Descripción : The accident occurred during a nitrogen purge of the orbiter. John Bjornstad, 50, one of the five Rockwell International technicians who entered a rear section of the orbiter above the engine, died en route to the hospital. The second fatality, Forrest Cole, died two weeks later.
Following a successful simulated countdown, the technicians were cleared by NASA safety supervisors to enter the compartment. Believing the conditions inside Columbia to be safe, they entered not wearing air packs. Because nitrogen is both odorless and colorless, the five men lost consciousness before realizing anything was a miss.
Rescue efforts were further complicated when the ambulance responding to the emergency call was stopped and searched for seven minutes by security guards near the launch-pad perimeter at the Kennedy Space Center.
The two deaths were the first fatalities for the U.S. space program since Jan. 27, 1967, when astronauts Virgil Grissom, Ed White and Roger Chaffee were killed when fire swept through their capsule during ground testing for the first Apollo mission.

Astronauts Crippen and Young complete successful " dry countdown demonstration test " after which a tragic accident Claims lives of Rockwell employees John G Bjornstadt & Forrest Cole and injures four.

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STS COLUMBIA (OV 102) · CONSTRUCTION & TESTS