A Deckhand’s Wife Arrives in Seattle to Find Him Dead
Thomas Smith was scalded when a steamer boiler pipe burst. He died at Providence Hospital just as his wife reached Seattle from Sidney.
Thomas Smith, the deckhand who was scalded by the breaking of a steam pipe in the boiler of the steamer Ellis Friday evening, died at Providence hospital yesterday morning. His wife, who is in delicate health, came over from Sidney yesterday on the steamer Ellis to see him, not knowing that he was in such a critical condition. She had been told that he was injured, but not so seriously, and when she arrived here yesterday he was dead.
The poor woman was greatly affected by the news, and it is feared the shock may have more serious consequences before she gets over it. Smith was about 30 years of age and leaves no children.
The body was taken to the Seattle Undertaking rooms and will be taken over to Sidney today for interment.
“She had been told that he was injured, but not so seriously, and when she arrived here yesterday he was dead.”
Industrial accidents killed workers long before modern safety rules, and the steamer Ellis case turns a boiler failure into a family tragedy. The wife’s journey from Sidney, expecting to nurse an injured husband and arriving to find him dead, gives the statistics a human face. Workplace safety remains a live issue in maritime and industrial jobs today.
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