The sun. [volume] (New York [N.Y.]) 1916-1920, 1919-06-13
RAMMED SHIP
NOW GROUNDED
. AT LONG BEACH
Graf Waldersee's Stern Is,
Pushed Into Sand to Keep
Her AflOat.
HAS A GOOD CHANCE
Big Hole Patched, Pumps Are
Working and Tugs Ready
to Pull Her Off.
HAS A GOOD CHANCE

The transport Graf waldersee, out
ward bound to Brest when she was
rammed and nearly sunk in the fog
of Sandy Hook on Wednesday night
by tho Incoming transport Redondo,
was grounded or Long Beach before
noon yesterday. She lies this morning
about a mile and half south Of the
Hotel Nassau,
Tho Navy Transport Service gave
out word last night after communicate
ing with Commander Kerrick Of the
Graf Waldersee that the prospects Of
salvaging the former Hamburg-Amer-
lean liner and Of saving her cargo Of
cattle are excellent. Most Of her crew
Of $50. together with her nine passen-
gers, army officers, were taken aboard
the transport Patricia, which towed
the Graf to Long Beach yesterday
morning. or aboard Navy tugs. which
brought them to New York last night,
most Of the rescued men being
landed at the Navy Yard in Brooklyn.
Mono was injured when the Redondo
smashed a great hole in the middle
OF the Crafts starboard side
A placid season and the probability
Of continuance OF good weather led Port
Of Debarkation ofiicials and the Navy
Transport Service to conclude that tire
Graf can be saved. She lay last night
in forty feet OF water. her ttern grip
ping the sand, with navy tugs and Mer-
ritt-Chapman wrecking tugs standing l..
Commander Kerrick and a small force CT
men remained with the crippled ship,
continuing their efforts to reinforce the
big patch OF planks and tarpaulins which
partially closed the hole torn by the
Redondo's bow and awaiting the arrival
OF two six inch pumps and of divers
that were being sent from the navy yard
in Brooklyn. The navy tugs Resolute.
Crawford and Fulton were pumping
water out of the Graf all last night.
She's Safe, Captain Thinks.
Capt. Israel Nostrand of the Long
Beach Life Saving Station returned at
=. NJ from a trip around the beached
transport. He talked by megaphone
with Commander Kerrick, who assured
him that the Graf was in q satisfactory
position and could be hoated as soon as
her patches were strengthened and better
pumping facilities secured. Commander
Kerrick said that more than 400 Of the
crew. together with the ten passengers
Of the army. had been taken OF and
were on their way to the navy yard. 1t
was expected that short work would be
made Of dumping the water out Of the
Graf and getting her under way for New
York when the fun force of navy tugs
and of erritt-Chapman wreckers get
to work to-day.
The bleaching Of the $4,000 ton steam
ship made a fine spectacle yesterday
morning for hundreds of persons who
gased from the Long Beach boardwalk.
At a little before IL they made out the
ship clearly, noting that she was listing
heavily as tho towing ship the Patricia,
guided her toward land. Then the
Patricia cast loose the towing rope.
sheered away from the dangerous shoals
and gave over the Job of Bleaching the
Graf to the busy little tugs.
The first story Of the collision in the
fog was told by Lieut.. Boquist, U. s. NJ.
attached to the Medical Corps and as
signed to the Graf Waldersee.
Fog gripped the ship soon after we
left port last night" said Lieut.. Boquist
when he reached here last night ION
Sandy Hook fog whistles were believing
all around US. Along about IL P. NJ. I
was sitting on the edge of my bunk and
heard all the sirens in the world roaring
and looking out of a portfolio saw red,
white and green lights In clusters.
hustled up on deck and had no more
than got there when q pretty big ship
doomed out of the fog right on top of US.
The crash came at once. throwing me
fiat on deck. When I got to my feet
grabbed my clothes and life preserver
and then went to the sick bay to look
out for four men OF the crew that were
laid up. They were all right, unhurt
and went back to the deck.
II noticed that there was no panic
whatever. even In that fog. The crew
took the collision as II 1t was an every
day affair. and continued to do their
work well even when the lights went cut
That was because the engine room was
flooded, killing the dynamos. Before
that happened we had o SD the
whole ocean, and 1t wasn't long before
the Patricia came up looking like a
summer hotel. She neared us by as neat
bit Of seamanship as ever saw. Ir
a very short time the passengers and the
sick were transferred to the Patricia
and nine boatloads of the crew wer,
dropped into the water and towed by the
Graf before the Patricia picked us up.
FL Years old. but Sound.
1T was a mighty lucky accident in 6
way, because II the collision had oc
CURED far out at sea In that fog there
is no telling what would have happened
As It was nobody was hurt and I guess
tney IL save the snip
The Graf Waldersee, one Of the Ham
burg-American liners taken over from
Germany by the United States for trool
movement purposes after the armistic'
was signed, the vessel having been lait
up at Hamburg during the war IL o
1913 gross tonnage and 8,275 net ton
mage. She was built in 1898. but Is con
sidered very sound ship after a caree
OF twenty-one years.
Commander Kerrick, held back by tn
tog blanket. proceeded very slowly I
sea. and 1t was a few minutes after /
o'clock on Wednesday night when tn
Graf reached a position about thirty
eight miles east of Sandy Hook. 1t wa
there that the Redondo OF the Unite
States Shipping Board feet. which lef
Gibraltar on May 81, after having take
aboard a few officers and soldiers O
the United States Army at Cette, Francs
rammed her In the impenetrable fol
The two steamships were approachin
each other bow on whom each discovere
the others proximity and tried to shee
away. The result was that the Redond
went into the Graf Waldersees staI
board side full tilt tearing hole amid
instantly rushed.
jured as it turned out. but for the tim
~eing neither commander knew ho'
much harm had ben done. The RI
dondo was dragged away from the Grs
by the heavy swell OF the sea and n
treated In the fog after having been n
sured by Commander Kerrick that sh