The scourge of illegal street racing, which this website has been attacking since its inception, and which we've been very vocally against for decades (and which has not always been welcomed among certain people in the auto industry), has resulted in an "accident" so terrible, so horrifying and wasteful that we're simply going to reprint the entire NEW YORK TIMES story about the incident and let it stand as is (photos are from the NY TIMES, KTLA/TV5 Los Angeles and the LOS ANGELES TIMES).
We'll just repeat what we've been saying for many, many years: Unless and until local civic, religious and community leaders, businesses and governments make available safe, sane and well-managed sites where 1/8-mile and/or 1/4-mile straight-line, classic head-to-head drag racing can be held on a regular basis, these stories will be repeated, again and again and again ... These sites must also be used for proper "driver instruction", which has fallen by the wayside in our nation's high schools as budget cutbacks have done away with other popular programs, such as sports and music instruction.
Every other industrialized nation promotes driver training; in those countries, driving is considered a privilege, definitely not a right, and people are proud of their driving skills. In many European and Asian nations, a single incident of driving while impaired in any way can result in that person's driving privilege taken away ... for life. In America, attorneys specializing in DUI cases advertise freely, turning impaired driving into a "sport" which is won or lost in a court room, no matter what may have happened on the highway.
Nothing has changed since the first time there were two cars on the same stretch of road at the
same time; it is in people's natures to test their "steed" against the other's, whether it's one horse versus another or 500 horsepower versus another vehicle and its operator. Here's the NY TIMES coverage of this incredible disaster:
8 People Are Killed at Site of an Illegal Road Race
ACCOKEEK, Md. — A car crashed into a group of people watching an illegal street race staged here in the early morning hours on a dark highway Saturday, killing eight people and leaving five hospitalized.
The accident happened at about 3 a.m., the police said, when a car not involved in the race but headed north along Route 210 plowed into the spectators, striking at least 14 people who may have been standing in the roadway, said Cpl. Clinton Copeland, a spokesman for the Prince George’s County Police Department.
Corporal Copeland said investigators believed that the racers were “burning out,” revving car engines and spinning tires in preparation for the race, possibly causing smoke and debris to hinder visibility on the road.
Seven people were pronounced dead at the scene, including one of the bystanders who was thrown through the windshield of the car that struck the spectators, a white Ford Crown Victoria. An eighth victim died at the hospital. The car’s driver walked away from the crash; a passenger in the car was taken to the hospital.
No charges have been filed against the driver, whom the police did not identify. Corporal Copeland could not say if the driver had been tested for alcohol or drugs. He said Saturday that the investigation was continuing.
People who live near the crash site in this bedroom community of Washington say that illegal racing is nearly a weekly occurrence here, and that drivers even transport their vehicles to this stretch of road on flatbed trucks.
Robert Stafford, 60, and his wife, Glenna, 59, who live a few hundred yards from where the accident occurred, said they had been hearing the squealing tires from drag races for about 25 years, since the highway was expanded to four lanes and divided by a wide grassy median.
Mr. Stafford said they had basically given up on calling the Prince George’s County Police Department or the State Police.
“We’ve called and called,” Mr. Stafford said, adding that each time they heard a different story as to who was responsible for patrolling that stretch of road.
Corporal Copeland said the county had been aware of the races. “All we can do is come when somebody makes the call,” he said, but when officers get there the racers are usually gone.
Steve Swann, 36, of nearby Fort Washington, came by the crash site on Saturday afternoon with his cousin. Mr. Swann said that he was at the race when the accident occurred and that the aftermath was horrifying.
He said the car came right up behind the two race cars without its lights on “smashing everybody up.”
“There was blood everywhere and everyone was trying to get away,” Mr. Swann said.
Another spectator, Crystal Gaines, 27, of Indian Head, told The Associated Press, “There were just bodies everywhere.”
Ms. Gaines said that she was able to grab her child but that she could not help her father, William Gaines Sr., 61, when she saw the Crown Victoria approach. Her father was killed in the crash.
“He wasn’t breathing, he wasn’t moving,” Ms. Gaines said. “His body was in pieces.”
Mr. Swann said it was the first time he had attended a race in the area. He also said in such races drivers would often transport their cars and there would be two or three races with bets being placed and winners taking home as much as $3,000.
Corporal Copeland said the victims ranged in age from their 20s to 60s. He said he was surprised by the age of the spectators because these events were often attended by the young. About 50 people were gathered for the race, he told The Associated Press.
“This is a tragedy of monumental proportions,” Corporal Copeland said, “to have eight people lose their lives for the thrill of a road race.”
The residents expressed sorrow, but said the accident was not a surprise. “You see the skid marks in the morning,” Mrs. Stafford said. “It had to happen sooner or later.”
The dragstrip will be a needed aspect of any responsible community recreational plan as long as there is so much as a high energy goat cart grudge match in the offing. A revival of non profit organized drag racing would be the best tribute to those who've lost their lives in the reality that is street racing.
Posted by: Philip Bradford | February 21, 2008 at 11:49 PM