Keowee courier. [volume] (Pickens Court House, S.C.) 1849-current, 1916-01-19
WEDNESDAY, JAN. 10. 1910.
u. $. SUBMARINE EXPLOSION.
Accident ut Navy Yard Costs -Four
Deaths, Ten Injured.

1 New York, Jan. 15.--Four men
| were killed and ten injured, five dan
gerously, in an explosion to-day on
the submarine E-2, while the craft
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 work
ers.
At least three of the ten now in
hospitals are not expected to live.
The dead are Roy b. Seaber, cleo
trician, second class, Cleveland; Jas.
II. Peck, civilian, general helper,
Brooklyn; j. p. Schulz, civilian, ma
chinist, Brooklyn; Joseph Logan, ci-
william. general helper, Brooklyn.
Terrific Detonation.
The detonation was terrific. but the
| submarine itself, from the outside,
shows no effects. ...
The interior was badly shattered,
but so tight was the vessels shell that
there was no means Of escape for gas
| and 1t was more than an hour after
the blast before the work of recover
| ing the bodies could be completed. A
ladder blown up through the coming
tower fell $50 feet away.
The injured and one body were re-
| moved soon after the accident, but
| three bodies Ear 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 were
partly overcome by fumes. 1t was
then that compressed air pipes were
run into the shell.
The number Of men inside the sub
0rSfp, not ftr,Ha 80 1,N L.
not known definitely. About 20 were
| working on the craft.
Cause Not Known.
What caused the explosion has not
been definitely decided. Rear Admi-
raj N. r. Usher. commandant of the
navy yard, after q brief investigation,
declined to express an opinion. He
said:
"The men were working in the bat
terry compartment Of the E-2, dis
charging the new Edison battries
through a rheostat to measure the
voltage, and the explosion occurred in
that compartments. The battery will
generate no kind Of gas and there was
no gasoline on board. The engine
was Of the oil-burning Dysel type"
Inquiry Board Appointed
Washington, Jan. ia court Of
inquiry was named by Secretary Dam
iels to-day to investigate. determine
the cause and fix the responsibility for
the explosion aboard the submarine
E-2 in the New York navy yard Satur-
day, which caused tho death of four
men and the serious injury of ten
others. A navy yard board appointed
by Rear Admiral Usher Immediately
after the accident reported to the de-
partment tonight that "the investiga-
ton was continued to-day, but 1T was
said too early to decide its outcome" !"
The court Of inquiry will be COM
posed of the following officers, all Of
whom have had wide experience in
the various phases Of submarine
work: Capt. w. II. G. Bullard, Lieut..
Commander II. G. Sparrow, Lieut..
G. S. Mcdowell and Lieut.. Joseph 0.
Fisher.
Members Of the court will leave
Washington tonight for New York
and will begin the inquiry tomorrow.
A report is expected before the end
Of the week.
The tragedy served to emphasize
the need Of a laboratory equipped for
experiments with batteries, engines,
ventilation and other important parts
Of naval vessels. The submarine E-2
had been used for testing the new
Edison storage battery because the
navy had no other equipment suita-
bic for such purposes.