The watchman and southron. [volume] (Sumter, S.C.) 1881-1930, 1922-02-25
Survivors Cannot Explain accident.


Survivors Cannot Explain accident.
Noi iolk. Va. Feb. 21-Thirty-
four dead. including IS officers of
the army air service. is the result
of the trial trip of the giant dirigible
Roma. wrecked at the army supply
! base this afternoon
Her contact With the high. voltage
wires which she tore aSunder start
I'd ber gas. bag afire and the explot
sion followed as the nose Of the
craft struck a pile of car material
q few feet beyond. :,
The explosion sent flames 500
feet in the air. as eight OF Der sur
vivurs leaped from the deck. of
the ship. Three others were drag
gcd from the mass OF wreekage and
7ames.
Only those on the forward part
OF the operating compartment Of
the ship had chance for their
! lives. Several were injured severe
~ by jumping, but three came out.
practically unhurt and We're, dis
charged from the hospital within
a few hours after the disaster.
Lieutenant, Burt. who With Cap
tain Reed was the principal pilot
'of the Roma. was one of these.
I He jumped when. the ship was only
"a few yards from the ground.
OF the IS lien who left the Lang
Icy felG air station this afternoon
II found their way alive to the
! United States public health SER
vice. These men, some more dead
than. alive, lay on their cots, with
!: burned and broken limbs swathcd
in bandases. Some had their faces
sneared with cream to relieve
them of intense suffering while
others lay asleep or unconscious
with only. their closed eyes visible.
i All who were able to talk were
suffering from shock.
Albert Sloras. who was in tho
observers pit on top Of the bag,
said: Il felt the ship tilt up from
the back and start to slide down.
tried to go back down inside but
then | decided to come forward
again. Ey that time we hit the
ground and l was thrown out.
Sloras was burned about the
hands and is suffering from shock.
Moj. d. E. Heardon. who vas in
, the control cabin at the time of the
accident. said that the work Of tho
officers in charge was excellent.
.Iientenan1 Burt and Captain
/ Mabry were at thrT wheels" the
una ior ;.aid. the ship gave a duck
and ] saw Lieutenant Burt pull
with all his might the elevation lc-
yer. He yelled out: She wont re-
spond' and then cut the motor. One
10y one | heard the motors shut oU
and then VIC struck. If the motors
had not been shut off We would
have hit lhe ground much harder.
When asked if be had seen anE
flames he said that he had not.
f! Ray Hurley, civilian and engine
expert, Was aboard and suffered
slight sprain of one arm and burns
about the hands. The trip wa
uurley's first fight. 1T WIS the
F! first time I had ever been up and
when the I;onla started swing
didn't know anything was wrong.
/ thought she was acting all right;
| didn't knox different. 1t was not
until the machine hit the ground
that | realized she was wrecked.
She waa sailing along smoothly ana
she waS coming straight froin the
: langley field. We were up only a
short .lnc when We fell.
Sergeant Peek. an engineer
aboard the Roma. said that he was
tending his motor in the port rear
engine boat The Liberty VAS
running fine when we suddenly
veercd up and noScd down. was
700 insane to think much Of any
thing.
Joseph y. Eicdcnb,ck. ensinecl.
Was burned about the fac: and
hands. he said. Il didn't see any
fire. The ship just tilted up and
started to nose dive. II took about
~ seconds for us to hit the ground.
and an explosion followed. was
pinned down so that could not get
out. The fabric was above ne and
the .irder> wer" a.! around.
waited for thc fab;ic to burn