The New York herald., 1922-02-12
BLAST IN BROADWAY
LIFTS CAR Off RAILS
Columbus Circle Buildings
Are Shaken by Mysteri-
GUS Conclusion.
PASSENGERS IN PANIC |
Many Cut by Flying Glass
and Hart M Rush
for Exits.
THOUSANDS JAM CIRCLE
Illuminating Gas in Trolley
Channel Ignited by Spark,
Is Theory.
THOUSANDS JAM CIRCLE

An explosion which Jared Columbus
Circle and vas heard distinctly for
half a mile lifted Broadway surface
oar of the Third avenue system off its
tracks last night at Broadway and
sixtieth street, Just as tEeat r bound
traffic was at it's heaviest.
A doorman in Loew's Circle Theater,
who was inside revolving doors, said
the explosion shook the building. Pa
trolman William Quinlan, who was at
the corner and happened to be look
ing directly at the car when the
detonation came, said he could see
the front end Of the car lifted off the
rails, and crash down again, and that
there was a huge burst of white
smoke.
Fifty persons were In the car and
were thrown into panic. AS the car
dropped again to the rails the windows
were shattered and many passengers
We're cut. All rushed to ge& out at
once, and persons in the street heard
women screaming and saw the passen-
gers fighting to reach the doors.
nany Cut by Glass.
What happened inside the car was
obscured for a few minutes by the
smoke. When that cleared away men
and women began jumping from the
exits, some with blood on their collars
and clothing from the cuts. Patrolman
Quinlan and Patrolman William Griebe
forced their way through the crowd
about the car. and got inside, where
they restored ORDER picked up several
who had fallen and helped them out.
Four of the passenger, cut and dazed
from shock, We're taken into a store
in the Circle Theater building, where
they were attended by an ambulance
surgeon.
They were Alfred Hirsch. 2e, 1913 Mem
ford place, The Bronx: Joseph Cinko. 81,
III East Fifty-first street; Irene Pen
ming. 50, 527 West l21st street. and
Philip Reilly. 2S 256 West Seventy
fourth street. DR.. Kaye of Flower
hospital found their cuts were not seri-
Gus and they went to their homes.
At the time of the explosion three
street meetings were under way in the
Circle. Broadway above the circle was
packed with motors and two theaters
IN the Circle. keith's Colonial at Six
tieth street and Loewe's, were changing
audiences.
Reserves came. and traffic was de-
layed for half an hour.
Gas in Trolley Channel.
The most plausible theory offered for
the explosion by the police was that
Illuminating gas had accumulated in the
l,ocket below the trolley channel mid
way between the rails and that an cleo
trio spark ignited II. Paper and what
a appeared to be bits Of hemp were found
and gave rise to the report q bomb
might have been placed there, but 1t
was believed bomb would have pro-
duced greater damage.
The paper and hemp waste might
/ ave accumulated from the street and
drawn into the channel by the trailer,
the police said. Officials Of the railway
company were unwilling to give an
opinion as to the cause.
Motorman Charles Ellis of 204 West
Sixty-fourth street, who was at the
controls. said he was at a loss to ex-
plain it. lie had just released the
brakes to start on, he said. when the
ar shook under the concussion and he
felt the car rise in the air. The car
was able to go under It's own power.