The New York herald., 1922-08-03
TUG AND CREW torn /
TOBITS NEXPLOSI0N
Craft and All OH Board
Vanish as by Magic When
Boiler Explodes.
FIVE MEN ARE KILLED
Captain Is Shot 200 Feet
Through the Air-His Is
Only Body Found.
FOUR ON SHORE ARE HURT
Workmen on High Building
Near Panic as Wreckage
Crashes Down on Them.

One of the strangest explosions in
the memory OF river men occurred
yesterday morning aboard the tug
boat Edward at the foot of Gold street,
Brooklyn.
When the roar had died away. work
men on shore blinked in amazement.
The waters were heaving convulsively,
rocking the other craft. but the tug
boat had vanished and so had her
captain. Thomas McCaffrey. father Of
seven children. and crew Of four.
Nothing remained but a layer Of
wreckage.
Capt McCaffrey was found later
dead in the water some 200 feet away.
Firemen, who dug into the sticks and
boards with long poles, and a diver
who worked throughout the afternoon,
could find no trace OF the crew. how
ever. and the supposition is that they
were either blown to pieces or drowned
and swept away. They are:
THOMAS BOWLING. deck hand.
THEODORE HEIDENBERG, engi-
neer.
JOSE GUMITANo, fireman.
MICHAEL NADLAY, cook.
Four men who were working In Gold
street were injured and had TO be re-
moved In ambulances to their homes.
They are:
JOHN YARKEvIs. 25. 10 Linden
street. Maspeth. L. L.; possible fracture
right foot.
PATRICK HOGAN, so. 100 Second
street. Brooklyn; contusions.
DANIEL O'CONNOR, 40. 257 Ninth
street, Brooklyn; decorations.
WILLIAM COLE. 80. 500 Sixth ave-
nue.. Brooklyn; sprain right hip.
Reuben Wilson, assistant District At
torney, is undertaking an investigation
of the disaster. but with small hope Of
finding the cause. He explained:
The very men / want to talk to are
dead. Naturally the captain and the
crew would be In a position to throw
light on this disaster. but they are all
gone"
On boats and on the Gold street dock.
not more than thirty yards away and
some as near as ten yards, were about
twenty-five workmen. Ali miraculously
escaped death.
Patrick O'Brien. captain of the coal
barge Interstate: his wife. Mary and
three sons. Cornelius. 13; Patrick, Jr.. 3,
and Vincent. 8, probably had the closest
shave of all.
Seemed 10 Rise Ont of Water.
Mrs. O'Brien and the children were
in the cabin said the captain. II was
on deck. The Edward was putting
line on the stern of my craft when the
explosion occurred. The Edward seemed
to lift right out OF the water. All of us
were knocked down. A part of the tug
fell on the bow of the Interstate and
the tubing from her boiler rained down
upon US. / saw the shadow OF a man
going through the air. / certainly am
lucky Irishman. for she was right up
against U.S."
The Interstate listed as a result Of
the blow struck her.
Frank II. Mccarthy, the big, tanned
watchman on the Gold street dock, was
not more than twenty-five yards away,
sitting on chair facing the Edward
Il saw the Edward come in" he said
IT turned my head the other way and
| heard roar. When / looked back
didn't see any Edward. A big knee piece
whizzed past me-"
Capt. McCaffrey was hurled along
With the top of the pilothouse. piece
o. thousand pounds toward the Hud-
sen avenue dock. The debris crashed