Disastrous Collision on the Clyde.

Auckland Star, Volume XIX, Issue 218, 15 September 1888, Page 3 (Supplement)

Disastrous Collision on the Clyde.

An acoidenfc attended by a lamentable loss of life arid property took place on June 16th in the Firth of Clyde, near SJielmorlie, There ia in that par,b of the estuary a measuj-ea rnfle, which is largely used in qpnneqtion with the trial trips of qbeainera, pn the date named two vessels proceeded' thither for this purpose; the one bein£ a nW-paddle Gbeamer called tlie Princess of and the other the sorew steamer Balmoral Castle, which had just been fitted wjth triple expansion engines. The latter steamer was formerly pije of the Cape of Good Hope mail boats, and more recently was employed in carrying frozen meat from New Zealand* The paddle steamer Started first; from the southern end qf the distance, the Balmoral Castle following almost immediately. On completing the mile, the Princess of Wales' helm was star:)boarded, in order1 to turn her: head seawards, and this brought her right across the cqurse pf tjie BaknQral Castle, which :jv'as clqee behind her and going at lull speed. : A ebllisbn at bnbe became inevitable, and the screw steamer struck the other tioafc with such force as io otit her fight in half. She actually passed bd' t^een the' two halves arid went on for 100 yds before she could be brought up. Th«J sterni half of the Princess of Wales satik in a fow minutes, carrying down with it three men who were at work in the cabin when the collision occurred. The rest of the peopie on[ boara hadl rushed to tjie*bow, bub they were seized with a panic, and some 20 of them seized forma or tpre doors from their hinges^ and leaped overboard. The Balmoral Oastle promptly, launched three boats and rescued the ladies and" others of the forepart of the sinking sbij), apd a fleet of boafs and yaiishts which at once pub off from the shore rescued those who were in the water. The steamer Adela, frdiii RotbeSay, vl^ent biib arid iook the still floating forepart of the Princess of Wales in. tow, with the view of beaching ib, but ib sank in five fathoms of Water wlien still 200 yards froni the pier at Wemyss Bay. The captain and pilot, who had remained on the fragment till then, madeiiheir escape in'a email boac, which was kept in readiness for the purpose. About 20 of the people who were rescued .were found to be more or less seriously ipjuwd by the shock bf the collision. Had 0»e. boilers of the paddle steamer been perie^ trated, an explosion woi|l4 hfVe* dcourred iWiich miisb certainly have resulted in the loss of life being much greater. >-I'h'e Balmqral Castle, which had a large hole knockedin her bow above the water line, returned to the Tail of the Bank. '