Salt Lake Herald | 1890-02-23 | Page 15 | A River in Flames

A Kiver in Flame A remarkable scene was witnessed on the Wear Sunderland recently Moored at the manor quay near Messrs J L I Thompsons shipyard vas the steamer Wild Mower of London which having been ashore at Southwold had just come to the Wear for repairs She carried oil I in bulk and was being pumped dry preparatory pre-paratory to being docked A quantity a foil f-oil from the tanks appears to have got mixed with the water in the bilges and this was pumped into the river Sud I denlj tho river near the Wild became be-came wrapped in flames The cause of this is supposed to have been hot rivet falling from Messrs Thompsons ship yardinto the oil in the water In a few minutes thori er for about two hundred 1 yards was one mass f flames which rose lo a great herght and completely enveloped r envel-oped snveral pcsselsin the vicinity The Hamesan the river soondied outthrough I the exhaustion the oil hut the vessels L vmx icfz harming and continued to do oofor nixrofcan hour when tho police extinguished ex-tinguished Uiaflames with the aid of the MrcQaeenaopamius and fife barrows The TO2b damaged were the Wild Slower IVuxHitia and the Douglas of Suaderiauid and thotug Earl of Dumfries These wezo ail much damaged about the hulls decks and riggings the damage amounting to several thousands of pounds During the excitement a man was drowned He and two others were on board the steamer Dcronda when it caught fire All three leaped into the water aud two got safely to some baulks of wood but a young man named John Thompson sink and was drowned Ins body being subsequently recovered London Times