Editing PS General Slocum (section)

===The fire===

The ship got underway from the recreation pier at Third Street on the East River at 9:30&nbsp;am; it passed west of Blackwell Island (now [[Roosevelt Island]]) and turned east, remaining south of [[Wards Island]].<ref name=USCI-Slocum/>{{rp|6}} As it was passing East 90th Street, a fire started in the forward cabin or Lamp Room,<ref name=O'Donnell>{{cite book | last = O'Donnell | first = Edward | title = "Ship Ablaze: The Tragedy of the Steamboat "General Slocum" | location = New York | publisher = Broadway Books | year = 2003 | isbn = 0-7679-0905-4 | url = https://archive.org/details/shipablazetraged00odon/page/97 }}</ref>{{rp|[https://archive.org/details/shipablazetraged00odon/page/97 97–98]}} the third compartment aft from the bow under the main deck;<ref name=USCI-Slocum/>{{rp|7}} the fire was possibly caused by a discarded cigarette or match. The disastrous fire was fueled by the straw, oily rags, and lamp oil strewn around the room.<ref name="O'Donnell"/>{{rp|[https://archive.org/details/shipablazetraged00odon/page/97 98–102]}} The first notice of a fire was at 10 a.m.; eyewitnesses claimed the initial blaze began in various locations, including a paint locker filled with flammable liquids and a cabin filled with gasoline. Passengers on the main deck were aware of the fire at the entrance to [[Hell Gate]].<ref name=USCI-Slocum/>{{rp|12}} Captain Van Schaick was not notified until 10&nbsp;minutes after the fire was discovered. A 12-year-old boy had tried to warn him earlier, but was not believed. After he was notified of the fire, Van Schaick ordered full speed ahead; approximately 30 seconds later, he directed the pilot to beach the ship on North Brother Island. Following this last command, Van Schaick descended to the hurricane deck and remained there until he was able to jump into shallow water after the ship was beached.<ref name=USCI-Slocum/>{{rp|10–11}}

Although the captain was ultimately responsible for the safety of passengers, the owners had made no effort to maintain or replace the ship's safety equipment. The main deck was equipped with a [[Standpipe (firefighting)|standpipe]] connected to a steam pump, but the fire hose attached to the forward end of the standpipe, a {{cvt|100|ft}} length of "cheap unlined linen," had been allowed to rot and burst in several places. When the crew tried to put out the fire; they were unable to attach a rubber hose because the coupling of the linen hose remained attached to the standpipe. The ship was also equipped with hand pumps and buckets, but they were not used during the disaster; the crew gave up firefighting efforts after failing to attach the rubber hose.<ref name=USCI-Slocum/>{{rp|9–10}} The crew had not practiced a fire drill that year,<ref name=USCI-Slocum/>{{rp|20}} and the [[Lifeboat (shipboard)|lifeboats]] were tied up and inaccessible. Some claimed the lifeboats were wired and painted in place.<ref name="O'Donnell"/>{{rp|[https://archive.org/details/shipablazetraged00odon/page/107 108–113]}}

Survivors reported that the [[Lifebuoy|life preservers]] were useless and fell apart in their hands, while desperate mothers placed [[personal flotation device|life jacket]]s on their children and tossed them into the water, only to watch in horror as their children sank instead of floating. Most of those on board were women and children who, like most Americans of the time, could not swim; victims found that their heavy wool clothing absorbed water and weighed them down in the river.<ref name="O'Donnell"/>{{rp|[https://archive.org/details/shipablazetraged00odon/page/107 108–113]}}

It was discovered that Nonpareil Cork Works, supplier of cork materials to manufacturers of life preservers, placed {{cvt|8|oz}} iron bars inside the [[Cork (material)|cork]] materials to meet minimum content requirements ({{cvt|6|lb}} of "good cork") at the time. Nonpareil's deception was revealed by David Kahnweiler's Sons, who inspected a shipment of 300 cork blocks.<ref name=USCI-Slocum/>{{rp|71–72}} Many of the life preservers had been filled with cheap and less effective granulated cork and brought up to proper weight by the inclusion of the iron weights. Canvas covers, rotted with age, split and scattered the powdered cork. Managers of the company (Nonpareil Cork Works) were indicted but not convicted. The life preservers on the ''Slocum'' had been manufactured in 1891 and had hung above the deck, unprotected from the elements, for 13&nbsp;years.<ref name="O'Donnell"/>{{rp|[https://archive.org/details/shipablazetraged00odon/page/117 118–119]}}

<gallery mode="packed" heights="180px">
File:EM NOVA-YORK. A grande catastrophe do vapor de passeio General Slocum. Morte horrível de 1.200 pessoas!.jpg|The great catastrophe of the passenger steamboat '''''General Slocum''''' ([[Angelo Agostini]], ''[[O Malho]]'', 1904)
File:Victims of the General Slocum (1904).jpg|Victims of ''General Slocum'' washed ashore at [[North Brother Island, East River|North Brother Island]]
File:Recovery of victims from the General Slocum.jpg|Carrying away a body from North Brother Island
</gallery>