On May 6, 1937, the German airship Hindenburg caught fire and crashed while attempting to dock at Lakehurst, New Jersey. Of the 97 people on board, 37 were killed, along with a crewman on the ground.

The Hindenburg took off from Frankfurt, Germany, on May 3 and approached Lakehurst three days later at 7 p.m. Landing lines were dropped at 7:21 p.m. with the ship 180 feet in the air. At 7:25 p.m., flames appeared on the tail. The tail end sank to the ground and the nose jutted up for several seconds before crashing down, engulfed in flames. The duralumin skeleton stood for a moment before it buckled and collapsed. That all happened in 34 seconds.

The fact that 62 of the 97 people on board survived was credited to their location when the fire started. The majority of passengers had gathered at the windows to watch the landing and were able to leap from the fiery ship and survive the fall to the ground.

After years of research, the original suspected cause of the fire remains: an electrostatic spark that ignited leaking hydrogen. The spark was most likely caused by an imbalance of electric charges between the ship and the surrounding air. Airships -- including the Hindenburg -- had been hit by lightning, but because hydrogen wasn't leaking, there was no fire.

The most memorable news dispatch came from WLS Chicago radio reporter Herbert Morrison's eyewitness account. Morrison's report, with the famous line "Oh, the humanity!", wasn’t live -- in fact, it wasn’t broadcast until the next day. Also, his fast, high-pitched voice heard on the recording was misleading -- his normal voice was much deeper. Audio experts believe the recording was made too slow, making replays sound faster and higher pitched.

And although the famous recording is often paired with a newsreel, it was strictly an audio recording. Morrison's (1905-1989) description began routinely, but it changed instantly as the airship burst into flames. (“Charlie” is Charlie Nehlsen, the recording engineer accompanying Morrison):


Listen to the recording

-- Compiled from wire service reports and Airship.net