The Topeka state journal. [volume] (Topeka, Kansas) 1892-1980, 1919-01-01
Transport Northern Pacific Is
Aground OF Fire Island.
Ship Has 2,10O Wounded Amer
lean Soldiers on Board.
ALSO CARRIED 400 CASUALS
Rescue Tugs Sent To Take Sol
diers OFF of the Ship.
No Loss of Life-VeSSeI Com
ing From Brest, France.

New York, Jan. 1.-The American
transport Northern Pacific with $500
troops aboard, ran aground on Fire
Island at a. m. today
| In a dense fog and rain the eight
! thousand ton steamer ran into the
rocky shore while travelling at a mod
crate rate of speed.
Cast Lines From Shore.
| At 10 a. m. with rain and snow fall
| ing intermittently and a southerly
| wind blowing the vessel harder into
the sand, navy officials saw no pros
pect that the ship would be released
until tomorrow and a coast guard
crew began casting lines from the
shore.
The vessel was rolling heavily in a
sea which appeared to be getting
rougher and navy officials deemed it
advisable to remove the troops i'm
mediately.
In the breeches buoy the uninjured
men were to be brought ashore, while
the wounded and nurses were to be
removed in tugs and small boats to
a rescue fleet, which including cruis-
ers and destroyers, was sent from the
army embarkation port, Hoboken in
response to a wireless message re-
ceived from the stranded transport.
All Is o. X. Aboard.
Capt. B. w. Blamer. chief of staff
to Admiral Gleaves, is directing the
rescue operations from New York by
wireless He is in constant wireless
communication with the Northern Pa
cific. At IL a. m, he announced that
a life line had been shot across the
ship by the men from the Fire island
life saving station. A breeches buoy
was rugged on this line and if neces-
sary those aboard will be taken ashore
by this means.
The Northern Pacific, Captain
Blamer said. is broadside on to the
shore, one mile east of the radio sta
ton on the west end of Fire Island.
His latest report from the ship was
that all was well on board
The ship is on an even keel, hard
and fast on the sandy. shelving beach
of Fire Island, about forty miles from
New York bay.
The Solace Is Near.
The hospital transport Solace is
standing by and the 2,1O0 wounded
soldiers will be transferred to her if
it is impossible to pull the Northern
Pacific into deep water.
A fleet of rescue vessels is at the
scene. including the cruisers Des
Moines, the transport Mallory. eight
destroyers, three lighthouse tenders,
eight tugs and six submarine chasers.
1AS pOSllIOn OIL the northern Hdc1Ilc
is believed to be good. The shore is
rocky in places, but she escaped
striking the reef.
twenty-mile wind, direction south
to southeast, was blowing this morn
ing. Indications were that it might
increase to thirty miles an hour. I'm
less the wind shifts there is no i'm
mediate danger.
Attempts to pull the big steamer off
the beach were rendered more diff
ficult by choppy sea. The weather
was thick and rainy.
Send Storm Warning.
A storm is due to strike the coast
this afternoon, according to official
weather bureau warnings issued at
10:30 a. m.
Hoist storm warnings 10 a. m from
Jacksonville, Fla, to East Port
Maine,' said the warning. storm of
considerable intensity over Great
(COutinUpd on Page TyYol