Pilot Seriously Injured After Blimp Catches Fire, Crashes Near US Open Site
ERIN, Wis. (CBS/AP) — A small blimp crashed near the U.S. Open on Thursday, seriously injuring the pilot and grabbing the attention of fans and golfers alike as they watched the fiery, smoking craft fall from the sky into an open field.
Sheriff's officials said the pilot was the only one on board the blimp .
"I was teeing off and I looked up and saw it on fire, and I felt sick to my stomach," Jamie Lovemark said after his opening round in one of golf's four majors. "I had the shakes. I felt terrible for the people inside. I didn't know what was going on. It was a horrible sight."
Golfer Brandt Snedeker said he spotted something while on the course at Erin Hills, about 35 miles northwest of Milwaukee.
"My caddie made a comment on the 9th hole. He said the blimp is not looking good," Snedeker said. "I guess it was nose down. I saw a puff of black smoke. I didn't know it was the blimp. It's not good. Glad everybody is OK"
The blimp, operated by Florida-based AirSign, was being used for advertising as it floated above the tournament and had been airborne for several hours before it went down, authorities said. The Washington County Sheriff's Office said its initial investigation shows the blimp may have experienced mechanical problems.
A deputy at a security post reported seeing the aircraft on fire or smoking and rapidly descending about 11:15 a.m., authorities said. Rescue crews used utility vehicles to reach the crash site, about a half mile from the golf course.
Aerial video from a television news helicopter showed pieces of the flattened blimp on the field along with charred metal and grass. A handful of fans at the U.S. Open also posted video on Twitter of the craft's descent.
"Just got to the #USOpen and the blimp caught fire and crashed. People parachuted out," Madison Seigworth tweeted.
Justin Maynard, a sales manager for AirSign, said the company's operations team on the ground in Erin had no definitive information on the pilot's condition, other than the pilot was expected to be OK. The injured pilot was taken to a medical helicopter that had landed in the field.
Mary Ruediger, 45, was visiting her parents who live along an access road to the golf course and spotted the blimp going down.
"It was kind of floating and was deflating and I could see flames. Then it went behind the trees," Ruediger said. She said she drove toward the site where the blimp hit the ground.
"You could see the black smoke and then there were three big fireballs as it exploded," she said
The Federal Aviation and Administration and National Transportation Safety Board have been called to investigate the crash. The Sheriff's Office said the FAA determined the aircraft was operating at the proper altitude.
"It was a horrific scene," Lovemark said. "I've never seen a plane crash, blimp crash, anything like that. So it was pretty awful. I thought they might stop play."