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Tragedy on High Seas Triumph of Wireless
Fire at Sea: The Saga of the Volturno
HAVRE, France, Oct. 14.
La Touraine, of the French Line, second of the rescue ships which figured in the Volturno disaster to reach port, arrived at Havre this morning. La Touraine had forty-two survivors of the disaster on board.
On the forward deck of La Touraine when she arrived at the quay was a group of eight children from 3 to 12 years old, who had been rescued from the Volturno and whose parents either had perished or were aboard other rescuing steamers. The children had been made much of since they were brought on board La Touraine from the burning Volturno.
Two other children with their mothers, and twenty-seven sturdy Polish peasants, with three of the crew of the Volturno, made up the total of forty-two rescued by La Touraine.
&nbso; Some of the rescued passengers wore their sheepskin coats, while others had been provided with clothing from the trunks of the passengers of La Touraine. The survivors had been well cared for by the officers of La Touraine and had been supplied with small sums of money by the passengers. All the rescued passengers were sent on to Amsterdam.
Men Faced Danger First Lieutenant Izenic, of La Touraine, told of the work of rescue. He saaid:
"It was half past eight on Thursday morning when we received the first wireless message that the Volturno was burning. At that time we were 200 miles away. We reached the Volturno at nine o�lock in the evening and found ten other steasmers already on the scene. Heavy smoke was streaming away from the forward hatches of the Volturno, whose passengers had assembled in the after part of the ship. The women and children on the Volturno had been placed farthest from the fire, while the men formed a line nearest to the point of danger.
"Everything on board the Volturno appeared quiet and under organized control. I could observe the crew working steadily with the hose, pouring water into the hatches from which red tinged smoke was issuing. It was obvious from our bridge that the efforts of the crew of the Volturno to extinguish the fire were futile, as the flames rapidly gained strength.
"Twenty men among our passengers who were yachtsmen or otherwise familiar with the sea, volunteered to help man the lifeboats, but their services were not needed."
Nothing But Big Torch What followed after the arrival of La Touraine in the vicinity of the Volturno is related in a detailed report sent by Captain Causain to the French Trans Atlantic Company. He says:
"The forward part of the Volturno looked to me like an incandescent brazier.
"As the sea was beginning to moderate I thought of putting out boats, but ht eopinion of all my officers was against lowering of lifeboats. I sent out a whaleboat, however.
"The Volturno at this time had her stern in the air, while forward and amidships she was nothing but a great torch."
Cries of Terror "Lieutenant Izenic reported that upon his arrival at the side of the Volturno that vessel resented a frightful spectacle. She was blazing from her bows to amidships and plunging and rolling. Crew and passengers had been driven by the flames and smoke to the extreme part of the vessel, where they uttered indessantly cries of terror.
"The whaleboat stood off, its crew calling to the passengers to jump into the sea, when they would be taken on board. None, however, would jump until the Touraine's whaleboat was thrown by a gigantic wave against the Volturno's side. Instantly a number jumped or slid down the ropes into the boat. Two who had jumped for the boat disappeared under the side of the Volturno as she rolled. One man landed on a sailor in the whaleboat and injured him.
Bringing Back Rescues "Happily, Lieutenant Izenic was able to get clear of the Volturno with five rescued passengers, or his boat would have been overloaded and sunk.
"Another whaleboat, commanded by Second Captain Rousselet of the Touraine, was near the stern of the Volturno and its crew were calling to the pasengers to jump, but none would do so. No other boat was seen at that time near the burning ship.
"Lieutenant Izenic wanted to put off again from the Touraine but I sent the second mate with a fresh crew.
"Rousselet returned later with three rescued people. All who were brought in were in a state of great exhaustion.
"Rousselet was allowed to make another trip in his whaleboat with a fresh crew and I then lowered a lifeboat, thinking it might bring back a larger load.
"The second mate returned with seven persons he had picked up and Rousselet brought back seven others.
Took Off All Aboard "Rousselet reported that he had found ropes, pulley tackle and improvised ladders along the after part of the Volturno dangling from the sides. The vessel had a strong list to starboard, her nose was low in the waves and the water was breaking over her. the flames lighted up the scene as Rousselet's whaleboat ran in close and a hail of human beings fell upon it and its crew. Fourteen people were picked up, of whom seven were transferred to the other whaleboat.
"By this time it was six o'clock on Friday morning and numerous boats from the other ships alongside had been lowered and were around the Volturno. Another one of our boats took two women and two children from the sea, which had become calmer. The women and children were let down into the water tied with ropes.
"When no more people were on board the Volturno our boats were taken in.
"If there had been less panic at the beginning of the fire, many more could have been saved.
"The doctor, the purser and several officers of the Volturno were among the last to get into the boats and Captain Inch was the very last to leave his ship."
Discovery of Fire Friedrich Badtke, a young steerage passenger, was the first person on board the Volturno to discover the fire.
"I saw smoke coming through the cracks in the floor of my quarters forward," he said, "and I became sure that the hold below was afire. I ran as fast as I could to the deck in front of the bridge. The Captain himself was there and I yelled to him.
Fighting Begins "All the passengers in the foward steerage had by this time become aroused and every one seemed paniuc stricken. I believe some jumped overboard as the result of sheer fright. When the smoke and choking flames became visible there was an excited rush aft and the passages and stairways for a while were crowded with struggling, fighting people.
"In the meantime the captain had given the alarm. The fire crew was manning the fire apparatus under the eye of Captain Inch, who thus was unable for the rpesent to keep order on deck where the panic stricken passengers had gathered around the lifeboats in the stern. In the absence of the captain and the other officers who were below fighting the fire, there was much disorder.
"Everyone rushed to the boats to try to launch them despite the high sea. There was a great clamor as to who should get into the boats first. The first class passengers insisted upon their right, and a number climbed in with some of the crew. I don't know exactly what happened, but one boat before it touched the water turned over and dumped everyone into the sea.
"The second boat seemed somehow to be broken in pieces when it touched the water. Two others got away. There was crowding towards the other boats. Then the cook, named Kenoma, and a young Englishman took command of the situation armed with iron pins. They struck a few of the most panic-stricken crying out that it was impossible to keep afloat.
"Kenoma sustained a broken leg jumping into the boat when we were finally taken off. I do not know what became of the Englishman."
Smoking Cause of Fire The fire seems to have been due to the carelessness of a steerage passenger. Hans Magnus, a member of the Volturno's crew, avers there were frequent violations of the steamship company's strict order forbidding persons in the steerage to smoke.