Evening Republican, Volume 19, Number 173, Rensselaer, Jasper County, 23 July 1915 — Air Tank Plays Valet. [ARTICLE]

Air Tank Plays Valet.

When the safety valve on the air tank of the launch Gladys stuck, Dyke Thorpe, who was snoozing on the deck, had all blown off his body by the explosion and was hurled naked but uninjured into the sea. So great was the force of the explosion that the heavy deck planks were torn up and the engine and cabin entirely demolished. The Gladys, a seagoing launch, 35 feet long, is heavily constructed. The air tank which caused the damage is a small one used for compressing air to blow the siren. Nothing but the hulk of the boat was left after the explosion, and a rope being secured, the remains were towed ashore by Thorpe. Thorpe’s companion, William Souder, who was in the cabin at the time of the explosion, was uninjured.—Los Angeles Times.