The Madison daily leader. [volume] (Madison, S.D.) 1890-current, 1915-07-26
VESSEL CARRIED 2,5OG
PERSONS AT THE Time
Scores Hurled Into Water and
Drowned and Others Are
Caught in Cabins.

Chicago, July 26-NIore than 1000
persons were drowned when the
steamer Eastland, crowded with $500
employees of the Western Electric
company, capsized in the Chicago riv-
er
The crowding OF passengers to one
side Of the boat is supposed to have
caused the tragedy, but authorities,
not satisfied with this explanation,
ordered the arrest of officers of the
beat and Captain Harry Peterson and
Dell Fisher, first mate, were taken to
police headquarters Two engineers
also were arrested.
Panic of the worst kind struck the
passengers when the boat began to
turn over But accounts of witnesses
said the steamer rolled slightly twice,
then turned further, and that hun
dreds of screaming, struggling men,
women and children slid across the
sloping decks. fought for room on the
companionways and clutched at COM
panions, deck chairs or any other OBJ
ject that came to hand.
Women and children by the hun
dreds were caught below decks and
the scratched faces, torn clothing and
bruised bodies of the dead bore mute
evidence of the desperation with
which they had fought for a chance
for life.
The whole tragedy occupied less
than five minutes. Members of the
crew shouted warnings as the steam
er first tilted and Captain Pedersen
ordered lower deck ports opened and
all passengers ashore. There was,
however, no chance for such meas
ure to succeed.
Every Resource Aids Rescue.
Every resource in the city was
turned to the rescue work. Remem-
bering the Iroquois theater disaster
mercantile concerns in the vicinity
hurried motor trucks to the scene
laden with blankets to warm the liv-
ing or cover the dead. Pulmotors by
the score were sent to the dock ply
sicians, police, firemen. government
lifesavers and nurses were summoned
and all hospitals and morgues notified
to prepare for patients or corpses.
The steamer floated on it's side in
to midstream and tugs, motorboats
and other river craft swarmed about
1t. Firemen climbed on the hull
forced openings in the steel hull and
through these searched the cabins for
possible victims.
For the first two hours attempts
were made to revive every person
taken from the wreck. Then, as the
hopelessness of resuscitating later be
came apparent, divers were summon
ed to explore the depths of the boat
Equipped with ropes they groped their
way into the innermost recesses oi
the hull.
Every other minute their assistants
were signalled to pull" and another
victim was added to the numbered
dead. 1t was the result of the divers
work that caused the coroner anC
police estimates to mount above 1000
Police and fire tugs organized the
river craft into a rescue fleet. Boats
were directed to cruise down the riv
er and watch for bodies and the san
itary canal trustees were asked tt
,lose the dam at Lockport, ILL.,, thus
shutting off the current of the river
in order to aid in this work.
Trucks Loaded With Dead.
Rumors of the disaster spread rap
idly Its full significance was realized
when motor trucks, piled high witt
blanketed forms, rolled through tn
loop district to morgues and under
taking establishments.
Its worse than the lroquois," wa
the word that went about the street
and Immediately the city went int
mourning. The American and Fedora
league baseball games were called off
many theaters announced their door
would be closed and churches sun
moned their members to pray for tn
dead and offer comfort to the living
Flags were lowered to half mast an