The Bennington evening banner. (Bennington, Vt.) 19??-1961, 1919-07-22

| Chicago. July 21.--After cruising
| back and forth across Chicago's loop
district for hours, dirigible balloon
| bearing five persons exploded late
this afternoon the blazing wreckage
crashing through the skylight of the
Illinois trust and savings bank in the
| financial district Tonight the po-
| lice fixed the list of dead as the re-
| suit of the accident at 10; more than
| a score were injured,
Three of the dead were passengers
on board the dirigible. The others
were employees of the bank. The ac-
cident occurred at 4.50.
| Thousands of people saw the smoke
and flames that enveloped the bal
loon, followed by three parachutes,
which dropped from the balloon. Two
of the parachutes opened and the
third dropped to the street. The diri-
gible exploded and dropped on the
roof of the bank building and the gas
tank and parts of the steel frame of
the dirigible erased through the sky
light into the bank room, where the
tank exploded. The fire which fol-
lowed the explosion was extinguished
revealing seven bodies believed to be
employees of the bank.
The airship was an experimental
device, modelled after army plans,
and it had been planned to make a
daily trip between an amusement
park and Grant park.
The following statement was given
the police department by Jack Boett-
ner, assistant pilot, OF Akron, o., who
escaped by leaping from the balloon
in a parachute:
81 have no idea how the ship
caught fire. The two S0-horsepower
| Prior to the explosion we had made
two successful cruises not experience
| ing bit of trouble.
Just before she caught fire we
we're running smoothly. We had
headed away from the lake when
! felt the ship buckle. | saw the flames
leap from the side and yelled to the
passengers to jump. They were all
strapped in parachutes and obeyed. /
think the fact that all did not land
safely was due to the speed with
which the burning dirigibe fell My
own parachute caught fire but | man
aged to land safely. The others
probably caught fire also and fell
when the silk had burned from the
parachutes."
Among the dead the John Weaver
of Akron, o., assistant mechanic:
Carl Otto of Akron, o., assistant
mechanic, and Earl II. Davenport, for
merly well known sports writer and
at present publicity man for local
amusement park.
The gas bag had started on its
third cruise of the day from the land
| ing in Grant park and had attained a
height of nearly 1000 feet when the
| fire, which crept slowly up the side oil
the dirigible, was discovered. An at
tempt was made to change the course
of the blimp and began to move
slowly toward the downtown district
Suddenly the balloon was envelop
ed in flames and when about 500 feet
above the bank building it collapsed
and fell to the top of the building
crashing through the skylight. Ar
explosion followed, in which the en-
tire banking room was wrecked, men
bers of the clerical force being
thrown to the floor and to the side Of
the room by the force of the explos
ion.
One of the crew of the balloon, af
ter giving orders to the passenger
to jump, leaped from the balloon
] landing safely on the top of nearby
building.
Boettner was taken into custody to
night and an investigation of the ex
ploson was started.