Campers in the first session of Newtown Continuing Education's Young Engineers camp tested contraptions designed to hold an egg and protect it from breaking when dropped, with the help of Newtown Hook & Ladder Company #1 members, at Reed Intermediate School on July 11.

Young Engineers instructor Rick Lowry conducts the experiment with students annually in the program, which was previously called Design It, Build It, Launch It. This year, the camp was offered in two sessions. The first session ran July 2 to 13, and the second session runs July 16 to 27.

To create their egg drop creations, the students said they used items like cardboard, balloons, plastic bags, and tape.

Mid-morning on July 11, the students gathered outside Reed Intermediate School to meet with members of Newtown Hook & Ladder Company #1. The ladder truck extended its ladder as campers watched. They each held their egg drop contraptions in their hands as their heads tipped further back to look up at the ladder.

Newtown Hook & Ladder Company #1 members who assisted the day's experiment were Chief Michael Aurelia, Assistant Chief Jason Shuttleworth, firefighter Matt Campbell, and firefighter Drew Dwyer. Mr Campbell was tasked with climbing the ladder to drop each egg-holding design. Out of the eight tested designs, five eggs did not break.

Patrick Hurley, a rising Newtown High School senior who is working as Mr Lowry's assistant for the camp, helped as each camper readied their designs to be tested.

"It survived!" camper Edward Liu, 10, exclaimed as his egg was discovered intact.

"That's a scramble," Mr Lowry as another camper's egg was found broken.

Other experiments campers said they conducted in the first session included making paddle boats out of given objects and a zip-line challenge, which had students design cups that could move down fishing line in four seconds.