Q&A ยท 3:20:23-3:22:48

Warship designs dangerous to their own crews

Interwar Japanese destroyers in rough weather and early electric arc lighting illustrate different hazards to a ship's own crew.

Question

Apart from HMS Captain, what was the most unsafe warship class for its own crew?

Short answer

Japanese destroyers from the late 1920s and early 1930s are strong candidates, especially in rough weather.

Notes

Japanese destroyers built in the late 1920s and early 1930s are strong candidates, particularly when operating in rough weather. HMS Captain is excluded by the question as an obvious example. Early electric arc lighting introduces a different safety problem aboard older ships. Sparks and exposed electrical arcs become especially alarming around dust or gas, as the accompanying account of old lighting in a Cornish mine illustrates.