Monday, September 20, 1999

Motorist barrels through festival

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At least 20 are injured, but no deaths

BY HOWARD WILKINSON
The Cincinnati Enquirer

Michael Cowperthwaite, who was driving the red Chevrolet Beretta came to a stop after colliding with a taxi. (Ernest Coleman photo) | ZOOM |

        Oktoberfest-Zinzinnati came to a sudden and violent end Sunday night when a driver crashed through a barricade and injured 23 people — including three police officers — in a pedestrian-only area on Main Street between Sixth and Fourth streets.

        One of the injuries was serious, police said, although no fatalities were reported.

        The driver, Michael Cowperthwaite, 25, was charged with driving under the influence. He was treated at University Hospital and was expected to be returned to police custody overnight.

        Mr. Cowperthwaite, who was driving a red Chevrolet Beretta, will be arraigned at 9 a.m. today in Hamilton County Municipal Court. He faces additional charges, said District 1 Police Capt. Vince Demasi.

        Mr. Cowperthwaite's blood-alcohol reading was 0.209, more than twice the legal limit in Ohio.

An unidentified woman is treated by emergency personnel. (Jeff Swinger photo) | ZOOM |

        He was driving west on Sixth Street at a high rate of speed, police said, and turned south onto Main Street. He crashed into a group of people at Fifth and Main and continued south on Main, crashing through several tents and booths and another barricade at Fourth and Main. He came to a stop when he collided head-on with a taxi. The taxi driver, Dave Fritsch, of Florence, was also treated at University, for neck and back injuries.

        A Cincinnati police officer unsuccessfully tried to stop the driver at Sixth and Main and was struck and injured, said police spokesman Lt. Dan Gerard.

        The incident occurred at 8:20 p.m., 40 minutes before the scheduled closing of the two-day festival, police said.

        “He just took out everything in his path,” said a witness, Jeremy Daniel, 23, of Park Hills, Ky. “I saw a couple of people lying in the road.”

        Police officers in the area ran after the car. Several nurses and one doctor in attendance started to treat the injured at the scene, police said.

        All Cincinnati Fire Division ambulances were dispatched, and units were called in from Hamilton County. The injured were transported to University Hospital, Christ Hospital, Good Samaritan Hospital, Children's Hospital Medical Center, Bethesda Hospital and St. Luke Hospital East in Fort Thomas.

        Six people were treated at Christ and released. Two women were taken to St. Luke with arm and leg injuries that were not life-threatening.

        University Hospital activated its disaster and casualty plan, which means additional doctors and nurses were called in.

        Ten people were taken to University, including a Cincinnati police officer, Brian Brazile, who walked out after being treated.

        “I think we were very lucky tonight,” said Dr. Jon Van Zile of University Hospital.

        One injured child was taken to Children's Hospital Medical Center.

        Rich Goddard, 32, of Westwood, was at Fifth and Main when the mayhem began. “We heard tires squealing,” he said. “The red car was barreling through the crowd. He didn't stop. People were diving out of the way. A friend of mine was up on the hood (of the car). It was crazy.”

        The last of the injured people was put on an ambulance at 9:15 p.m., according to police radio dispatches.

        Paul and Connie Broxterman of Covedale, both off-duty Cincinnati police officers, were at the festival when the car plowed into the crowd a few feet from where they were standing.

        Mr. Broxterman said he and his wife were both thrown onto a pile of people “who had much more serious injuries than we did. My wife was lying on top of a man with broken legs.”

        “It was terrifying,” Mrs. Broxterman said. “I landed on top of this man and he was really hurt. He won't be moving for a long time.”

        The Broxtermans had minor scrapes and bruises and were treated and released at Christ Hospital.

        “This guy was just barreling down the street; he must have been moving at 50 mph,” Mrs. Broxterman said. “There was just no time to get out of the way.”

        Other witnesses said at least two people were dragged beneath the car.

        Larry Smith, an Oktoberfest volunteer, was coming up Main Street in a golf cart with souvenirs when the car came through.

        Mr. Smith said there were people knocked onto the hood of the car while it was still moving.

        “This can't be Cincinnati,” said Mr. Smith. “This can't be Oktoberfest.”

        He said the car went right by him through the intersection.

        Brandon Gregg of Falmouth and Jason Doyle of Butler, Ky., were at a beer tent.

        “We heard the tires screaming, looked up and said, "This can't be, the car's coming right at us,'” Mr. Gregg said.

        They said people around them ran for cover.

        Tracia Pichotta, 21, of Union, Ky., saw the incident unfold.

        “The guy just blew past us,” she said. “We were like, "What the hell?' There were people crying everywhere.”

        Ronald Williston, 34, of Hamilton, said he started running when he heard the barricades crash.

        “Up on the sidewalk, because that's what everyone else was doing,” he said.

        Oktoberfest-Zinzinnati is perennially one of the biggest events in downtown Cincinnati, drawing an estimated 500,000 people over two days along Fifth Street between Race and Broadway.

        Until the incident Sunday, Cincinnati Police Sgt. Ken Wells reported, the event was going smoothly with no incidents and no arrests. On Saturday, two or three adults and one juvenile were arrested on minor charges, he said.

        No official police crowd estimate was made, but this year's crowds were “pretty typical of past years,” he said.

        Enquirer reporters William Weathers, Dana DiFilippo, Howard Wilkinson, Dan Klepal and Patrick Crowley contributed to this report.

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