The Birmingham age-herald., 1919-01-04
By Associated Press

Fire Island, N. f. January J.
 Plans for removal tomorrow of 200
 seriously wounded soldiers stili
 aboard the stranded transport
 Northern Pacific were disrupted
 when driving northeast snow
 storm set in at Os3O o'clock to-
 night. Coast guard officers feared
 that unless the storm abated it ] would be impossible to take off
 the wounded men.
 As a blizzard developed the
 lights of the rescue fleet standing
 by outside the bar were obscured
 and even the powerful Fire island
 light, visible under normal condi-
 tions for ten miles, could not he
 seen fr, n, the shore watch sts-s
 tiOns n mile away.
 When darkness began to fall. en- forcing suspension of transhipment op- erations, steam. motor and oar pro pelled craft of the navy and coast guard had taken off the liner 2041 troops. in addition to 259 soldiers and Red Cross nurses carried ashore yes terday in surf boats and the brooches buoy.
 The operation was completed with out accident, except for the capsizing of a lifeboat and without the loss of a single life. The hardy veterans of the Long Island coast guard. with hun dreds of rescues to their credit durin < the past decade, won the honors in yesterday S rescue work and performed valiant service in assisting the navy today. But it was the sailormen with sturdy boats skilfully maneuvered in choppy surf who carried their khaki clad brothers in arms to safety to- day.
 WORK DAWN TILL DARK
 From early morning until dusk the rescue craft-light draft submarine chasers. power launches and whale boats piled between the stranded troopship and the flotiila or cruisers destroyers and tugs anchored just out side the treacherous sand bars that brought the Northern Pacific to grief within a mile of Fire Island light. The chasers, steaming in almost to the breakers, nosed against the stee sides of the liner and took off 150 men at a time.
 Sixteen ladders were dropped over the transports bow and down them the able bodied soldiers scrambled. Tn, wounded were lowered overside in bas- kets or in few cases where shattered limbs had not knitted. were carried down gangways to launches helt steady by sailors willing hands. NO MAN INJURED Hour after hour the transhipmen went on, with cold wind driving oi | rescuers and rescued and with spumi drenching all hands in the trips tf and from the warships. Tire wounded were hoisted aboard the hospital shiI Solace without the injury of a man naval officers said.
 l If the present weather conditions a north wind blowing off shore and th' surf moderate as night set in--coDtin ues the transfer of the remaining 2O' men will be completed before noon to | morrow, naval officers operating or shore with the coast guards said.
 The Northern Pacific. standing al most upright in the sands. 200 yard off shore. was in no danger tonight according to Capt J. D. Meade. coas l guard officer. on the staff of Rear Ad miral Usher. commandant of the Thir' naval district. She was taking yer, little water he added. and unless SC were midwinter storm sets in. woul, stand the pounding of the seas until | wrecking company, -whose tugs are gal ready standing alongside upon order of the navy department could pull he l free. This work would be started, Il asserted, as soon as the ship wa cleared of passengers.
 l Aside from coal. the liner has aboar. only a light cargo of baggage am mails, which will be removed afte 1 the troops.