Empire State Building Disaster: Interior, S corner, 79th Fl., facing N; 12:05 pm, July 28, 1945. Instead, he crashed into the Empire State Building and set it ablaze. According to Therese Fortier Willig, who worked on the 79th floor, she could see nothing but flames. A British Movietone newsreel from the time. Alabama, Moments after a warning from air traffic control, Lt. Col. Bill Smith crashed his B-25 Bomber into the 78 th and 79 th floors of . A few people exploited the accident for profit. On July 28, 1945 A B-25 military bomber crashed into the Empire State Building in Manhattan, New York. A United States military plane crashes into the Empire State Building on July 28, 1945, killing 14 people. Capt. Catherine OConnor, a worker with Catholic War Relief Services, herself injured, remembered the horror of that day: The plane exploded within the building. Then check out these 1970s photos of life in New York City. "And that was a connection with the rest of the world. based on information from your browser. Westchester County, 2015 CBS Broadcasting Inc. All Rights Reserved. It was flying a routine mission to La Guardia airport. As a shocked crowd watched from the street, police, firemen, and rescue workers rushed to the scene to aid those trapped and injured in the building. On the morning of July 28, 1945, Lt. A tall, broad-shouldered graduate of the U.S. Military Academy at West Point (class of 1942), where he had lettered in football and earned All-American honors in lacrosse, was home from the war. In the aftermath of the crash, New York and the CAA (today the FAA) strengthened flight rules over the city, and the Army Air Force required additional training for pilots transitioning from combat to domestic flying. An official report of the crash noted, Within two minutes this plane showed up directly southeast of La Guardia, and Mr. Barden, believing it intended to land, gave it runway, wind direction, and velocity. But Smith told the tower that his destination was Newark Army Air Field and that was where he wanted to go. The fire trapped hundreds of office workers, including Willig and Pall. To use this feature, use a newer browser. Somehow, against all odds, he had survived the war and was now stateside, enjoying a few days with his wife Martha, a former Army nurse, and their infant son in Watertown, Massachusetts, outside of Boston. In the elevator equivalent of getting back on the horse from which one has been bucked, she took one of the cars and made a full trip in it. Unfortunately, some of our Army Pilots who have been coming into our municipal fields during this war emergency period have on occasion have [sic] not maintained the proper safe altitude.. The only other crewman along on the ride with Smith was 31-year-old Air Force Staff Sergeant Christopher S. Domitrovich, of Granite City, Illinois, who had accompanied him from the Sioux Falls base. There was panic. Uncertain as to where he was, at 9:50 AM. Tagged: Empire State Building, Aviation disasters, Mayor Fiorello LaGuardia, Skyscrapers, Find out more about the NYC Department of Records at nyc.gov/records. "He ignored it So he started to make a little bit of a turn that brought him over midtown Manhattan, and as he straightened out, the clouds broke up enough for him to realize he was flying among skyscrapers.". 15 memorials Lucille Ann Bath 1926 - 28 Jul 1945 Mount Saint Mary Cemetery Flushing, Queens County, New York, USA Plot info: Section: 010 | Row: 018 Grave 55 W Paul Dearing What was the Empire State Building B-24 Crash Death toll: 14 people died (three crew and 11 office workers) and 26 were injured. Malony then went to work administering first aid to the woman. "I was at the file cabinet and all of a sudden the building felt like it was just going to topple over," Pall said. She continues to hold the record for surviving the longest fall in an elevator over 1,000 feet. When the plane crashed, parts of the engine flew into the building and weakened the cables of a pair of elevators on the 79th floor. Despite the crash and subsequent fire, which happened on Saturday, the building was open for business on numerous floors on Monday; mainly because the Empire State Building did not suffer any structural damage. He found an unattended elevator at the main lobby, took it up, and rescued 20 people trapped between the 30th and 40th floors. At the time, the Empire State Building was the tallest in the world, and Smith crashed between the 78 th and 80 th floors. Within two minutes, this plane showed up directly southeast of LaGuardia and (LaGuardia Tower chief Operator Victor) Barden believing it intended to land, gave it runway, wind direction and velocity, the memo read. Grabbing his first-aid kit, he began climbing the stairs. The Empire State Building was enveloped in smoke after it was rammed by a U.S. Army B-25 bomber on July 28, 1945. He was so dubious about the weather and said flying conditions would be poor, she told a reporter. They sensed that only a miracle could prevent a horrible tragedy. Since it was a Saturday, fewer workers than normal were in the building. Please check your email and click on the link to activate your account. Offices; charred bodies on desk in background. On July 28, 1945, a B-25 Mitchell bomber of the United States Army Air Forces crashed into the north side of the Empire State Building in New York City, while flying in thick fog. On July 28, 1945, residents of New York City were horrified when an airplane crashed into the Empire State Building, leaving 14 dead. It is unknown what role Domitrovitch was to play on that mornings flight, but it is likely that he was Smiths flight engineer. The bomber itself was a B-25 that had 2 pilots and 1 passenger. There were countless episodes of heroism performed that day. Within seconds Smith found himself in a canyon of skyscrapers, totally confused and lost. Search crews did not find Smith's body for two days as it went through an elevator shaft and was at the bottom. Smith, a Birmingham, Alabama, native who bore a vague resemblance to movie star Clark Gable, had been the popular commander of the groups 750th Bombardment Squadron. When the plane hit, flames shot up to the top of the elevator shaft that opened onto the observation deck, followed by a blast of dirt and debris, sending those on the deck (reports of the number of people there varied from three to 50 or 60) into a panic. The impact tore an 18 by 20-foot hole in the outer wall. On Saturday, July 28, 1945, fog obscured the Empire State Building. For being the height of summer, the day was unusually dreary and foggy. The rescuers had placed Betty on a stretcher and put her in an elevator on the 79th floor. As a shocked crowd watched from the street, police, firemen, and rescue workers rushed to the scene to aid those trapped and injured in the building. As soon as they placed Betty on the elevator, the cables snapped, and Betty started to hurtle down towards the bottom of the elevator shaft. "Mr. Fountain was walking through the office when the plane hit the building and he was on fire -- I mean, his clothes were on fire, his head was on fire. 227outlawing cowards. Palmer recalled, We were lifted three feet out of our chairs and thrown to the floor I thought it was a Jap bomb! Flames from the floor below covered the windows. The B-25 Mitchell bomber, with two pilots and one passenger aboard, was flying from New Bedford, Massachusetts, to LaGuardia Airport in New York City. This account already exists, but the email address still needs to be confirmed. The thief dropped a bag holding $8,000 in Travelers Checks when police spotted him and gave chase. Air-traffic controllers instructed the plane to fly to Newark Airport instead. Mayor LaGuardia Collection, NYC Municipal Archives. Empire State Building Disaster: Interior, S corner, 79th Fl. National Interest Newsletter. Bill Smith seemingly had everything going for him. It was the waning days of World War II, and a B-25 bomber was flying a routine mission ferrying servicemen from Massachusetts to New York City's LaGuardia Airport. Some accepted, but others initiated a lawsuit that resulted in landmark legislation. Other pieces of the plane landed on the street and on top of nearby structures. You can always change this later in your Account settings. At the moment of impact, one of the B-25s engines ripped from its wing mount and hurtled across 80 feet of the 79th floor, through walls and partitions, and burst from the south side of the building, whereupon it crashed down upon a 12-story building at 10 West 33rd Street and started a fire that destroyed the penthouse studio of sculptor Henry Hering. Fourteen people died in the crash and the fire that followed: Colonel Smith and the 2 others in the plane, and 11 in what was then the world's tallest building. In 1985, the 14th Street Bridge was renamed in honor of Arland Williams,. The plane crashed into the building between the 78 th and 79 th floors and took fourteen . Mayor LaGuardia Collection, NYC Municipal Archives. Sebastian County, It's also thought that the narrow lift shaft acted as a compressor for air and softened the blow. There was no doubt that the other people must have been killed.". A third fire had developed in the basement and sub-basement of the Empire Building itself.. On the morning of Saturday, July 28, 1945, the Army Air Corps pilot crashed his Mitchell B-25 bomber into the 78th and 79th floor of the Empire State Building, CBS News recalled. The previous evening, she related, he had bounced their son, William F. Smith III, on his knee and said, The youngster recognized me for the first time since Ive been home. Queens County, William F. Smith, who had led some of the most dangerous missions in WWII in Europe, was the pilot. Queens County, USA, Plot info: Section: 036 | Row: L | Plot: 004. Miraculously, when rescuers . 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Although the crash shocked the nation, the bombing of Hiroshima a week later garnered most of the medias spotlight. While all this was happening, coming up the stairs was 26-year-old Harold J. Smith, a medically discharged veteran. Barden then cleared Smith for Newark but advised him that he was unable to see the top of the Empire State Building from his perch in the tower. Unfortunately, they didnt know that the cables on the elevator had been weakened in the crash. Looking out the bombers cockpit windows, all Smith could see below was a thick, gray blanket. A B-25 Mitchell Bomber, similar to the one the flew into the Empire State Building. Before using any images from this site, please review ourTerms and Conditions. Smith, a West Point graduate who had completed 42 missions in Europe during the war, made the fateful decision to proceed to Newark. READ MORE:10 Surprising Facts About the Empire State Building. After performing his normal preflight checks, Smith warmed up the two engines, taxied to the end of the runway, rolled forward until the plane reached take-off speed, and then lifted off into the rain and low clouds at 8:55 AM. Smith, the two crew members on board, and 11 people in the building died. He had been warned by the LaGuardia Tower that the top of the Empire State Building could not be seen. 12 Dramatic Photos Of The Empire State Building Plane Crash. Find History on Facebook (Opens in a new window), Find History on Twitter (Opens in a new window), Find History on YouTube (Opens in a new window), Find History on Instagram (Opens in a new window), Find History on TikTok (Opens in a new window), Current one is: July 28. And if you liked this post, be sure to check out these popular posts: Those were some of the last words that Lieutenant Colonel William Franklin Smith Jr. said to his wife before accidentally piloting his B-25 Mitchell Bomber into the side of the New York City's Empire State Building, killing 14 people in the process. There were five or six seconds I was tottering on my feet trying to keep my balance and three-quarters of the office was instantaneously consumed in this sheet of flame. 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