SHIPS ON FIRE

Otago Witness, Issue 3775, 20 July 1926, Page 32

SHIPS ON FIRE

A CARGO OF PETROL. MELBOURNE, July 14 The steamer Kooringa, laden with 6000 cases of petrol and benzine, took fire 26 miles off Cape Schanck. The crew was rescued by the steamer Kooyong. A donkeyman, named William Flynn, aged 27, was severely burned. He gave his address as Mein street, Wellington. The Kooyong is making for Queenscliffe, where medical attention is available. The Kooringa has been abandoned. She was burned to the waterline. July 15. In addition to Flynn, Hector MacLeod, a seaman, and Peter Wiltshire, a fireman, were seriously burned. The vessel is of 30S tons and is owned by the Holyman Line and is engaged in trading between Tasmania and Victoria. The men were injured while abandoning the ship. The fire was caused by an explosion of benzine in the forehold. The flames rose 100 ft in the air. When the first lifeboat was launched it capsized and the occupants had to scramble back on to the burning ship. The skipper says that when the Kooyong was leaving there was another terrific explosion. The vessel did not sink but remains a menace to navigation. BLAZE ON*SCHOONER. NEWCASTLE, July 15 The schooner Louis Theriault, laden with coal, caught fire in mid-stream. After a haid fight the fire brigade extinguished the outbreak, and the vessel was towed to Stockton, where it ..is understood she will be beached. SYDNEY, July 15 The Louis Theriault has been engaged for the past six years in the New Zealand timber trade. She was extensively damaged and it will be at least a month before repairs can be effected. The rapid spread of the outbreak was due to the presence of a quantity of crude oil in the cargo. The vessel was beached at Stockton.