Post by dewsbury on Dec 29, 2011 22:35:53 GMT -5
Dear Mr. Weiland,
The topic of the Wantagh plane crash came up in conversation over the weekend. I did some research to match my memories against those of the news reports. There, I found your message of last July 11 asking for information from those familiar with the event. I am sorry that I did not see it earlier so as to help you on your visit to the site. I offer my 57-year old memories. Some are quite vivid but I cannot vouch for all. I have never forgotten the name of your father!!
Around mid-day on August 3, 1954 I was approaching my 15th birthday and living with my parents at 1872 Dover Road, Wantagh. You may recognize that the address is one block east of Denver Rd., the site of the crash. Our house was almost exactly even with the point of impact. My sister and I were seated in our living room, I near the picture window and she across the way on the sofa. Thus, we were probably about 40 yards from the point of impact. Fortunately for us, there was a house in between the site and our house to absorb some of the impact.
This was a time when we were all obsessed with nuclear war and “the bomb.” We suddenly heard a very loud sound and saw the bright, orange flash of a fireball. I dove for cover under furniture on the opposite wall thinking it was, indeed, the bomb. It was that quick. A few minutes later we recovered and began to piece together the details of what had happened.
Your father was flying an F-84 Thunderjet of Republic Aircraft, manufactured in nearby Farmingdale. As the event was reconstructed, as you probably know, your father apparently knew the plane was in trouble and tried to reach Great South Bay, south of Wantagh. Realizing he could not make it, he apparently headed for the green patch a few blocks north of my house only to see that it was a school yard with many children playing. He then swerved and came down in the widest street he could reach. Of course, all of this happened in an incredibly short time as he was, indeed flying a very fast jet fighter plane.
I have thought about his decisions many times in the ensuing 57 years. He could have just ditched the plane. I hate to think of the destruction and loss of life that might have occurred had he done that. He could have chosen one block over from Denver Road and thus done major damage to my house. As it was, part of the impact on Denver was also absorbed by a car and a bakery delivery truck that happened to be in the area. What might have occurred if the crash had occurred directly on our house or even in our street and shattered the picture window so that glass flew toward us? He made the very courageous decision to go down with the plane. The word “hero” is tossed around a lot these days. In my mind, your father was, and always will be, a true, authentic hero!
Today, I am a Professor Emeritus of Psychology, retired from the University of Florida and living in Gainesville. I often think that your father might have saved my life.
To return to the story– As we left the house and reconnoitered we began to piece together what had happened. It was pure chaos! There were small fragments of the plane, the street, etc. everywhere. We had a screened-in porch at the back of our house and I noted that some small pieces had burned through the awning. I got out the garden hose and began to wet down the areas that were smoldering. I believe there were a few other areas burning on which I ran the hose. All told, the damage was minor. (The same was not true for the house even with us at 1873 Denver Rd.) There were fragments of the plane and other remains of the crash all over our back yard. I collected a few. I used to have a cigar box filled with the small pieces of twisted aluminum. Of course, the authorities collected the major items. I have looked for the box but it must have gotten lost during my moves to Michigan, California, and Florida. I am also trying to locate a few photos that I took.
My mother was off shopping. By the time she got near home the police had blocked off the area at the corner of Beech St. and Clfton Blvd. She drove right through the block screaming that she had two children there. When she got down the street a neighbor held us out to show that we were OK.
For same time after the crash you could see the site of impact of the two wing tanks of the plane– right on the two sidewalks. He hit the street right in the middle; that minimized damage. When we visited the area about 4 years ago there was no remnant of the crash. All had been re-paved. It would have been nice to have a plaque or something but I saw none.
The injuries to the Snyder and Loester families are described in the New York Times article of the next day. The Times article contends that the engine flew over the Recca home on Roxbury Rd. and into a house on the next block. The may be correct. My memory is that it went in the roof of Howard Winch’s house right there– probably next door to Recca. Our next-door neighbor, Bill Neubert had probably the best close eye-witness account of the crash and the quotation from him in the Times article matches my memory. The stories in the Washington Post and Chicago Tribune also seem accurate as best I can tell. Except for a few details, the recollections in seafordalum.proboards.com/index.cgi?board=Seaford&action=print&thread=33 seem accurate, as least as far as I can recall.
Mr. Weiland, you must feel very proud of your heroic father. Many of us still hold him in high regard.
Don Dewsbury
Wantagh HS Class of 1957
dewsbury@ufl.edu
P.S. see also:
www.arlingtoncemetery.net/whweiland.htm
www.newspaperarchive.com/SiteMap/FreePdfPreview.aspx?img=1198011
news.google.com/newspapers?nid=1310&dat=19540804&id=4zpWAAAAIBAJ&sjid=X-kDAAAAIBAJ&pg=3992,842437
The topic of the Wantagh plane crash came up in conversation over the weekend. I did some research to match my memories against those of the news reports. There, I found your message of last July 11 asking for information from those familiar with the event. I am sorry that I did not see it earlier so as to help you on your visit to the site. I offer my 57-year old memories. Some are quite vivid but I cannot vouch for all. I have never forgotten the name of your father!!
Around mid-day on August 3, 1954 I was approaching my 15th birthday and living with my parents at 1872 Dover Road, Wantagh. You may recognize that the address is one block east of Denver Rd., the site of the crash. Our house was almost exactly even with the point of impact. My sister and I were seated in our living room, I near the picture window and she across the way on the sofa. Thus, we were probably about 40 yards from the point of impact. Fortunately for us, there was a house in between the site and our house to absorb some of the impact.
This was a time when we were all obsessed with nuclear war and “the bomb.” We suddenly heard a very loud sound and saw the bright, orange flash of a fireball. I dove for cover under furniture on the opposite wall thinking it was, indeed, the bomb. It was that quick. A few minutes later we recovered and began to piece together the details of what had happened.
Your father was flying an F-84 Thunderjet of Republic Aircraft, manufactured in nearby Farmingdale. As the event was reconstructed, as you probably know, your father apparently knew the plane was in trouble and tried to reach Great South Bay, south of Wantagh. Realizing he could not make it, he apparently headed for the green patch a few blocks north of my house only to see that it was a school yard with many children playing. He then swerved and came down in the widest street he could reach. Of course, all of this happened in an incredibly short time as he was, indeed flying a very fast jet fighter plane.
I have thought about his decisions many times in the ensuing 57 years. He could have just ditched the plane. I hate to think of the destruction and loss of life that might have occurred had he done that. He could have chosen one block over from Denver Road and thus done major damage to my house. As it was, part of the impact on Denver was also absorbed by a car and a bakery delivery truck that happened to be in the area. What might have occurred if the crash had occurred directly on our house or even in our street and shattered the picture window so that glass flew toward us? He made the very courageous decision to go down with the plane. The word “hero” is tossed around a lot these days. In my mind, your father was, and always will be, a true, authentic hero!
Today, I am a Professor Emeritus of Psychology, retired from the University of Florida and living in Gainesville. I often think that your father might have saved my life.
To return to the story– As we left the house and reconnoitered we began to piece together what had happened. It was pure chaos! There were small fragments of the plane, the street, etc. everywhere. We had a screened-in porch at the back of our house and I noted that some small pieces had burned through the awning. I got out the garden hose and began to wet down the areas that were smoldering. I believe there were a few other areas burning on which I ran the hose. All told, the damage was minor. (The same was not true for the house even with us at 1873 Denver Rd.) There were fragments of the plane and other remains of the crash all over our back yard. I collected a few. I used to have a cigar box filled with the small pieces of twisted aluminum. Of course, the authorities collected the major items. I have looked for the box but it must have gotten lost during my moves to Michigan, California, and Florida. I am also trying to locate a few photos that I took.
My mother was off shopping. By the time she got near home the police had blocked off the area at the corner of Beech St. and Clfton Blvd. She drove right through the block screaming that she had two children there. When she got down the street a neighbor held us out to show that we were OK.
For same time after the crash you could see the site of impact of the two wing tanks of the plane– right on the two sidewalks. He hit the street right in the middle; that minimized damage. When we visited the area about 4 years ago there was no remnant of the crash. All had been re-paved. It would have been nice to have a plaque or something but I saw none.
The injuries to the Snyder and Loester families are described in the New York Times article of the next day. The Times article contends that the engine flew over the Recca home on Roxbury Rd. and into a house on the next block. The may be correct. My memory is that it went in the roof of Howard Winch’s house right there– probably next door to Recca. Our next-door neighbor, Bill Neubert had probably the best close eye-witness account of the crash and the quotation from him in the Times article matches my memory. The stories in the Washington Post and Chicago Tribune also seem accurate as best I can tell. Except for a few details, the recollections in seafordalum.proboards.com/index.cgi?board=Seaford&action=print&thread=33 seem accurate, as least as far as I can recall.
Mr. Weiland, you must feel very proud of your heroic father. Many of us still hold him in high regard.
Don Dewsbury
Wantagh HS Class of 1957
dewsbury@ufl.edu
P.S. see also:
www.arlingtoncemetery.net/whweiland.htm
www.newspaperarchive.com/SiteMap/FreePdfPreview.aspx?img=1198011
news.google.com/newspapers?nid=1310&dat=19540804&id=4zpWAAAAIBAJ&sjid=X-kDAAAAIBAJ&pg=3992,842437