Steam Tug 'Rifleman'
1886 Six people were killed by the bursting of the tug's boiler at Cardiff on 8 February.
'One of the most fatal and disastrous boiler explosions we have had to record for some time past, occurred on the morning of Monday, the 8th inst., at Cardiff, on board the steam-tug Rifleman, belonging to that port. The tug was the property of Mrs. Spear, Museum Hotel, South William-street, Cardiff, and is stated to have been built on the Tyne in the year 1860. About five years ago, however, the old boiler was taken out and replaced with made by Messrs. Chapman and Williams, of Cardiff. On the morning in question steam was raised as usual, and the tug, after towing a vessel from the Old Canal to the West Mud, proceeded to the head of the pier, where she had been lying about fifteen minutes, waiting to take another vessel in tow, when the explosion occurred. .... In consequence of the bottom of the front end giving way before the top the shell was canted up at the back, and received a considerable angle of elevation. It was shot to a great height, and finally alighted at a distance of about 300 yards on the stern of an Italian ship, the Clotilde B, which had just arrived from Bordeaux, and was lying in the East Basin at the time, a man who was standing at the wheel being almost decapitated and killed on the spot. The crew of the tug, consisting of four men and a boy, were all killed. The men are said to have been standing round the steam dome at the time warming themselves, and the bodies of four of them were blown into the air, and alighted on the head of the pier, one of them at a distance of 50 yards from the vessel. ..... In reply to the coroner, Mr. Stewart [Board of Trade] said in non-scientific language the cause of the explosion was excessive pressure coupled with the defective state of the boiler, the excessive pressure being caused by the pin in the cover of the safety valve rendering it inoperative. The pin of course should not have been there. There were no inspectors at all over tugboats except those which had passenger certificates. ...'[1] [2]