EXPLOSION ON A CUTTER

Dominion, Volume 8, Issue 2547, 23 August 1915, Page 6

EXPLOSION ON A CUTTER

EXTRAORDINARY DOUBLE ACCIDENT ONE MAN DROWNED TWO SEVERELY BURNED' (By Telegraph.—Press Association.) Auckland, August 22. Au extraordinary double accident oocurred in tho harbour yesterday afternoon, by which a man named C. Whisker was drowned, and following his drowning two men wore severely burned as tlie result of a mysterious explosion on the seven-ton sailing cutter Rosalie. The namesof the men suffering froin burns* are William Huff, captain of the cutter, and Lincoln Tayor.

Apparently Whisker went on deck andi fell overboard while tie others were be* low. Efforts wero made to reach him, but he was carried away by the tideJ A fourth member of the party, a man named Coutt-s, who had put off in a dinghy to help deceased, then rowed to. the Railway Wharf to inform the police of the fatality. As Coutts was returning with the police a heavy explosion, was heard, and a dense cloud of smoke issued 'from the cockpit of the Rosalie. Two men from tho scow Alma, which was anchored not far from the Rosalie,, put' off in their dinghy, and on getting alongside the Rosalie, which was still' smoking, they found the cockpit to be in flames. They extinguished the blazs without any difficulty. Huff was found lying on deck, practically nude and shockingly burned, whilei the second man was found just-drag-ging him self'up from tihe cabin. " Both men wero put in tho Alma's dinghy and taken- ashore, where ambulances took'them to the Hospital. There were several kegs of gunpowder aboard the Rosalie, and one of these had ignited in some way and exploded. Later.

Emil John Vandenbsrg, cook on. the scow Alma, was seen shortly after the accident and related the following facts: "I was standing ill the galley when I heard an explosion and saw a great cloud of smoke coming from the Rosalie. lat once called my mate, Quinten, and we pulled off inour dinghy, taking with,us a kerosene-tin bucket in case we wanted to extinguish a fire.' I was first to get aboard,; and my mats kept pitching water on the deck. 'I, saw one man lying ou deck, and what bit of clothing ho had. on him was burning, so I at once set to work to tear it off He was. shockingly burned, and had only a bit of trousers left on him. Ho was. so bad that some of his skin came off with his clothing as I removed it The other chap ,was coming up from below. Ha was not so badly burnt as his mate, but be seemed dazed,_ probably by the explosion, so I told him to get off into our dinghy. Then my mate handed ma up tins of water until ive put out ther fire. It -was a wonderful thing that all the powder -was not exploded, for I sawseveral 26lb'. tins about, and in order td put an end to any further risk threw, them overboard. There' was also a gutf in the hold and a quantity of cartridges were scattered about. I then covered the worst burned mainvith a and got him into the dinghy ivith his. mate."