Evening star. [volume] (Washington, D.C.) 1854-1972, 1908-05-24
MAMMOTH A|RSH|P
FALLS WITH CREW
Spectacular Accident on Trial
Trip at Berkeley, Cal.
is MEN DASHED TO GROUND
Every One of Them Was More or
Less Injured.
ONE DANGEROUSLY HURT
Machine Tilted, Burst and Dropped
From a Height of 800 Feet.
Viewed by 10000.
JE DANGEROUSLY HUI

In the view OF 10000 spectators
a mammoth airship, on It's trial
trip, ascended 900 feet at Berkeley,
CAL, Yesterday, burst and dropped
to the ground with its crew OF
sixteen men, all OF whom were
more or less injured. The ar
ship was the invention and work
OF 7. A. Morrell. who is reported
to have spent $4,000 III building
it. 1t was over 400 feet long. 80
feet in diameter and carried five
engines, suspended by heavy net
work.
OAKLAND, CAL May pa mammoth
airship. on it's trial trip in Berkeley today.
rose 500 feet from the earth, in view OF
10000 spectators. tilted. burst and dropped
to the ground with its crew of sixteen
men, every one OF whom was injured.
With the possible exception of one all
Will recover Seven were severely hurt.
while nine were bruised and cut.
The injured are:
l.. v. Rogers. engineer right leg frac-
tured and injured internally; may die.
]. A. Morrell inventor of the airship,
right leg broken.
T. T Taylor aeronaut. known as Capt
Penfold ankle broken and spine injured
John Byrne pilot. bruised.
Otto Olsen, air sailor, ribs broken and
back injured.
c. 4. Nelson. engineer, pelvis fractured
and back injured.
s. Whipple. engineer: ribs broken and
ankle sprained; probably injured inter-
E. c. Walin, newspaper photographer;
foot injured.
Justin Barber. photographer; ribs
broken.
P. H. Goodfriend. engineer: bruised.
H. Miller. air sailor: cut and bruised.
Charles p. Hail. photographer; bruised.
John Peterson photographer, bruised.
v j. FlOno, engineer; cut and bruised
John Ahern, engineer. bruised.
W. Mowrey. engineer: bruised
The accident was spectacular A great
concourse of men, women and children
from Berkeley and Oakland had gathered
around field wherein the great air craft
had been blled with illuminating gas.
After much waiting. that made the on
lockers anxious, the stay ropes were cut
and the airship rose slowly from earth.
How It Happened.
The five gasoline engines, suspended be-
meath the long gas receptacle at inter-
walls of about fifty feet, each attended
by an engineer. were not Iut in operation
until the airship was we'll up in the air
Then two Of the engines slowly set in
motion the long propeller reaching out
from them on each side of the ship. Be
fore the ship could be propelled farther
than a few feet. the forward end tilted
downward until the craft stood at an an
gle of ~ degrees. nose downward.
The members of the crew were appar-
emily unable to run along the canvas,
pathway In order TO equalize the
weight and to right the airship, and
they clung desperately to the net
ting and superstructure. The rush of the
gas to the stern of the long gasbag
caused the envelope to burst with a loud
ripping noise
The release of great quantity of gas
caused the airship TO settle toward the
earth For few moments it looked as
though 1t would come down slowly enough
TO avoid any injury to the sixteen men
Some of them however. lost their heads
before the ship could alight. and jumped
suffering broken limbs or severe bruises
Nearing the earth the ship lost gas more
rapidly, and the overweighted remnant of
gas was borne to earth rapidly with great
force. Morrel. the inventor of the craft
and several of the engineers were caught
In the underStructure and injured by the
engines.
Spectators Intensely Excited.
There was intense excitement among
the spectators as the airship began to tilt
AS the gas bag burst and the ship fel
toward the earth women and children
screamed and ran in every direction Sew.
eral women tainted and children were
knocked down.
cry of horror rose as several men
leaped from the ship and hurtled To
earth, where they landed with thuds
that brought groans from the injured
and created alarm among the onlook-
erS.
AS the ship crashed to the ground a
moment later hundreds of men rushed
forward and with knives ripped the
gaSbag in hundred places cutting
away the vanished material to get out
the men buried underneath. The in
jured men were quickly taken to the
Roosevelt and Oakland hospitals. The
startled spectators soon collected their
wits and went home rejoicing that the
outcome was no worse.
Long Time in Building.
j. A. Morrell had for long time beer
engaged in building and exploiting his
airship. He had extensively advertised
today's trials of the craft which was
more than 400 feet long and :i6 feet il
diameter He had announced that il
was only model OF the one he in
tended TO build declaring that he woulC
construct a ship Loo feet long ane
capable of carrying 500 passengers
The airship used today was similar Il
many experimental with in different
parts of the country. The gas bag wa:
the shape of a torpedo with blunt ends
The five engines were suspended by mean:
of heavy network. a canvas running
board connected the gasoline engines.
II is said that Morrell was warned b,
several experienced aerial navigators tha
the kind of bag he had provided woulc
not stand the strain of the great weigh
placed on IL .and that it would eXpiod,
if he attempted an ascension. Morrell wa
confident, however. that the ship wa
safe and so were all those who mad,
the ascension today.
Said to Have Cost $4,000
The ship was not in the air long enough
to determine whether ii could be propelled
and directed by the ten propellers, tw,
driven by each engine. 1t is said TO hav
cost $4,000
One of the thrilling sights of the ac
cident was the daring efforts of Joh,