The Key West Citizen Newspaper, July 2, 1954, Page 1

Help Keep The Holiday Toll Death Donn — Eey West, Floridc, has the most equable climate in the eountry, with an average ange of only 14° Fahrenheit VOL. LXXV Ne. 157 Grisly Story Is Told Eleven Have Died On The Overseas Highway In 1954 Eleven persons never will use the Overseas High- way again. They met death there this year. "~ Phis is what happened to them: Several sailors drove to Marathon to celebrate New Year's Eve and started back to Key West early the next morning. On Seven Mile Bridge they were behind a car moving slowly — but they failed to see it in time. One man was crushed under the car when it glanced ‘off the bridge railing and hurtled along the bridge like @ bowling ball. Your highway patro! and sheriff’s department start- ed the New Year by pulling out the dead man and send- the body to the morgue. ; —* Jan. 9, a fisherman who was not familiar with the highway, stepped off the side of a bridge into the path |. of an oncoming car. His body was recovered at sea the next day. , In February, two men tried to push a stalled car at night. The car had no lights. Another driver came up be- hind them and failed to see the car or men in time. One ‘man was mangled by the second car. The other was drenched with gasoline and burned to death. 4 In April, a picnic party drove to Bahia Honda. It was a beauti- ful day and everyone enjoyed the outing—until the trip back to Key ‘gs of the drivers lots control of his convertible and his wife ‘was pinned under it when it stopped rolling over. i ‘The same day a.mdn in a sports car forgot to fasten his safety ‘belt When he failed to make a turn, the car stopped. But he didn’t. © His body was found 20 feet from the car. His skull had been \\ pierced by the limb of a tree. persons met death on highway in May. , Ma any aes & the path of a car. The driver ‘was within the speed Zimit, but did not see her in time to stop. She will never cross the highway again. Care! Kills Z _ Aman and a woman died in the same car when it plowed into the rear of a stalled truck. on Long Key Bridge. The truck was marked with flares, and workmen barely éscaped being between the car and the truck. " Why didn’t the driver of the car slow down? We'll never know. Both the driver and passenger in the car died instantly. ' Four persons drove to Bahia Honda on a night in early June, ‘but only three returned. The fourth person was pinned under an overturned car and died there screaming. The car could not even ‘be moved from the body until a heavy-duty wrecker arrived at the eleventh persons to die was a young woman. car she was riding in skidded off the highway and rolled over for a tenth of a mile before it stopped. When it did ‘and bouncing, only two of the five passengers were in The others were thrown out along the way, including the twisted and broken body of the girl. Strong Stomach Needed It takes a strong stomach to do ‘the work made necessary by these and other highway accidents. KEY WEST'S THE SCUTHERNMOST NEWSPAPER The Key West IN KEY WEST, FLORIDA, FRIDAY, JULY 2, 1954 CONGRATULATIONS—Edwin Trevor, district governor, congratulates Paul J. Sher, newly installed the regular luncheon meeting of the club.—Staff Photo by Sybil. president of the Key West Rotary Club. The installation was held at the La Concha Hotel during City Makes Offer Of $200,000 For Poinciana Housing Units Key West Foundation Co. Wants Resolution See “Death Trap” Ice Box Is Discovered another “death ig to be picked by some safety-minded citizen. The Key West Fire Depart- ment reported finding the ice box near the sce of a fire which gutted iler last night at 1209 Gri Il Street. A local drive is being con- ducted to rid the of such ice boxes which are listed as dangerous since many child- ren all over the nation have perished after being trapped inside while playing. Local Girls The city commission last night made an offer of $200,000 for about 342 units in the Poinciana Housing Project. The offer was made to Linton H. Collins, a Wash- ington attorney represent- ing the Key West Founda- | tion Company. e Collins, however, told the commission that he doubted lif the company would ac- ‘Trailer Damaged Use CLASSIFIED Ads! You'll - teach buyers and sellers— tenants or workers DIAL - + Just 25661 or 2-5662. PRICE FIVE CE rs Wholesale Pay Raises New Officers \Of Rotary Are Installed District Governor Edwin Trevor Is Installing Officer Paul J. Sher was installed as President of the Key West Rotary Club at the club’s regular meet- ing at the La Concha Hotel yes- terday at noon. Edwin F. Trevor, performing his last official act as governor of Rotary District 243 was installing officer. He spoke briefly on the history of the Key West Rotary—the oldest club in the district. Trevor told the Rotarians, “Sometimes you hear that the Rotary Club of Key West does nothing, but when you analyze the working of civic and service bodies working for the best in- terests of Key West, you will find Rotarians instigating, organizing, spearheading or actually leading the varieis Community drives and projects.” Responsibility Noted By Fire Thursday Damage estimated at $325 re- sulted from a fire which broke out in a house trailer at 1209 Grinnell | Street last night. Fire Chief Charles Cremata said that the fire started, probably by a cigarette butt, in a closet of the trailer owned by Jose A. Perez, | who was attending a movie at the) time. | The blaze was discovered by a neighbor, 11-year-old Billy Cabanas | who called his father, to the scene. | Believing that Perez’ children} might be in the trailer, Cabanas| and another neighbor. Norberg | Diaz, searched the interior of the |smoke-filled, trailer. However) they found it vacant. “It is your president’s responsi- bility to see that these good works continue and to instigate and exe- cute others.” Trevor made several recom- mendations to the club including the organization of a past presi- dents’ council to work with the officers and board. He outlined briefly the duties of the officers and closed his address with Robert definition of success. He then presented Sher with the gavel and president’s pin. Sher Tells Plans The new president in his accept- ance speech, announced that the betterment and improvement of the Boy Scout camp on Summer- land Key would be the “number ing last night. Included n the budget, Are Provided For City Employees In Budget City Commission Airs Spending For The Year But Defers Action By JIM COBB Salaries of administrative officers and city employees will account for almost half of the city’s record $1,172,- 814.64 in expenditures, according to a tentative budget considered by the city commission at their special meet- which was discussed but not accepted finally by the commission, are substantial pay raises for virtually all city employees. The salary increas- es range from a three dollar weekly raise for the city hall janitor to a $75 per month increase for Public Ser- Louis Stevenson’s | Ask any county road patrolman, highway patrolman, or ambulance driver. ‘They can give you the gory de- tails of what happens when a ton and a half of steel, moving at a mile or more a minute, leaves the way. That is 80 feet every second. In at least four of the accidents, it is believed the car was moving even faster. No human body can withstand TRAFFIC BOX SCORE July To cept the offer. He appeared before the commission at their special meeting last Date 269 sO Traffic Injuries Traffic Deaths _. The most crucial traffic safe- | Property Damage $1,250 $70,386 the impact of a tree limb or the . ‘weight cf a car. All eleven of the cases listed above should furnish ample proof. This Year's Prediction The National Safety Council has predicted that 430 persons will die in accidents during this Fourth of July weekend. Make sure you are not one of those 430 by taking it easy. Remember the life you save may be your own. “ Make sure you arrive at your destination by taking just a little Jonger for the trip. That way, you won’t finish the trip in an ambulance. EDITOR'S NOTE: The Mon- zoe County sheriff's department prepared this resume of fatal highway accidents in the coun- ty during the first six months of 1954. BASEBALL WICKERS FIELD SATURDAY, JULY 3 One Game SUNDAY, JULY 4TH Two Games TAMPA vs. KEY WEST ALL STARS GAME TIME: 8 P.M. Adm.: Adults 65c, Childrem 25¢ ty crisis of the year for Key West starts today with the ad- vent of a long holiday week- end. For six months we've been handing out these daily mes- sages in the hope that Key West motorists will use that extra bit of caution that means the difference between safe driving and possible painful injury—or death—in an auto- mobile accident. The best way to show your appreciation to the writer will be to allow him to say in this column next Tuesday that Key West has. weathered the holi- days without a serious acci- dent—or traffic death. How. about it friends? SPEED BOATS USE PLYWOOD from Strunk Lumber 120 SIMONTON, near Aquarium Power Lawnmowers FOR RENT BY THE HOUR OR DAY POINCIANA SERVICE STATION Commercial Rew, Peinciana Place TELEPHONE 2-6368 night asking that the city pass a resolution identical to that they passed for the Key West Realty Company | |last month. The resolution petitioned the Pub- | lie Housing Administration to sell 319 housing units in West Poinciana and Poinciana Extension to the |reaity company which holds title | |to the land. The 319. units were | sold Wednesday to the land owners | ‘for an undisclosed sum . | | The housing was built under the wartime Lanham Act, which pro-| vides that it should be torn down | | before the land is returned to pri-| | vate ownership. Unsuccessful Bid The city made an unsuccessful bid for the property, with a view to operating it themselves. However, when it became ob-! vious that the Key West Realty | Company was going to get title to the housing, the city passed the re- {solution and signed a contract with the company which states they will keep rents at the same level they | are now for a period of five years. |They also agreed to negotiate a (Continued On Page Ten) | We Will Close | Monday, July 5, at 1:30 P.M. IN OBSERVANCE OF JULY 4TH | | PEREZ BROTHERS | BAKERY | ‘Are ‘Elected’ At Capital Four Key West Girls Attend Girls’ State Two of the local girls: who are | attending the eighth annual Girls State in Tallahassee, were elected to office at the sessions held dur- | ing the past week. Miss Millicent Taylor, daughter | of Mr. and Mrs. Charles Taylor, 1002 Fleming Street, was elected | city commissioner of Ortega City, one of the 16 mythical cities in Florida Girl’s State, and also as a county judge. Miss Betty Ann Henning is serv- (Continued On Page Ten) MeanWhile, firefighters from the | one project’ of the club for the Main Fire Station and the Number | coming year. Three station answered the alarm| Sher told the club, “I promise and quelled the blaze. Firemen es-| you this—I accept the honor and timated damage to the trailer at| responsibility of being your presi- | clothing would amount to about! the board, do the best job I can.” | $250. | Officers who were automatically ————— | installed to serve with Sher are | {Neill Knowles, vice president: ‘Post Office Will | Merville Rosam, secretary; Charles Smith, treasurer; Claude Spear and Jeff Knight, directors. The $75 and Perez said that damage to dent and I will, with the help of | Be Closed Monda ry | Clyde P. Stickney, Acting Postmaster, has announced that all windows at the post offi will be closed on Mon- day and there will be no car- | tier delivery. However, parcel post will be delivered and collections from | boxes will be | the city mail NOTICE A public hearing will be held at 8:00 P.M., July 19, 1954, by the City Commission of The City of Key West, Florida, in the Commission Chamber, City Hall, for the purpose of hearing parties in in- terest on the following proposed changes in zoning: 1—To change from Residence B to Residence A, Sunrise Shores Sub- division. 2.—To change from Residence A to Residence A-1, Lots Nine, Ten, Elev- en and Twelve on Block 2, Tract 28. 3.—A variance ordinance to allow build- ing up to six feet, three inches on Lot 21, Square 5, Tract 30, corner of George St. and Flagler Ave. VICTOR LOWE, City Clerk. (Continued On Page Ten) ees _________ Cave Warning Mrs. Carmen Cuesta today asked that no one visit the caves in the rear of her home, 617 Angela Street. “There is danger of a ser- ious accident,” she said. “The old timbers that support the roof are rotted. If the timb- ers or roof should collapse, someone could be killed or ser- iously injured.” Earlier Start Set For 1954 Chest Drive Plans Made For Local Push To Match National This year’s Community Chest drive will start earlier and will coincide as closely as possible with the nation-wide chest campaign. “We want the benefit of the national advertising,” Aquilino Lopez, Jr., president of the chest organization, said at the annual | meeting in the county court house last night. Other business saw J. J. Trevor, treasurer, read changes in the by- laws. He also read the treasur- er’s report. Trevor said the bylaws were pre- | pared by himself, Capt. Thomas Ashcraft, USN, who since has been shipped out, and William Neblett, (Continued On Page Ten) COMMUNITY CHEST HEADS—Rear Adm. G. C. Towner, left, and Judge Aquilino Lopez, Jr., confer at last night's Commun. ity Chest meeting. Lopez is president of the organization and Towner is a vice president. K vice Director Ivan Roberts, But all of the raises may not appear in the budget when it is brought before the commission in its final form — both Mayor C. B. Harvey and Commissioner Louis Carbonell indicated that they will oppose some of the pay hikes. New Jobs Created In addition, several new jobs have been created including, a eity personnel director, fire in- specter and-a.field checker for ie city’s Scavenger Service. City Manager Victor Lang said that he recommended that a per- sonnel officer be employed by the city and set up a salary of $3,300 per year in the budget for the post. The move came in for con- siderable discussion last night, with some commissione’s ques- tioning the need of such*an em- ployee. But Lang countered tha®admin- istering the city’s employment “is a full-time job.” “It should have been done long ago,” he added. He pointed out that the city now has more than 200 employees and it is impossible for the civil service boards or de- (Continued On Page Ten) Father Jailed For Beating 3-Month- ‘Old Infant Here | A man identified as W. C. Cobb, Olivia Street is in the city jail af- ter he was arrested early today for allegedly beating his three month baby. Patrolman Ralph Maribona said |that he was called to the Olivia Street address shortly after mid- night by neighbors who complain- ed that Cobb had beaten the baby because it was crying. Maribona added that Cobb’s wife | first said that ‘“‘nothing was wrong” but later tearfully admitted that he had beaten the child. The police said that red marks were visible on the infant's back. Cobb was jailed for being drunk and disorderly and disturbing the peace. He will be tried today in City Court. Juvenile Authorities said today that they will make jan investigation into the incident. Pre 4th July DANCE SATURDAY. JULY 3, 1954 By Club Latino Americano at the CUBAN CLUB MUSIC by Los Mamboleros FROM 10 P.M. TILL 2 A.M, Admission: Gents 75e | Ladies _____ 40¢ Non-Members: Gents — $1.50 Ladies _ 75¢ For Table Reservation TELEPHONE 2-5355