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March 1918
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The Caldwell class destroyer USS Manley (DD-74) is badly damaged when her depth charges explode after a collision with the armed merchant cruiser HMS Motagua. Fragments from the explosion cause leaks in two 50 gallon drums of gasoline and two 100 gallon tanks of alcohol. These both then catch fire, spreading flames across the ship. Thirty four men are killed on the Manley (including the executive officer, Lt. Commander Richard M. Elliott). Another twenty eight men are killed on the Motagua. Both ships survive the incident.
U.S. Destroyers: An Illustrated Design History, Norman Friedmann .
The standard history of the development of American destroyers, from the earliest torpedo boat destroyers to the post-war fleet, and covering the massive classes of destroyers built for both World Wars. Gives the reader a good understanding of the debates that surrounded each class of destroyer and led to their individual features.
