The sun. [volume] (New York [N.Y.]) 1833-1916, 1915-03-14
CITING FIRE ABOARD A DEF LINER AT SEA
What Happens When Captain and
Crew Combat Flames Out on Ocean
Away From Any Possible Help

of water sloshing about wound cndan-
ger the stability Of the vessel.
Up in his cramped quarters Sparks
Is working with all his skill to pick
up some station ashore and fash the
wireless call for help. The spark
crackles n crashes. then stops.
sparks snaps shut a switch. and then
with deft fingers making an adjust
ment here and there listens in for the
hint buzz that tina, his call
has been heard. There comes lust a
series OF faint buzzes. like the noise Of
a ny on a drowsy summer afternoon.
At once the operator Is galvanized into
action. Again the spark crashes out
the ships position and need. Soon
shlps alter their courses and with all
possible speed make for the threatened
ship. to stand by In case of need.
Perhaps the crew are able TO master
the maze. And again. and this is a
danger that always stares them In the
race, perhaps they can't. What hap
pens then Is not always pleasant to
think about. You will doubtless recall
the burning of the IRA mum liner Vol
turno and the lives that were lost then
while other ships stood by helpless.
That is what is likely To happen when
the blaze gets beyond control. And
this Is only one Of the dangers tina,
every seagoing ship must face.
IN adYition TO the fire among cargo
there is a more frequent kind OF fire
that occurs on steamships. That IL
he bunker fire. That Il IL a serious
danger Is shown by the fact that
Lloyd's of London demand that the
coal on ships they insure be wetted
thoroughly before being slowed away
in the hunkers.
or all the tedious. ba~ckbreaklne. hot,
uncomfortable Jobs that fall TO the 10,
of steamer crews, fighting bunker fires
head the list. All the coal has 10 he
shifted out OF It's place. shovel by
shovel. and wetted down. When the
heart OF the smouldering mass is
reached the water gives rise 10 steam
ana gas, which add to the difficulties
OF lighting the blaze. Moreover. 1t
can't he subdled in a few hours. II
taxes days and sometimes weeks.
And. too. cargo Of an infiammable
nature is imper.lied by such a fire.
The Chipana OF the Grace Line left
the west coast of South America with
"A cargo of sodium nitrate slowed near
one of the hunkers. Fire broke out
In that bunker. on the other side
was this highly infammable material
slowed a sCant SIX feet away from
the dividing bulkhead In the time
that followed tn. discovery Of The fir,
the hulkhead was actually red hot and
the crew weps Obliged to keep streams
~ t,.n, 60 ~, .l., L.. ...GG -
the run from the west coast until
Philadelphia was reached. For forty
six days the entire crew and officers.
purser included. fought that Are.
Several times IL seemed as though they
would b. obliged to give up the
Struggle. but they stuck to il and kept
1t undo partial control until such
time rs II could be properly extin-
gu.Shed.
When a sailing vessel takes Are 1t is
a case OF mar the hand pumps unless
the ship should be q modern one and
carry u donkey engine and a steam
pump. Those Of wooden construction
offer very little resistance to the fire
once 1t gets Roadway. and it is gem
orally a case of all off when q wind
TANNER is discovered To be afrs
The man who wrote "A Life on the
Ocean Wave" certainly never fought a
bunker fire.
More common than fire and quite
as dangerous Is that gray spectre, fog.
Almost all ocean travellers have Mt
one time or another been in a fog.
Whether or not they were unComfort-
able depended largely on their ~realiza-
ton Of what can happen in a fog. In
spite Of carefully devised rules for the
guidance Of a fogbound ship. and in
spite OF the most painstaking care on !
the part of the officers in charge. ac- |
cidents. and some very serious ones, |