Seven dead, many injured in street racing mishap.

[TideRoll]

Back in the day, I never street raced where there were people standing around, I couldn't understand why anybody would. A guy I knew struck a pedestrian observer of a street race he was involved in one night and that was the beginning of the end of my own days of taking it to the streets. I had a fast car, several of us did, but these days there are a lot of pretty fast cars out there and apparently a lot of foolish drivers. There was recently a shooting in Birmingham related to street racing.

Man, this is getting out of hand.

Anyway, the news story from Maryland:

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CCOKEEK, Md. (AP) - A car plowed into a crowd that had gathered to watch a drag race on a suburban road early Saturday, killing seven people and injuring at least four, 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.

"There were just bodies everywhere; it was horrible," said Crystal Gaines, 27, whose father was among the dead.

Gaines said she grabbed her child but could not help her father, William Gaines Sr., 61.

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

A white sedan hit people standing on the side of Route 210 around 3:40 a.m., Prince George's County Police Cpl. Clinton Copeland said, but it wasn't clear whether that was one of the cars involved in the race. A tractor-trailer that came by shortly afterward may also have struck someone on the road as it tried to avoid the crash, he said.

"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."

Four people were taken to hospitals, Copeland said. Their conditions weren't immediately known.

Hours after the accident on the divided highway in Accokeek, bodies covered in white sheets were scattered along what police were calling a 200-yard crime scene. Some were in the road, while others were on the shoulder.

The sedan came to a rest on an embankment about 150 feet from where the crowd had been. It had a crumpled front and hood, and the roof had partially collapsed.

The driver of the white sedan had been interviewed and did not appear to be seriously hurt, but a passenger was among the dead, Police Capt. Donald Frick said.

Authorities were working to identify the victims by showing digital photos of them to bystanders who said loved ones had been hurt. John Courtney said after viewing one of the images that his brother, Mark, 33, was among the dead.

"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."

Investigators had "more questions than answers," Copeland said.

Route 210 has two lanes in each direction and traffic lights about every 150 to 200 yards in Accokeek, about 20 miles south of Washington. In that area, the road is flanked by some businesses but has little traffic in the early hours, Copeland said.

[icehog3]

Absolutely tragic, I hope any street racing guys we have here will take notice.

[Darb85]

I used to, but had one close call with a car that popped out infront of me, and that was the end of that. I take it to the track now.

[KASR]

Duck and I used to - but even when we did there were never people on the side of the road...that's just assinine! (we don't anymore tho, cigar is alot safer! but it did make for some interesting videos!)

[RGD]

210 of all places. I hate 210 and avoid that area like the plague. When I do have to take 210 over to 301 I normally cut through long before Accokeek.

For those that don't know - 210 is basically 4 lanes, 55 mph that everyone does at least 80 on - in between the couple hundred traffic lights that everyone races too. Sit at any given light long enough and you are bound to see several semi's and dumps locking up the brakes.

Accidents there are always high speed hits.

Hate that road.


Ron

[Kayak_Rat]

Originally Posted by RGD

210 of all places. I hate 210 and avoid that area like the plague. When I do have to take 210 over to 301 I normally cut through long before Accokeek.

For those that don't know - 210 is basically 4 lanes, 55 mph that everyone does at least 80 on - in between the couple hundred traffic lights that everyone races too. Sit at any given light long enough and you are bound to see several semi's and dumps locking up the brakes.

Accidents there are always high speed hits.

Hate that road.


Ron

Sounds like the city Transportation Engineer needs someone to put his nuts in a ringer.

Two words........SPEED TABLES.

Seen them take out the undercarriage of a ricer after they were installed and the idiot didnt know it.

[ghostrider]

"There were just bodies everywhere; it was horrible," said Crystal Gaines, 27, whose father was among the dead.

Gaines said she grabbed her child but could not help her father, William Gaines Sr., 61.

Truly horrible event, but what in God's name was she doing out at 3:40AM with a kid? Three generations out in the wee hours watching illegal street racing. What are we teaching our kids?