Morning journal and courier. [volume] (New Haven [Conn.]) 1848-1894, 1888-09-24
The Fatal Balloon Accident.

From the 81 James 3 OSzctto.I
The whole country side between the Essex
towns of Witham and Maldon has been
thrown into great excitement by the fatal
balloon accident Monday. In spite of the
downpour of rain throughout the greater
part of yesterday, the country people walked
and drove from the neighboring villages and
homesteads to the scene Of the accident, and
listened with deep interest to the accounts of
the eyewitnesses. In the absence of soienti-
6c evidence it is difficult, in view of the
facts to give satisfactory explanation of
the occurrence. On the balloon rising from
over barley field the grapnel caught in the
first of three trees, which were In the way,
tearing one of the branches. The iron held
firm and the balloon, rising to the length of
the cable, was blown violently to the earth.
It Immediately rose and again descended in
the same spot with great force. It is certain
that the balloon bumped to the earth third
time, and some of the men who had
run to the place state that it rose and fell
a fourth time, but upon this point there is
some doubt. However, it was on the third
or fourth rise that the balloon collapsed.
One spectator states the balloon burst with
loud report when it was up in the air, and
that then the car and it's occupants fell like
a stone. The silk, which was usually large,
being capable of containing $4,000 feet of
gas. with carrying power of 2,400 weight,
was not ripped with one large rent as would
have been the case if caught by a tree, but
was torn into several distinct pieces. The
ear, which was composed of iron wire, was
five feet in diameter and would hold nine
persons closely packed. When it reached
the ground for the last time it was beaten
and battered out of shape, some of the seats
being displaced, while its connection with the
balloon was severed.
A. P. Crouch observes, in letter to the
Standard, that nearly all the fatal balloon
accidents have occurred in the descent, and
generally in the presence of a high wind.
johnson, thessSwell-known balloonist of the
Midlands, met with an accident almost ex-
actly similar to that which happened Mon
day, and which resulted in laying him up in
a hospital for many weeks While descend
ing In strong wind his grapne1 caught IN a
tree, the sudden strain burst the balloon, and
he fell distance of 60 feet to the ground
the fact of his escaping with his life being
attributable to his using a car of strong
wicker-work, and not of iron wire, which as
happened Monday, would have been smashed
to pieces by the conclusion The danger in
descent consists in the difficulty of dropping
exactly on the spot selected. This arises
from the inability to estimate with any accu-
racy the rate of falling and the force of the
lower currents of the air. In strong wind
the danger Is considerable, and for safety on
such occasions heaeronaut must be possessed
of great nerve and judgment In the
ascent Mr.. Crouch made with Mr.. Jackson in
1881, that gentleman, who, like Mr.. Simmons
Monday, seemed to be Hurried at starting,
lost his nerve in the descent, misjudging his
distance SO badly that his grapnel caught
one side of a stone wall, the abrupt check
bringing the balloon to the ground with
great violence, while the rough surface Of
the wall severed the graphing line. The
result was that the balloon continued its
course over the ground, urged by the strong
wind-it was on the exposed hills near Bux-
ton-and dragging after it at express rate
the car, which leaped and bumped along the
surface Of the fields, and came into violent
contact with the loose stone walls which sur
rounded them. If the car had been of iron
wire it could not have withstood the shocks;
but the greater elasticity and resiliency of
the wickerwork gave it greater lasting pow
ers, and the aeronauts' career was at length
terminated at a wire fence, in which the car
became entangled. Mr.. Simmons died from
the effects of his injuries and his tive COM
panions were seriously injured.