Remembering the Shuttle Columbia Tragedy Over East Texas
By Greg Ritchie
Messenger Reporter
HOUSTON COUNTY – It was February 1, 2003 when East Texans heard and saw strange things in the sky. The space shuttle Columbia (officially mission STS-107) was doomed at the time of launch with a piece of the insulative foam breaking off from the external tank and damaging the thermal protection tiles on the left wing. These tiles protected the shuttle from the intense heat of reentry.
Previous shuttle missions had suffered similar damage with some being minor and some more serious without any loss of spacecrafts or astronauts. This time though, that damage allowed the hot gases to enter the heat shield and destroy the wing upon reentry.
NASA knew about the possibility of damage but due to the lack of previous catastrophes and reasoning the crew could do nothing about it even if damage was confirmed – the seven astronauts onboard completed their mission and began their “routine” return to Earth leading to the breakup of the shuttle and the death of all onboard.
The crew on the Columbia were:
Rick Husband, commander and experienced NASA pilot and former Air Force Colonel
William McCool, pilot and first-time astronaut, previously a U.S. Navy Commander
Michael Anderson, payload commander and former Air Force Lt. Col.
Kalpana Chawla, flight engineer and experienced astronaut
David Brown, mission specialist and former Navy Captain
Laurel Clark, mission specialist and former Navy Captain
Ilan Ramon, payload specialist former Col. Israeli Air Force and first-time Israeli astronaut
For East Texans, the shock of the disaster went beyond the morning of the shuttle explosion. For weeks after, residents were interviewed, land was scoured, every bit and piece was collected and catalogued.
The Messenger recently asked our Facebook followers if they had any recollections of that time to try and commemorate the tragedy. Their answers did not disappoint – with some poignant and personal memories – some of which we would like to share with our readers.
“I remember that hubby and I were on the way to Canton Trades Days. Heard a boom then things got eerily quiet and then we noticed that all of the cows and horses in the fields were just wildly running. About that time our daughter called us to tell us what had happened,” Darlene Luker.
“I remember the bang and my house shook,” Stacy Bailey Dise
“I saw it! I later called NASA and gave details of what was seen, as they had requested for any witnesses to call,” Steve Clark.
“My daughter had a sleep over the night before so the house was full of girls. When I heard the “boom”, my first thought was some kind of explosion or train collision at the plant in Latexo? (Silly how our minds work trying to make sense of things.) Shortly after, we heard the news,” Terri Baker.
“Parts of it came over our house in Pineland, TX. Ended up in the lake, smaller pieces on our road. Sounded like a large plane flying low,” Sue Price.
“I was on the front porch watching as it passed over. All of a sudden, it exploded. I called the sheriff’s office and they knew nothing, I called the hospital and they knew nothing. Then on TV it said had lost contact. I called Nasa and they took my name and number. They did call back later to find out my location. It was terrifying to witness and will never forget such a tragedy. I live in Pine Prairie, eight miles south of Kennard. Pieces were located in Nacogdoches,” Ann English.
“My friend and I drove all over that day getting photos and video of the debris,” Anna Edwards Johnson.
“We remember having the FBI come to our house on Goliad and look for pieces of the shuttle,” Greg Wassberg.
“There was a glove with part of a hand in it on the roof, I certainly remember that,” Alex Mcvey.
“Very loud boom shook the house small and large pieces found around Alto,TX,” Teresa Crosby.
In memory of those lost that day, we quote President Ronald Reagan who spoke these words shortly after an earlier tragedy with the space shuttle Challenger, “The crew of the space shuttle…honored us by the manner in which they lived their lives. We will never forget them, nor the last time we saw them…as they prepared for their journey and waved goodbye and ‘slipped the surly bonds of earth’ to ‘touch the face of God.’”
Greg Ritchie can be reached at [email protected]
