Car hits Md. street-race crowd; 8 killed (was) Street-race crash kills 7 in crowd

[visuelz]

Seven people were killed early today by a car that plowed into a crowd gathered to watch a street race, police said. Witnesses said they had just watched two cars in the illegal street race speed past when a car without any lights on came up behind them and veered into a crowd of about 50. Very sad to see these kind of things. Especially the video part where they show a car being crushed. Click deterrents: http://www.cnn.com/2008/US/02/16/dra...l#cnnSTCOther1 Full story: http://www.cnn.com/2008/US/02/16/dra....ap/index.html

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[MurdaZ]

jesus..

[BstonBruin]

Awful...when are people going to learn? I guess never. Take it to a track...if your gonna take the time to organize it

[EuRTSX]

Great. Stupid ass Marylanders.

[Q1911]

[stangg172004]

theres so many things wrong with this story

the car that plowed into everyone wasnt even in the race!

one of the by standers had her elderly father, who died, and child with her? wtf?

the car that killed everyone was a huge Cadillac! And theres confusion as to it involvement in the race? What the hell is a boat of a car doing racing?

and a tractor drove by shortly after and ran over some of the bodies?

when are people going to learn! its so juvenile and im willing to bet there were a lot of people in there 30s+.

WTF!! ive just lost all hope in humanity

[stangg172004]

Originally Posted by BstonBruin

Awful...when are people going to learn? I guess never. Take it to a track...if your gonna take the time to organize it

right! ive seen some of these and form what i could tell, they were pretty darn organized. Why not just make a track even out of it?

[nokiaman]

Streetracing kills again

[pttl]

Originally Posted by visuelz

Very sad to see these kind of things. Especially the video part where they show a car being crushed. Click deterrents:
http://www.cnn.com/2008/US/02/16/dra...l#cnnSTCOther1


Full story:
http://www.cnn.com/2008/US/02/16/dra....ap/index.html

Why is showing a car being crushed "sad"? It's a pretty effective deterrent. Get caught street racing, and say goodbye to your 'weapon'...errr....car.

[BENDER08]

[visuelz]

Originally Posted by pttl

Why is showing a car being crushed "sad"? It's a pretty effective deterrent. Get caught street racing, and say goodbye to your 'weapon'...errr....car.

I know, but the car is innocent!!

[charliemike]

Originally Posted by visuelz

I know, but the car is innocent!!

The car is an inanimate object

[nokiaman]

Originally Posted by charliemike

The car is an inanimate object

Only the Carrera GT breathes.

[EuRTSX]

Originally Posted by visuelz

I know, but the car is innocent!!

Figured from you.

[srika]

god.. that's terrible terrible terrible..

[distortedolskool]

"Police said a body found in the car was one of the spectators and not a passenger as they had previously reported."

whoa.. terrible.

[RaviNJCLs]

That's horrible.

I hate street racers.

[SHYUperman]

wow...

[SuperTrooper169]

3:40 AM, 50 people ranging from 20-60 years old, standing in the middle of a divided highway surrounded by tire smoke watching an illegal street race? Who was the genius that thought that location with that many people was a good idea? victims, but jeez, what do you expect when you put yourself in that situation? As much as I feel bad for the victims and their families, can you imagine being the driver of that car that didn't see those people and now has to live with knowing they killed 8 people?

[Donte99TL]

It doesn’t bother me one bit when street racers die. It’s when they kill innocent people is when it sucks.

[JJaber06]

That sucks...next time I go i'll make sure to wrap myself in bubble wrap and wear a helmet.

[jz-97-c7]

damn....when will they learn?? take that to the track

[srika]

Originally Posted by SuperTrooper169

As much as I feel bad for the victims and their families, can you imagine being the driver of that car that didn't see those people and now has to live with knowing they killed 8 people?

you're totally right. I can't imagine how that would feel.

[jayunsplanet]

^Yes. But also imagine how bad the truck driver feels who may or may not have killed the people he ran over...

All the local Maryland forums are blowing up with news on this accident. There is so much hear-say and word-of-mouth reports. It's ridiculous. Very sad for all the families of the victims. What an absolute worthless way to die.

[Mourning Would]

Tragic.... but didn't the crowd assemble ON the road to watch? Thats as stupid in and of itself as street racing itself. Every single person involved/injured is at fault here. Street racing is stupid already, then the spectators walk onto an open road, THEN the driver of the Crown Vic didn't stop/slow down enough (I would've stopped and waited for the smoke to clear) and instead continued at a speed fast enough to plow through 8 human beings.

I feel the worst for the families of the deceased....

[srika]

Originally Posted by I Go To Costco

Tragic.... but didn't the crowd assemble ON the road to watch? Thats as stupid in and of itself as street racing itself. Every single person involved/injured is at fault here. Street racing is stupid already, then the spectators walk onto an open road, THEN the driver of the Crown Vic didn't stop/slow down enough (I would've stopped and waited for the smoke to clear) and instead continued at a speed fast enough to plow through 8 human beings.

I feel the worst for the families of the deceased....

I would argue that the only person who isn't at fault here, is the driver of the car that hit the people.

[Mourning Would]

Originally Posted by srika

I would argue that the only person who isn't at fault here, is the driver of the car that hit the people.

Arguable.... but I would ask you, would you still drive fast through a cloud of smoke which you couldn't even see past? I think its common sense to proceed cautiously

Wasn't there an accident with something like 50 cars a month or two ago with double digit fatalities? The main fault was fog in which you couldn't see 20 ft in front of you.

[SRK85]

Jeez no wonder why the Maryland state police are so anal about speeding.

[6MTUA5]

http://news.yahoo.com/s/ap/20080217/..._racing_deaths

ACCOKEEK, Md. - A car plowed into a group of street-racing fans obscured by a cloud of tire smoke on a highway Saturday, killing eight people and scattering bodies in the early morning darkness.
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At least five others were injured in the gruesome wreck along a flat, isolated stretch of highway about 20 miles south of Washington known for illegal races.

About 50 people were gathered before dawn along Route 210 as two cars spun their wheels, kicked up smoke and sped off, said Prince George's County police Cpl. Clinton Copeland.

Fans had spilled onto the smoky, dark road to watch the cars drive away when a white Ford Crown Victoria unexpectedly came up from behind and smashed into them.

"There were just bodies everywhere; it was horrible," said Crystal Gaines, 27, of Indian Head, whose father was killed.

Police interviewed the Crown Victoria driver, but no charges were pending, Copeland said. Authorities were looking for the drivers of the two cars involved in the race.

The combination of the smoke and the dark morning likely meant the unsuspecting driver could not see the crowd, police said. A tractor-trailer that came by shortly afterward may also have struck someone on the roadside as it tried to avoid the crash scene, according to investigators.

The Crown Victoria, which had a crumpled hood and a partially collapsed roof, ended up down an embankment with one of the victims lodged inside.

Bodies covered by white sheets lay in the road and on the shoulder across a 50-foot stretch of the road later Saturday morning before they were removed by the medical examiner.

Shoes were strewn about in the grass, and a pair of dark skid marks scarred the highway.

"It's probably one of the worst scenes I've seen," Copeland said. "This is a situation that could have been avoided, and it's a very tragic situation."

About 50 people were watching the race, Gaines said, and she saw the Crown Victoria approach without its lights on. She grabbed her daughter, pulling the girl to safety. But her father, William Gaines Sr., 61, had a broken leg, and was not able to get away in time. Afterward, she found his body on the road.

"He wasn't breathing; he wasn't moving," Gaines said. "His body was in pieces."

Her brother, William Gaines Jr., was also there. The car came through so fast that "it just ripped people apart," he said.

"I didn't even see the car. All I heard was stuff breaking," he said.

Police could not confirm whether the car that struck the crowd had its lights on.

The victims' ages ranged from their 20s to 60s, police said. Seven people were pronounced dead at the scene, and an eighth died later at a hospital. Police said a body found in the car was one of the spectators and not a passenger, as they had previously assumed.

Route 210 is a thoroughfare with two lanes in each direction and few traffic lights along the stretch where the accident occurred. The road is flanked by some businesses but has little traffic in the early morning, Copeland said. The speed limit is 55 miles per hour.

John Courtney said his brother, Mark, 33, of St. Mary's County, also was among the dead. He identified his brother from a digital image police had taken.

"He liked going to the race track, watching races," Courtney said. "It's going to take a toll on my family for a long time."

Marion Neal feared her 42-year-old brother was among the dead and was awaiting images from the police.

"It's a tragedy," she said. "I don't like racing, but that was his hobby."

Police said that street races are not uncommon on the stretch of road, but that most occur in the summer and involve motorcycles. But relatives said some of the victims often went to see races held late at night on isolated stretches of road.

"It's a problem," said Denee Hines, whose mother owns a hair salon only a few hundred feet from the site of the accident. "Everyone knows about it, but I've never heard of it getting this bad."

[jupitersolo]

They've been talking about this all day. I've watched 5 different newscasts about this. The Police were called by someone who lives near bye, he heard all the noise. This was 2 and half hours before the accident. They never came until it was called in at the time of the accident.

Prince Georges County Police are the worst!!!!!!

They found one of the dead inside the Crown Vic, remember the deer pictures from the SUV accident.

[stogie1020]

Wow, street racing is so cool.


Jesus, did I even need the red text? Why do people still do this(race on the roads)?

[SuperTrooper169]

Originally Posted by I Go To Costco

Arguable.... but I would ask you, would you still drive fast through a cloud of smoke which you couldn't even see past? I think its common sense to proceed cautiously

How do you know the Crown Vic didn't try to slow down? When you're traveling down the road at 50-60 mph you have a very small window of time to react. Factor in it was 3, almost 4, in the morning and the driver might have been tired... there's just so many factors here so let's just say until they do a full investigation we shouldn't jump to any conclusions about who is at fault and who isn't. The only thing we know for a fact is 8 people are dead no matter who is at fault.

[2000TaffetaTL]

I wish cops could just walk up to the cars of people the busted street racing and euthanize them on the spot. That may sound harsh, but the entire street racing crowd in general seems to be made up of the biggest bunch of idiots walking this planet. If you want your car to go fast take it to the damn track.

[enigmaos]

street racing n:

[jayunsplanet]

http://www.acurazine.com/forums/showthread.php?t=384968

[Mizouse]

Originally Posted by jayunsplanet

http://www.acurazine.com/forums/showthread.php?t=384968

so it went from 7 killed to 8 killed??

[6MTUA5]

Originally Posted by jayunsplanet

http://www.acurazine.com/forums/showthread.php?t=384968

[asianspec]

[asianspec]

[stogie1020]

Guy in a beat up Tacoma tried to race me on the freeway (101 NB) last night at 11pm. I was wearing a suit, totally sober, driving 75-ish in the left lane in a completely un-moded TSX, and the moron kept racing up to me, then passing me, then racing past me all to do it again a few seconds later. Wish I still had pretty lights on my car.... Or a .50 cal on the hood.....