Gloucester County Democrat., 1912-07-04
BURNING AIRSHIP
FALLS INTO SEA
vaniman and -Four Of the
Grew Killed.
WRECKED BY EXPLOSION

Monster Balloon, a Mass of Fire,
Plunees into Ocean Above Atlantic
City.
sons in Atlantic City, N. j., Melvin
Vaniman and his four companions
were hurled to death in the Atlantic
ocean when the great dirigible balloon
Akron exploded at height of from
500 to 1000 feet.
Vaniman had hoped some time to
realize the ambition of his life-to be
the first to cross the Atlantic ocean
by the air route.
The explosion of the balloon was
caused apparently by sudden expan-
sion under the rays of the sun, and
the wreck of the dirigible, the finest
ever constructed in this country, was
plunged into eighteen feet of water
off Brigantine bar, two miles from the
Inlet hangar, from which the ill-fated
trial trip had been started.
Those who perished were:
Melvin Vaniman, aeronaut and cap
tain of the balloon
Calvin Vsniman, brother of Melvin
Vaniman.
Fred Elmer, member of the crew.
George Bourillion, engineer of the
airship.
Walter Gest, a friend of Vaniman's,
financial hacker.
The body of Calvin Vaniman, the
only unmarried man on the airship,
was recovered by Councilman Harry
Cook and a party of rescuers aboard
his yacht. The body floated clear of
the wreckage and while badly bruised
was not burned by the explosion.
The other bodies, which were en-
tangled in the wreckage, were recov-
cred at low tide. All were badly man.
gled by the force of the explosion
Mrs. Melvin Vaniman, who saw the
tragedy from the porch OF the Vani-
man home, collapsed from the shock
and for a time was in a serious con
dition. She had several fainting spells,
but later recovered sufficiently to see
a few close friends, who called to con-
sole her.
Three thousand persons, watching
the graceful flight OF the Akron, were
too greatly startled to utter sound
when the great gas bag was suddenly
utterly shattered by an explosion, sup
posedly caused by the sudden expan-
sion of the gas under the hot rays of
the sun as it lowered, perhaps 500
feet, perhaps 1000 feet, in the air, a
half mile off shore over Absecon In
let
The dirigible was quarter OF mile
south of Brigantine Beach. The huge
envelope, containing many thousands
of cubic feet of gas, was rent by the
explosion 1t burst near the middle
and mass of fame hid the ship from
the view for the space of possibly ten
seconds. The dirigible was invisible,
while the air about the spot where she
had been lowering seemed to be all
flames Then suddenly the ship was
outlined against the sun and was seen
to fall like plummet.
First the understructure, or car, in
which were penned the unfortunate
men, held in by mesh work put in
after the second trip of the balloon
three weeks ago, and unable to escape,
broke away from the envelope. 1t
turned on end, the bow turning first in
a slow arc Then it reversed suddenly
and plunged downward
Almost Immediately the wrecked
bag followed, smoking mass of rub
Der and silk, with flames shooting out
from a dozen sections. 1t fiuttered a
moment and then streaked downward
after the car.
The body of Calvin yaniman, which
was found floating near the wreck,
was brought ashore and taken to an
undertaking establishment, to which
the bodies of the other. victims we're
removed as soon as they were recov-