INQUIRY INTO THE COLLAPSE OF TEXAS TOWER NO. 4 



WEDNESDAY, MAY 17, 1961 



U.S. Senate, 

 Preparedness Investigating Subcommittee 



OF THE Committee on Armed Services, 



Washington^ D.C. 



The subcommittee (composed of Senators Stennis (cliairman), 

 Symington, Bartlett, Jackson, Bridges, Saltonstall, and Smith) met, 

 pursuant to recess, at 10 :05 a.m., in room 235, Old Senate Office Build- 

 ing, Senator John Stennis, presiding. 



Present : Senators Stennis, Saltonstall, and Smith. 



Also present : Staff members, Preparedness Investigating Subcom- 

 mittee: James T. Kendall, chief counsel; Stuart P. French, profes- 

 sional staff member. 



Senator Stennis. All right, the subcommittee will come to order, 

 please. 



Members of the subcommittee, the Chair has a short opening state- 

 ment. 



The subcommittee today continues its inquiry into the facts sur- 

 rounding the collapse into the Atlantic Ocean of Texas tower No. 4 

 on January 15 of this year, taking the lives of 28 persons. 



During previous sessions, the subcommittee has heard from repre- 

 sentatives of the Air Force ; from the firm which actually constructed 

 the tower ; representatives of the Navy who were in overall charge of 

 design and construction of the tower ; engineers and divers who made 

 actual studies and underwater inspections of the tower after it was 

 constructed, and from officials of a pioneer firm in the field of erect- 

 ing such structures. 



From their testimony we believe now we almost have a complete 

 story surrounding the short-lived and tragic history of Texas tower 

 No. 4. 



However, the picture cannot be complete without hearing from 

 officials of the firm of Moran, Proctor, Mueser & Rutledge which was 

 responsible for the design of the tower. 



We are privileged this morning to have two members of that firm 

 here today : Dr. Philip Rutledge and Mr. Theodore Kuss. We under- 

 stand that the firm used a patented process developed by Mr. Kuss to 

 up-end and erect the tower on site. 



Inferences which might be drawn from previous testimony here 

 might raise some questions as to the design, method of construction, 

 and stability of the tower after it was erected. 



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