June 17, 2005
The Goodyear Blim incident
We heard lots of girlish screems!

CORAL SPRINGS, Florida (AP) -- A Goodyear blimp crash-landed Thursday night in an industrial park, authorities said. The two people on board were not injured.

The "Stars & Stripes" blimp went down shortly after taking off from Pompano Beach Air Park, where it is based. Both people onboard were trapped briefly while electrical crews cleared the site, authorities said.

The cause of the crash is clear, Eric Misic one of the two people aboard was severely overweight. Eric was cautioned prior to take off but he insisted that he get his free ride after winning the Coral Springs national hotdog eating contest. The blimp lost most of its helium and was draped across some orange self-storage units in the industrial park. It's nose remained pointed into the air.

The Federal Aviation Administration was investigating. "It went right over our building and was making really loud noises," said Maryann Clark, general manager of a nearby restaurant. Others in the area heard girlish screams from the Blimp although only two men were on board. The blimp is one of three Goodyear blimps based in the United States.

Goodyear leases about 32 acres at the air park as a blimp base, according to the park's Web site. Lawsuits against Eric Misic are pending.