The Lancaster news. [volume] (Lancaster, S.C.) 1905-current, 1916-01-17
-FOUR KILLED, TEN
HURT IN EXPLOSION
Terrific Explosion Aboard E-2
While Craft Was Undergo
ing Repairs in Dry Dock
MEN WE'RE AT WORK ON
NEW EDISON BATTERY
Gas Fumes Had to Be Blown
Out Before Bodies in Craft
Could Be Reached.


men were killed and ten injured,
five dangerously, in an explo-
sion today on he submarine E-2
while the caft was undergoing
repairs in dry dock at the New
York navy yard. One of the
men killed was an enlisted cleo
trician and the others civilian
workers.
At least three of the ten now
in the hospitals are not expect
ed to live.
The dead: Roy 3. Seaber.
electrician, second class, Cleve-
land; James H. Peck, civilian,
general helper, Brooklyn; J. P.
Schultz, civilian machinist.
Brooklyn; Joseph Logan. civil
ian, general helper, Brooklyn.
The injured: l.. Miles, Ra-
mond Otto, August Kapin and
Otto Hasert.
The detonation was terrific.
but the submarine itself, from
the outside, shows no effects.
The interior was badly shat
tered, but so tight was the yes
sells shell that there was no
means of escape for gas and it
was more than an hour after
the blast before the work of re-
covering the bodies could be
completed. A ladder blown up
through the coming tower fell
$50 feet away.
away.
The injured and one body
We're removed soon after the ac-
cident, but three bodies far
down in the craft could not be
reached until the gas had been
blown out by compressed air.
Soon after the explosion several
naval officers led rescue party
but it were partly overcome by
fumes. 1t was then that COM
pressed air pipes were run into
the shell.
The number of men inside
the submarine at the time of
the explosion is not known
definitely. About twenty were
working on the craft.
1t is not thought possible that
anyone who was inside could
have escaped injury. What
caused the explosion has not
been definitely decided. Rear
Admiral Nathaniel R. Usher,
commandant of the navy yard,
after a brief investigation, de
clined to express an opinion. He
said:
"The men were working in
the battery compartment of the
E-2, discharging the new Edi-
son batteries through a rheos-
tat to measure the voltage, and
the explosion occurred in that
compartment. The battery
will generate no kind of gas
and there was no gasoline on
board. The engine was of the
oil burning Dysel type.
Pending the appointment OF
an official board of inquiry Rear
Admiral Usher named tenn
porary investigating committee
as follows:
Lieut.. Commander Pope,
Washington, commander of the
receiving ship Maine; Lieut.. l..
M. Stewart, of the torpedo boat
destroyer Mccall, and Lieut..
Rush H. Fay, commander of the
submarine division to which
the E-2 was attached. This
committee Immediately began
to take the testimony.
The opinion was expressed
that the press of withdrawing
the charge from the batteries
might have caused the forma-
tion of hydrogen gas. The eX-
plosions of that nature have
been frequent on all submarines
of the navy and slight ones
have occurred on American
boats.
The E-2 was the only vessel
in the world equipped with the
Edison nickel batteries and size
made her first trip with them
December z, last. It was re-
ported that the new batteries
gave better speed with less