Maryland independent. [volume] (Port Tobacco, Md.) 1874-current, 1923-06-29
8DEAD, 50 HURT AS
L TRAIN FALLS
Two Cars Plunge 80 Feet in
Busy Street
BLAME ON TRANSIT BOARD
Firemen Work FeverIshIy To Free
Pinioned Passensers-seenes At
Wreek--Alt Brooklyn
Helps.

New York.--Eight persons were
killed and 30 injured when two
car Fifth avenue elevated train
plunged into the street, drop of
80 feer, near Flatbush and Allan
tie avenues, Brooklyn.
What caused the accident is I'M
known. Details Of just what hap
pened were forgotten or exaggerated
in the confusion of rescue and official
Investigations. A rafting train of two
15-yearold wooden cars was moving
at moderate speed from Bay Ridge to-
ward Manhattan
At least so passengers sat in sitting
heat, some fidgeting in preparation to
get of at the Atlantic avenue station,
900 feet away.
In Atlantic avenue trafic had been
stopped while a stream of automobiles
moved along Flatbush avenue under
the elevated tracks A station wagon.
driver at the wheel, waited for per-
mission to move. A man afoot stopped
another. begged match and lit a
cigarette. A red-haired girl scurried
across in front of the halted cars.
Then there was crashing noise on
the elevated. Something had gone
wrong 80 feet from Atlantic avenue
To the motcrmsn it seemed as If part
Of the ,underworks Of hts car had
fallensaway- To passengers. II was
startling shaking up as the cars
thumped across the ties for 30 feet
after leaving the rails.
Then there was sudden. sickening
terror. The ancient cars lurched to
the right They we're falling. The
street had brief warning in the ciank
OF creaking steel and rending wood
and flashing electricity. The driver Of
the station wagon leaped to the side
walk. The red-haired girl. il witnesses
are accurate. was scared motionless.
The man who lighted cigarette
started to run, but not soon enough
As passengers screamed, the first
car OF the train crashed to the street.
nose first, landing almost bottom up.
The second landed on its right side.
The cries OF human fear changed to
walls of pain. The two old cars we're
piles OF twisted iron, splintered wood,
broken glass, ragged roofing The pas
sengers were jumbled units in piles
of human beings.
Above the horror OF the screaming
injured. people running from every di-
rection shouted and blew police
whistles; others pulled FIRE alarms,
Police stations received telephoned
alarms; 200 policemen started from
half a dozen precincts. Twentyfour
ambulances carrying 55 doctors began
a mad rush from every hospital in
Brooklyn and two others came from
the Broad and Beekman street hos
pitfalls in Manhattan.
Fire apparatus responded hurriedly.
When iiremen arrived there was a
small bfaze under the pile of wreckage
that had been the first car OF the train.
II was extinguished quickly The fire
fighters shook off helmets and coats
and dropped chemical extinguishers
for axes. crowbars and jacks Work
ing feverishly In blistering heat, they
ripped into the car and began pulling
out the injured.
1t had taken 10 minutes for this
work to get under way A crowd Of
several hundred had gathered. All
who could jam themselves around the
battered cars started pulling out the
injured. A few male passengers who
were only slightly bruised aided the
work from the inside. passing out the
more seriously hurt.