The Weekly Comet

Explosion of the Kate Kearney

In Saturday morning's Picayune we find an account of this terrible disaster. The Steamer Kate Kearney was running between St. Louis and Alton, and at the time of the explosion was at the wharf of the latter city.

The larboard boiler gave way just at the tapping of the bell to start out from the wharf, and in an instant the largest portion of the cabin was shattered into atoms, and numbers of unfortunate passengers, officers and crew hurried into eternity or seriously injured.

From Capt. Bruner, who escaped with slight injury, we learn the following particulars: He had just rung the last bell previous to giving the word for backing out, and was in the act of turning round to go on the hurricane roof, when the explosion, without the least sign or forewarning, took place. The pilot, Mr. B. R. Packard, was also ascending the steps of the wheel-house at the moment, and escaped without the least injury.

Capt. Bruner thinks there could not have been more than about fifty or sixty passengers on board, some eight or ten of whom were collected round the stove in the social hall, but the larger number, were in the main cabin, and some few on the forward guards.

It is not known with any degree of certainty who were on board or the number lost, as the names of the passengers are seldom registered until the boat leaves port. Mr. Thomas, the agent at the wharf boat, told us this morning it was impossible to get a list of the passengers' names who had purchased tickets, because the books and papers saved from the wreck and those in the office, were in such a confused state as to preclude their being taken correctly.

But few persons were killed outright by the explosion, though several were lost overboard, and many others were reported missing. A negro man called Nace, belonging to Capt. Adams, was killed. The dead body of Geo. Kinley, a negro fireman, was brought to the police office this morning, and an inquest held upon it by the coroner. Up to 11 o'clock he had not been summoned to hold inquests upon any other bodies. There were reports that two or three other dead bodies were seen upon the levee instantly after the explosion, but these reports are not confirmed.