Fire
Fire is a serious threat to all ships, but to a ship made of wood, rope, and canvas, it was the greatest danger of all. Cooking fires in the galley were watched constantly, and put out instantly if the weather turned ugly, or an enemy ship appeared in the distance. Warships had an elaborate set of procedures for handling their gunpowder; the magazines were deep in the ship and the lanterns kept in another room, with a window between.
The introduction of steam power in the mid-19th century was attended by the use of "fire-engines" consisting of pumps and hoses. Even so, fire was fatal to a ship far more often than not.
Read more about this topic: Sailing Ship Accidents
Famous quotes containing the word fire:
“It looks as if we may be presented with a kind of vast municipal fire station.... What is proposed is like a monstrous carbuncle on the face of a much loved and elegant friend.”
—Charles, Prince Of Wales (b. 1948)
“This Indian camp was a slight, patched-up affair, which had stood there several weeks, built shed-fashion, open to the fire on the west.... Altogether it was about as savage a sight as was ever witnessed, and I was carried back at once three hundred years.”
—Henry David Thoreau (1817–1862)
“We could not well camp higher, for want of fuel; and the trees here seemed so evergreen and sappy, that we almost doubted if they would acknowledge the influence of fire; but fire prevailed at last, and blazed here, too, like a good citizen of the world.”
—Henry David Thoreau (1817–1862)