survivors Has Not
Yet Reached Port,

IsY soRnlas JOURNAL SPECIAL LEASED wiRsl
New York. Jam 5-1hc oil tank
steamer Oklahoma broke ia two
amidships without warning al 1850
O'Clock sunday morning south of
Sandy Hook and large number Of
her crow Of some forty men per
ished
The stern section Ia which was lo-
Gated an the heavy machinery of the
vessel ana on which there were thir
ty-two members Of the crew. sank in-
mediately Eight mcmbers of the
crew were rescued by the Hamburg
American iinvl Bavaria, whose cap
tain said some of the oklahoma men
told him they saw an open boat oi
the oklahoma put away from the
wreck with ten men in IL.
This information was contained IN
wireless dispatch received tonight
10y the Hamhmg-Amercan line here
from Captain Graalfs Of the steamer
BaNarla, which IS proceeding to Bos.
ton with the eight survivors of che
tanker on board. The message which
came by way Of sasconset, saii
con January . at 6 a. IN. we
sighted signals of distress Of yes-
sel. The seas were high and rough
81 dawn we stw the fore part ef "a
steamer Floating on the water Ii
was the tank steamer oklahoma
from New York
AT $ a. m we Nere lose 20 fhe
wreck and lowered a boat with sis mon
who succeeded, after great effort an
seizing rope that was thrown t)
them from the oklahoma The men
of the oklahoma lowered themselves
into The boat exhausted by their ex.
periencc Of the last twcnty-foor
hours
captain Gunther stated that lust
Sunday al 1.30 Il. m. during heavy
weather and without any previous
warning, the ship suddenly broke in
two behind the bridges. In about
twenty minutes after part OF the
ship. with crew of thirty-two men,
sank. the stern pointed upward with
the propeller twirling The fore part
was Kept afloat, with the bulkhead,
the stern up 20 the rear edge protrud-
ing from the water The lifehoats
either went down with the ship Or
were smashed Immediately in the ca
,astrophe
con the evening of January 4 a.
Spanish steamer (prohahly the Man
uel Calvol had appeared IN the vl-
cinity Of the oklahoma but was una
ble owing TO The lad weather. to ac-
complish anything Immediately az
ter the Bavaria reached the scene of
the disaster this morning, the United
Fruit steamer TenadWos arrived,
but there was nothing eft To be done
the Bavaria having taken off The
men The life saving work took plarc
in latitude 3907 north. Longitude
73.45 west
Shortly after this message had been
received by the Hamburg American
line. another came from Captain
Graalfs This said.
According to statements made by
some of the men saved, boat from
the stern part Of the Oklahoma witt
from eight to ton men in it was seen.
It's whereabouts Is not known"
The Bavaria is expected to re.oh
Boston about room tomorrow None
Of the -four steamers which were IN
the vicinity of the wreck and which
CAME into port this evening made any
report concerning the lifeboat spoken
of by the men Of the Oklahoma
Captain Porter Of the frulter Tona
dores ana Captain Banet Of the. Man
uel Calvo. both Of whose vessels stood
by the Oklahoma, said tonight ou
their arrival here that they hal no
knowledge Of what caused the acct
dent They confirmed the statement
Of captain Graalfs that the okla
homa had broken IN two amidships /
and expressed the opinion that few of \
the crew who were aft mt the time
had any chance to reach the fore part
Of the vessel
"Frcm the fact that all the SUI I
vipors Were assembled forward" said |
Captain Porter Il presume that an
explosion took place in the after part .
Of the ship, where all the working .
force In the engineers department /
were quartered
Here also We're the ships engines
ana other machinery The accident
must have been Of sudden nature,
for otherwise the men ar would hayo
had ample time to have saved their
lives by rushing TO the fore part OF
he steamer"
The Calvo, which was the first YES
sol to arrive at The scene OF The dis
sster. WAS flfty-sevcn miles south "A
Scotland lightship. where "a lookout
saw what appeared TO be a dereliet
aff the port bow This was SUNDAY
afternoon. The Calpoa course was
and when she got close 10
he dereliet eight men could be seen
)n board. Captain B0net called for i