Bonners Ferry herald. [volume] (Bonners Ferry, Idaho) 1904-current, 1908-05-30
GREAT AIRSHIPFAL
SIXTEEN men DROP 800 FEET
FROM MID-AIR.
Accident at Oakland, CaI.-None
Killed, but All lnjured-Their Fight
a Spectacular One-Accident Causes
Panic-Other Accidents in East in
Which a Number Are Hurt.

Oakland, Gala giant airShlp on
it's trial trip in Berkeley Saturday rose
800 feet from the earth before 10000
people, tilted, burst and dropped to the
ground with its. crew of 16 men, every
one of whom was injured. BY one of
those peculiar and fortunate chains of
circumstances which sometimes attend
sensational accidents, these 16 men
miraculously escaped death. None of
the injured, with the possible excep-
ton of one, is expected to die. Seven
of them are seriously hurt and nine
severely bruised and suffering from
the shock
The accident was a spectacular and
sensational one. Probably 10000 peo-
pie from Berkeley and Oakland had
gathered about the big vacant lot
wherein the great rpillar-shaped
aircraft had been inflated with 500,000
cubic feet of Illuminating gas. 1t was
just 1870 when the stayropes were
cut and the airship rose slowly. The
five gasoline engines suspended be-
meath the big bag at intervals of prob
ably so feet, each attended by an engi-
neer, were not put in operation until
well up into the air, when two of them
had slowly set IN motion the long pro-
pellers reaching out from either side.
The engines were suspended indie
pendent of each other and the weight
did not appear to be equalized, for be-
fore the ship could be propelled fur
Their than a few feet the forward end
tilted downward and the airship stood
at an angle of As degrees, suspended
in the air The engineers and the
other members of the crew seemed to
lose their heads, and instead of run
ming along the canvas pathway in or
der to equalize the weight and to right
the airship they chung desperately to
the netting and frail superstructure,
Gasbae Rips.
The rush Oh gas to the stern end of
the long airship and the tremendous
weight of the engines and crew caused
the none too substantial envelope to
burst with a loud ripping noise. The
release of great quantity of gas
allowed the airship to settle slowly to-
ward the earth, and for a few mo-
ments it looked as if it would come
down slowly enough to avoid any in
jury to the 16 men. Some of them
however, lost their heads before the
big machine could reach the ground
and jumped. These escaped with
broken limbs or severe bruises. Near
ing the earth, however, the gas es
capped with rush and allowed the en-.
gines and the big bag to come down
with great force. Morrell, the inventor
of the craft, and several of the engi
: neers were thus caught and injured
by the engines.
Panic In the CROWD.
There was a panic in the big crowd
that watched, the ascension when the
: airship began to tilt. AS it burst and
fell toward the earth women screamed
: and ran in fright in every direction
/, Several Of them tainted and had tt
! be cared for.
When the airship landed on the
ground hundreds Of men rushed for
ward and with knives ripped tho gas
bag in a hundred places, cutting away
the vanished material to get out tn,
men buried underneath. In the excite
> ment Of cutting the gasbag Rober
Dibble was seriously slashed about tn,
; hands and arms.
The injured men were quickly res
cued and taken to the hospitals, wher
they are all doing well, with the exceI
ton of Rodgers, who, it is believed
> will succumb to his injuries.
Morrell has for a long time bee
. engaged in building and exploiting hi
airship. He had extensively advel
tised that this trial of the big all
, ship, which was more than 400 fee
long and SO feet in diameter, was onl
T. model of the one he intended t
build, declaring that he would COZ
! struct an aircraft 1900 feet long an
capable of carrying 500 passengers.
S, Wrecks Baldwin Airship.
2, Hammondsport, N. Y.-The Baldwi
airship white Wings" made its fit
flight here Saturday. 1t attained gres
speed, covering 1873 yards in 10 g.
e seconds. Then Operator McCurd
t failed to reckon on the strong quartz
p ing wind and the machine tilted unit
st one of the wings struck the grount
Is The airship's nose speared into tn
N ground and the machine turned turtl
Of The operator escaped dninjured bI
id the machine will have to be owe
10 hauled.
u Airship is Dashed to Ground.
Toledo, Ohio.-Roy Knabeshue, I'll
aeronaut, in preparing for an atteml
to beat the long distance flying m
chine record by a fight from Toled
sc to Cleveland, met with an accidel
IL that temporarily put his machine oil
Is of commission. Something went wro1
II with the engine, and the machir
10 dashed to the ground, damaging Il