, 1909-10-13
BALLOON STRIKES LIVE WIRES.
" y. Herald. I7tA Sept.l

Ottawa, Ont. ,Thursday-The first attempt
at flight of the NaBsr dirigible airship, owned
and operated by Mr.. Anthony NGssr, OF
Toledo, Ohio, at the exhibition grounds here
at noon to-day was married by an accident,
in which one man was killed and two others
nearly lost their lives.
In the second attempt Il successful fight
was made, but in bringing the balloon back
to the grounds it caught fire and was des-
troyed.
Mr.. Edward Renting, of Belloville, Ont,
who had been running a wheel Of fortune at
the exhibition, was the man killed, The
injured are Mr.. Malcolm Campbell, of Glen
garry, and Mr.. Carl g. Wiugerter, one Of
MIR. Nossr's assistants.
In starting from the ground for the first
time with Mr., Nassr on board the airship
bee entangled in some wires in front of
the Aberdeen pavilion. Messrs. Heating,
Wingertor and Campbell caught hold of the
framework of the machine to pull it down,
when they received a shock of about twenty
two hundred volts and fell to the ground
unco nscious. The propeller of the machine
had torn the insulation off the wires.
Proper handling revived Messrs. Camp
bell and Wingerter, but Il half hours work
failed to resuscitate Mr.. Keating, and he
was pronounced dead. Mr.. Heating was
forty -four years Of age, married and the
father of six children.
In the second attempt the dirigible ascend
ed successfully, but came to the earth some
distance from the fair grounds. Tonight
when bringing it back to the grounds it
apain camo in contact with a live wire,
caught fire, and, getting away from those
trying to control II, assembled, and was en-
tirely destroyed by fire, only the iron frame
work remaining, 1t made Il spectacular sight
as it assembled and burst with q loud report.
Nc one was hunt.
A blazing section falling set fire to a
house, but the Ottawa brigade put the fire
out with little trouble.
The airship was taken from its tent short
" before noon to near the end of the grand
stand. After a few minutes preparation the
g|usolene engine was started and the airship
rose Immediately. MIR. Nassr was sitting on
the back of the framework, holding the
rudder strings. He circled around, and was
ondeavoring to get over the electric wires in
front of Aberdeen pavilion, when the pro-
peller, which is ut the front of the machine,
was caught in tho wires.
Mr.. Nassr shut off the engine, and the
propeller remained III the wires. The airship
twisted around, scraping the insulation off
the wires. Inc rear emu Ol Gne alrSnlp SLOW
" dropped to the earth, and Mr.. Nassr
phouted to Mr.. Wingerter, his assistant,
Look out for the rudder; don't let it be
broken =
Mr.. Wingorte1 ran up to seize the end Of
the machine and Messrs. Campbell and
Heating, who had gathered with about four
thousand others to witness the flight, sprang
forward to help him. The three men took
hold of the framework at the same time and
hardly had they touched it when hey drop
ped to the ground.
Terror seized tn thousands of spectators,
aud they scattered III all directions. Women
and children had narrow escapes from being
trampled in the panic.
The work of resuscitation was begun i'm
mediatelv. Fortunately, Mr.. Henry Panet,a
Montreal electrician, was on the scene and he
directed the work.
The airship is the one which flew before
President Taft at tbeChamplain tereentenary.