5 famous male inventors who were killed by their own inventions (9 photos)

The history of science and technology is full of amazing stories, including stories of male inventors whose ingenious creations caused their own demise.





In this article, we look at 5 amazing cases where inventions led to the death of their creators, reminding that even the most brilliant minds cannot always foresee all the consequences of their technical innovations:

Thomas Andrews



Thomas Andrews was the father, creator and chief designer of the legendary transatlantic passenger steamer Titanic.

However, the tragic collision of the Titanic with an iceberg on the night of April 14-15, 1912 led to the death of more than 1,500 people, including Thomas Andrews himself, who refused to leave his ship, helping to save women and children, and also throwing off life jackets to people caught in the water . Testimonies from survivors highlight Andrews' extraordinary bravery and dedication during the chaos that followed.

According to mess steward Cecil William N. Fitzpatrick, Thomas Andrews was last seen with his lifejacket on the table and looking at a picture hanging above the fireplace entitled "Plymouth Harbor" in the first class room.





Actor Victor Garber, who played Thomas Andrews in the 1997 film "Titanic"

The death of Thomas Andrews was a shock to the world community and his sacrifice was recognized as an act of true heroism.

According to Scientific American, during the completion of construction of the legendary steamship, Thomas Andrews told the White Star Line that there were not enough lifeboats on board the Titanic. However, the director of the White Star Line did not want more lifeboats to clutter the lower decks of the ship, so he decided to abandon them, stating that there were already more than enough lifeboats. But because of this, when the Titanic sank, there were 2,228 people on board, and there were only lifeboats for 1,178 people.

Stockton Rush



Engineer and CEO of the private American company OceanGate Expeditions in the field of underwater tourism, Stockton Rush, as everyone knows, died inside his Titan submersible, specially designed to explore the remains of the famous Titanic.

Rush had a lifelong interest in shallow ocean exploration. Back in 2006, Rush began considering purchasing a submersible, but discovered that there were fewer than 100 privately owned submersibles in the world and was unable to purchase any of them. So instead, he designed his own submersible, using plans provided to him by a retired US Navy submarine commander. The first ship built by Rush was 4 meters long and could dive to a depth of 10 meters.

In 2009, Rush founded the OceanGate company to produce his own bathyscaphes, and by 2021 he began sending everyone to the Titanic wreck for $250 thousand. However, this only lasted until 2023.

Carrying out another deep-sea dive together with four wealthy passengers of the bathyscaphe, the Titan soon disappeared from radar at a depth of 3.5 km. After some time, it became known that the bathyscaphe burst under the pressure of the ocean depths due to the handicraft production of the device, low-quality parts and non-compliance with safety rules during production (for example, it is known that the bathyscaphe was controlled by an old cheap Logitech F710 gamepad).



All people on board, including Stockton Rush, died instantly.

A year before the event, journalist David Pogue expressed concern about the lack of safety regulations for passengers on the OceanGate submersibles. He warned that the Titan was not approved or certified by any regulatory body and that it was unsafe to dive.

Franz Reichelt



Austrian tailor Franz Reichelt, also known as the "flying tailor" and inventor of the "parachute raincoat", attempted to test a parachute he designed by jumping from the top of the Eiffel Tower.

The Aero Club of France held a competition for the best parachute design with a cash prize of 10,000 euros (in modern money). And despite refusal from aviation organizations, Reichelt insisted on participating in this competition, convinced that his design would work.

Reichelt petitioned the government to allow him to jump from the top of the Eiffel Tower, believing that his tests on mannequins were unsuccessful because his 5th floor balcony was not high enough. After a year of hesitation, he was finally given permission on the basis that the test would be carried out on a mannequin.

However, on February 4, 1912, Reichelt surprised everyone present by announcing that he would conduct the test on himself. Soon after, in front of spectators, the press and cameras, Reichelt jumped from the bottom flight of the Eiffel Tower (from 60 meters), believing in his invention.

His parachute did not open.

Luis Jimenez



Luis Jimenez, a famous American architect, inventor and sculptor who created the Blue Mustang sculpture at Denver International Airport, died when parts of his own sculpture fell on him.

Jimenez received a contract from Denver International Airport to create the sculpture and had been working on it for nearly a decade when he died.

The sculpture, 9.5 meters high and weighing 4 thousand kg, fell off the lift while being moved and pinned Jimenez against a steel support beam. As a result of the collision, an artery in Jimenez's leg was severed, and he died before reaching the hospital.

William Bullock



William Bullock was a newspaper editor who revolutionized printing with his improvement of the rotary printing press in 1863.

Instead of loading paper by hand, Bullock's patent allowed a continuous roll of paper several meters long to be fed through the printing press. Thanks to his patent, factories learned to print 8,000 to 10,000 sheets per hour, exponentially increasing print speed.



Bullock tried to tighten the drive belt onto a pulley while working on his updated car, but his leg got stuck and was crushed by the press. A few days later, the inventor developed gangrene, from which he died a few days later.

Some newspapers reported that Bullock kicked a machine while trying to improve his new machine, and in doing so got caught in the drive belt, which pulled his leg under the press, which led to the accident.

One way or another, this is another inventor who fell at the “hands” of his own brainchild.