(No. 316.)
"BONNIE DUNKELD."
The Merchant Shipping Acts, 1854 to 1876.
IN the matter of the formal investigation held at the Town Hall, Swansea, on the
25th day of October 1878, before H. C. ROTHERY, Esquire, Wreck Commissioner,
assisted by Rear-Admiral APLIN, R.N., and Captain CASTLE, as Assessors, into the
circumstances attending the damage caused to the sailing ship "Bonnie Dunkeld,"
of Dartmouth, through an explosion which occurred on board the said ship on the
20th of September 1878.
The Court, having carefully inquired into the circumstances of the
above-mentioned shipping casualty, finds, for the reasons annexed, that the
explosion in question was due to a light having been struck in the hold, when
the air therein was in a highly explosive state, caused by a large accumulation
of gas from the cargo of coals; the hatches having been kept closed for about 36
hours previous to the explosion, and no measures having been taken during that
time to ventilate the hold; and that the blame thereof rests with Arthur
Langley, the master, who is an uncertificated officer.
The Court makes no order as to costs.
Dated this 25th day of October 1878.
(Signed)H. C. ROTHERY,
Wreck Commissioner.
We concur in the above report.
(Signed)ELPHINSTONE APLIN,
Rear-Admiral,Assessors.
"JOHN S. CASTLE,
Reasons.
The Commissioner.—Mr. Ravenhill has told us that this is an extremely simple
case. The facts indeed are undisputed, and it is only wonderful, after the many
cases of the kind that have come before the Court, and the publicity that has
been given to them, that there should be found persons ready to come forward and
tell us that they had not the smallest suspicion of the dangers to which they
were exposed when carrying these cargoes of coal.
The circumstances are as follow: The "Bonnie Dunkeld" is a brigantine of 188
tons gross and 177 tons nett register. She was built at Gloucester in the year
1869, and having been thoroughly overhauled at the beginning of the present
year, was classed A 1 at Lloyd's. At the time of the casualty which forms the
subject of the present inquiry she was the property of Mr. William Henry and Mr.
George Atkins Goodridge, of Dartmouth.
In September last the vessel was lying at Swansea, and a contract having been
made with Messrs. Evans and Bevan, the owners of the Seven Sisters Mine, to
supply her with a cargo of their coal, 313 tons of it were shipped on board her,
of which 111 tons were put in on the 16th, and the remaining 202 tons on the
17th of that month. As might be expected in a vessel of her size, she had but
one hold, running the whole length of the ship fore and aft, having three
hatches opening into it, a fore, a main, and an after hatch. The cabin was aft
below the deck and forward of the fore hatch and below the deck was a sail room
for sails, ropes, and ship's stores. The crew were berthed in a house on deck
between the fore and main mast. The coals, we are told, were shot down the main
and after hatches and were trimmed aft so as to prevent her being too much by
the head. According to the master there was a space between the coals and the
deck of 2 1/2 feet aft and 5 feet forward; according to the master trimmer they
were trimmed right up to the beams aft, and there was a space of only 2 1/2 feet
forward. But however this may be, the coals appear to have been so trimmed as to
slope down from aft forwards, leaving a space more or less between them and the
deck.
On the evening of the 17th, after the whole of the cargo had been taken in, the
fore and main hatches were put on to prevent, the captain told us, anyone
falling down them. There was no such necessity, he said, in regard to the after
hatch, as it had a booby hatch, rising some 4 1/2 feet above the deck. In what
condition the hatches were left during the 18th is not very clear, but on the
evening of that day the main and after hatches were closed, and although the
fore hatch was left open, it was, we were told, not for the purposes of
ventilation, but to enable the crew to get at the store room, which, as I have
said, was below the deck just forward of the fore hatch.
At 9.30 a.m. of the 19th she left Swansea, having on board a crew of seven hands
all told, and at 11 a.m. passed the Mumbles, when the weather appearing squally,
and there being a heavy ground swell, all the hatches, we are told, were
battened down. At 5 p.m. of the 20th they passed the Lizard, the weather then
being fine, and at 10 the same evening the master determined to set some more
sail. At this time there were on deck the master and two able seamen, Trout and
Gifford. Trout was at the wheel, and Gifford, who was on the look-out, was
ordered by the master to go to the sail room and get up the mizen gaff topsail.
For this purpose the fore hatch was taken off, and Gifford went down through the
hatch, and into the sail room below. Not being able to find the sail in the
dark, he told the master that the lucifer matches which he had were damp and
would not light, and accordingly the captain went to his cabin, and having
procured some fresh ones returned to the hatch and handed them down to Gifford.
At this time Gifford was at the door of the sail room, and the master was lying
on the deck with his hands over the hatchway ready to hand up the sail when it
was found. On receiving the lucifer matches Gifford struck one, and immediately
there was an explosion. A flame, we are told, came out of the fore hatch, and
rose as high as the foreyard, and at the same time the main hatchway as well as
the skylight above the cabin were forced off. Gifford was very severely injured
by the explosion; the master also was burnt in the hands and on the forehead,
and the mate, who was at the time below in the cabin, was also burnt.
Fortunately no lives were lost.
These then being the undisputed facts of the case, the cause of the explosion is
not far to seek. It seems that the coal with which this vessel was loaded had
come from the Seven Sisters Colliery, a colliery some eight miles from Neath,
and I think about 17 miles from Swansea. From the evidence of Mr. Wales, the
Government Inspector of Mines for the South Wales district, who is well
acquainted with the mine, it seems that there are two seams, the upper being 4
feet, the lower 9 feet thick. He told us that although the coal is highly
anthracitic, it gives off a considerable quantity of gas for some time after it
has been worked, and as a proof of this he said that the 9-foot seam was worked
with safety lamps, which would not be necessary if the coal did not give off an
explosive gas. It seems that the coal which had been put on board this vessel
had been raised from the mine on the 11th, 13th, and 14th of September, and
shipped on the 16th and 17th; it would, therefore, according to Mr. Wales, be in
a condition to give off a considerable quantity of gas. The throwing it down the
hold too would, we are told, by breaking it up, tend still further to liberate
the gases. Now instead of affording every facility for these gases to escape
what does the master do? As I have already said, on the evening of the 17th, as
soon as the whole of the cargo had been put on board, he closes the fore and
main hatches. On the evening of the 18th the main and after hatches are closed,
and although the fore hatch is said to have been left open, this was not for the
purpose of giving ventilation, but simply to enable the crew to get at the sail
room to put away the sails and hawsers. From the morning of the 19th until the
explosion, which occurred at 10 p.m. of the 20th, all the hatches were tightly
battened down. During all this time the gas which the coal would give off would
accumulate in the empty space between it and the deck, for it is admitted that
there was no kind of ventilation whatever to the hold, except it was, as the
master said, through the bulkhead separating the cabin from the hold, but which
I need hardly observe would be quite insufficient for the purpose.
In the case of the " Sardinian " a great deal of evidence was given to us as to
the peculiar properties of this gas, and the dangers likely to arise from it. We
were then told that when mixed with from 6 to 16 parts of atmospheric air it
becomes a highly explosive compound. Seeing then what are the admitted facts of
the case, namely, that the coal was, according to Mr. Wales, in a condition
readily to give out these gases, and that by the admission of the master the
hatches had been closed for about 36 hours immediately before the occurrence,
and that there was no kind of ventilation to the hold, can there be any doubt
that the explosion was due to the accumulation of gas in the empty space above
the coal, and that when Gifford struck a match it was in such a state as only to
require the application of a light to explode?
A suggestion, indeed, was thrown out in the course of the inquiry by the agent
for the owners of the colliery, that possibly there might have been some
paraffin or other explosive oil in the sail room which might have ignited when
Gifford struck the match; but the master told us that the only oils which he had
on board were not in the fore part of the vessel, but were stowed away in a
locker in his cabin, and that after the explosion these cans were found to be
intact. There can, therefore, be no doubt that this casualty was due to an
explosion of the coal gas which had been allowed to accumulate above the coal in
the hold.
Now what excuse does this master give for having neglected to take any, even the
most ordinary, precautions to prevent an explosion of coal gas on board his
ship?
In the first place, he told us that he had been in the coal trade for from 32 to
33 years, and that he had not the slightest suspicion that these coals gave off
gas. He knew that the steam coals did, but he did not think that these did. But
Mr. Wales has told us that they do continue for a considerable time after they
have been worked to give of gas, which when mixed with atmospheric air becomes
of a highly explosive character, and that precautions are as necessary with this
coal as with the regular steam coal. Indeed he thought that these precautions
were necessary with all coal cargoes.
In the next place the master stated that he could detect no smell of gas. But we
were told by Dr. Morgan, the analyst, who had analysed some of these coals, not
indeed recently, but about three years ago, that it contained a very small
portion of sulphur. And as we are told that it is to the sulphur which it
contains that the unpleasant smell is due, it is not to be wondered at that the
master failed to detect the presence of gas by the smell.
It is clear to us that this master had no suspicion whatever of the dangerous
nature of the gas given off from these coals, or he never would have sent
Gifford down into the hold and told him to light a lucifer match after the
hatches had been kept closely fastened down for some 36 hours. Had he had any
suspicion of the dangerous nature of this gas, nothing could have been easier
for him than to have got rid of it. We are told that this gas, which is of a
highly volatile nature and mixes readily with atmospheric air, can readily be
got rid of by causing a current of air to pass over the surface of the coal. It
seems that they had fine weather from 5 to 10 p.m. of the 20th, and if during
that time they had left the hatches open the gases would readily have escaped,
for with all the hatches open, a current would have been generated by the motion
of the vessel through the air. Indeed there seems to have been no reason why the
after hatch was not left off altogether; for we are told that it was covered
with a booby hatch standing some 4 1/2 feet above the deck, so that there was
little fear, with the weather they had, of the water getting down there. But the
fact is that the master thought that there was no necessity to ventilate the
cargo. Indeed he has told us that he had never heard of ventilating coal cargoes
in vessels of under 400 tons. But I find it stated in a circular which was
issued so long since as 1872, and which is given at length in my judgment in the
case of the "Sardinian," that accidents of this nature generally occur in small
vessels, or in ships constructed in compartments never in very large vessels,
that is to say, in large vessels which are not divided off into compartments;
and the reason is obvious, for where the vessel is very large, with the hold
open from one end to the other, either the hatches can be left open or there are
some apertures through which the gas can escape; but where the coal is put into
compartments, or into a small vessel like this, and care is taken to close the
hatches and stop up every aperture there will always be the danger of an
explosion. So that it would seem that there is quite as much as, if not greater,
need of ventilation in a small vessel than in a large one not divided into
compartments.
It seems that the master received no notice either verbal or written from the
shippers of coal as to the dangerous character of the gas given off from these
coals, although they must, as owners of the Seven Sisters Colliery, have been
perfectly aware of it from the fact that the 9-foot seam has to be worked with
safety lamps. Nor indeed does it appear that there are any such notices issued
by the harbour authorities at Swansea, as we are told that there are at Cardiff.
We think that those gentlemen who, whether as shipowners, or as owners of
collieries or shippers of coal, are aware of the dangerous character of these
shipments, and yet omit to give the captains notice, either verbally or in
writing, of the absolute necessity either of keeping open the hatches or of
providing proper means of ventilation, incur a serious responsibility. And if
they still neglect to take any precautions to avert these terrible calamities,
it will probably be a question whether some more stringent means should not be
provided to compel them to do their duty. I do hope, however, that shipowners
will take warning by this and other cases which have occurred, and will see the
absolute necessity of providing proper means of ventilation for the holds,
whatever may be the character of the coal or the size of the vessel, the more so
as it can be done at so small an expense, and with so little inconvenience.
In the present case the master holds no certificate; the Court, therefore, has
no power of punishing him, as it might have done had he held a certificate. But
if another case comes before me, in which it is shown that a master holding a
certificate has left with his hatches battened down, and without providing any
means of ventilating the hold, and an explosion takes place, I shall feel it my
duty, after the many inquiries that have taken place, and the publicity which
has been given to the subject, to punish him with the utmost severity.
I am not asked in this case to give costs, nor indeed under the circumstances
should I be disposed to do so against this master.
(Signed)H. C. ROTHERY,
Wreck Commissioner.
I 101. 59. 70.—11/78. Wt. B 612. E. & S.
