The Newberry herald and news. (Newberry, S.C.) 1884-1903, 1903-08-11
BASE BALL HORROR
IN PHILADELPHIA
BOARD WALK AROUND A BASE BALL
PARK GIVES WAY,
-Four Persons Killed, at Least Twelve
Fatally Injured, and One Hundred
and Fifty Others Seriously Hurt.

Philadelphia, Pa August 8.-Four
persons are dead, ut least twelve are
thought to he fatally injured and
fully one hundred and fifty others
hurt seriously, as the r.sult of an
accident, which occurred today at
the Philadelphia National League
Base Ball Park. A board walk,
which overhnng tho left field bleach
ers, fell to the street, carrying two
hundred spectators.
Nearly one hundred persons le
ceived fractures Of the limbs, lacera.
tion of the head, broken noses, con.
tusions of head and body, but their
conditions are not serious.
Two games were scheduled be
tween Boston and Philadel phia this
afternoon and the attraction drew
over 10000 persons to The ball park.
The accident occurred at S. 40 o'clock,
while the Boston team was at the bat
in it's half Of the fourth inning of the
second game, and was indirectly due
to quarrel between two drunken
men in the street. The National
League stands are built Of steel and
brick, the brick wall extending on
tirely around the grounds At the
top of the left field seats, and ex-
tending from the grand stand to tho
end Of the bleachera, there WAS
walk about 3 feet wide, which over
hung the street. 1t WAS this walk
which gave way under tie heavy
weight.
Men who were standing on the
walk were attracted by disturbance
in the street. They leaned over the
railing to see what was the trouble,
and this drew the attention of other
spectators, who rushed on the walk.
The walk became over crowded and
WITHOUT A MOMENTS WARNING,
two hundred feet of it fell to the
sidewalk, twenty feet below, carrying
all who were on it. There we're
probably three thousand persons sit.
ting in the left field bleachers, and
the roar made by the falling timber
created panic. Instantly the spec
tators rose en masse and made rush
down the grand stand and into the
playing field Not knowing what
had occurred, the ball players and
others tried to stop the mad rush,
but they we're swept aside and several
persons were badly hurt in the crush.
Outside the grounds the scene was
one of horror. For an entire block
on 10th street, from Huntingdon
street to Lehigh avenue, men and
boys we're lying wriIhing in agony.
Some were buried nnder the wreck
age, others were lying in the cutters,
and dozens we're stretch out in 18th
street on the car tracks. The 10000
persons within the grounds left the
place and crowded abont tho injured,
Of whom there were moro than a
hundred. lnhescribnble confusion
reignod for a timo hccnuse Of tho
great crowd.
While waiting for convey yances to
carry the victims to hospitals thou
sands Of willing hands
LOOKED AFTER THE INJURED.
They were carried from tho street
and laid on the sidewalk and some
we're taken into nearby private
houses. All houses in the vicinity
were thrown open to the victims.
One of the largest street car barns in
the city is situated across the street
from the Ball Park and all the cars
and teams we're gotten ready to
transport the injured to hospitals.
ROTTEN WOODEN SUPPORTS
An examination of the walk after
the accident showed many Of the
wooden supports, which extended
three feet bey ond the wall, to be rot
ton. They were about two and a
half inches thick and about ak
inches wide. They broke off flush
with the wall.