It was a balmy and warm spring day on May 6, 1937. The sun was setting in Lakehurst, New Jersey when the tragedy struck. Around 4:15 p.m. a gigantic, brilliant object moved into sight. It was the largest dirigible every constructed, 804-feet long. It had a range of 8,000 miles and was recently expanded to carry ninety-seven passengers along with a sixty-one man crew. It had already crossed the Atlantic ten times in 1936. This was the initial flight of the 1937 season and each passenger paid $400.00 for the one-way flight to America. The Hindenberg was the pride of Germany and of Hitler. In fact, the Hindenberg carried the swastika on her tail.

It would be another three hours before the disaster would strike. The airship had arrived 12 hours late due to headwinds while coming across the Atlantic. Then, an unanticipated storm had developed and Captain Pruss radioed the Lakehurst air station that he would not dock at 5:00 p.m. as previously scheduled, but would dock when the weather conditions were more agreeable. The guests were relaxing in the lounges and the porters were gathering the luggage from the twenty-five staterooms. Finally, at approximately 6:00 p.m. the Captain decided to land. Over a 1,000 onlookers, which included friends, loved-ones, and those attracted to see this remarkable airship were there when the rope docking lines were dropped from the behemoth belly and the air ship was guided by the ground crew a 100 yards to the mooring mast/docking tower.

It was now 7:20 p.m. A 1,000 gallons of water had been released from the rear ballast and a small amount of hydrogen gas was released as the Captain attempted to compensate for the direction of the dirigible. It was moving much too fast to the docking tower and one of the two rope lines was "payed out" while the other was not. The Captain engaged the two powerful rear 1,100 horse-power Mercedes-Benz diesel engines to adjust the balance and positioning of the ship.

It was now 7:23 p.m. and suddenly, the sound of a horrifying explosion and colossal flames, filled the air. The 430,850 pound Zeppelin which contained seven million cubic feet of flammable hydrogen gas was becoming enveloped in flames as the skin of the silver painted dirigible was eaten off the framework.

The back of the Hindenberg dropped to the ground and some of the passengers were thrown out of the ship to the sandy ground. Some crew members, who jumped for the guide ropes hanging down tot he ground, missed and plunged to their death. Some of the crew and passengers jumped out in an attempt to save their lives. Then front of the air-ship lifted into the air for a brief number of seconds, and then also plummeted to the ground. One mother, saying to her three children, "Be brave," lifted her three children, one by one, to a window, and threw them out, and then jumped out herself. Only she and one boy survived. Some who jumped, and some who rode the dirigible down to the ground, came out without a scratch, others were injured but survived, and ultimately, thirty-five person died.

Some believed that it was static electricity created by the passing storm and others believe it was a spark from the engines that set off the hydrogen gas that was released while maneuvering. All accounts seem to acknowledge that the use of flammable hydrogen rather than the safer helium gas contributed to the possibility of such a catastrophe.

It was in an article, written in 1936 for Collier's magazine, that it was stated, "After watching their [the crew members] methods, it is the firm conviction of this reported that only a stroke of war or an unfathomable act of God will ever mar this German dirigible's passenger safety record."

The suddenness and the unanticipated nature of the disaster stand out. The New York Times, Friday, May 7, 1937 stated that the air-ship disaster happened , "so suddenly that it left spectators on the verge of hysteria for some time afterward ¹". Of the many articles which covered the front page of the New York Times, almost all mention the shock that overcame all who were watching because of the quickness of this disaster. The disaster came in the blink of an eye.

Yes, disaster and tragedy can and does happen that fast! In fact, in will be in the blink of an eye that many individuals will walk from this world into the next. However, the loss, in both numbers and significance, will be far greater than this or any earthly adversity. However great the shock over any human catastrophe, the shock on the face of many will be far greater when they step into the presence of their Creator.

" ² Isn't that how far too many people go through much of life? Unaware of the pending disaster that may be about to strike. The Bible says that before the Lord's return men shall be eating and drinking, marrying and giving in marriage. In other words, men will be just enjoying life with little sober thought about their future. Just as the Lord asks the newly rich farmer in the gospel of Luke, "This night thy soul shall be required of thee, then whose shall those things be which thou hast provided?" we can live life as if we determine and execute our own plan. That is why we are instructed not to say that tomorrow we will do this or that. Rather we are to say, if the Lord will, we will do this or that. Our plans may be to arrive "in the morning", but God's plans may be far different, leading to a far different outcome. It may have started out as a normal day, as most days. However, our day may not end that way!

^{1 New York Times, May 7, 1937 pg. 1}

^{2 New York Times, May 7, 1937 pg. 21}