Despite being evacuated from their homes, many residents watched as the fire spread to their properties. Due to the row homes being physically connected, it was very easy for the fire to spread from one home to the next. It took until about 11:00pm, or roughly five hours after the fire started, for Commissioner Richmond to declare the blaze under control, but the fire still burned into the morning hours. When the sun rose, residents made their way back to their homes only to find that there was nothing left.
Creator
Mary D'Anella
Source
Clark DeLeon, "A Crime Unpunished and Largely Forgotten"
MOVE moved into a row house at 6221 Osage Avenue in 1982. They quickly began turning the home into a fortress. Some exterior changes are visible in this photograph, such as the boarded up windows, megaphones attached to the walls, and the bunker on top of the roof. That bunker would prove to be a major issue for Philadelphia Police, as it gave MOVE a tactical advantage. They controlled the highest point on Osage Avenue and could prevent police officers from coming in through the roof. As time passed, they let the compound become filthy and blared obscenities through their loudspeakers, forcing neighbors to plead with the city to do something about MOVE.
Source
West Philadelphia Collaborative History, "MOVE On Osage Avenue"
Police dropped the bomb from a state police helicopter as it flew over the compound. The target was a fortified bunker on the roof, which police planned to enter through once it collapsed. Lt. Frank Powell was ordered to drop the bomb. At about 5:30 pm, after almost ten hours of conflict, the bomb hit the roof, but missed the bunker. As a result, gas tanks that were on the roof caught on fire. Now, city officials faced another difficult decision concerning the quickly spreading fire.
Creator
Frontline/PBS
Source
Democracy Now, "MOVE Bombing At 30: 'Barbaric' 1985 Philadelphia Police Attack Killed 11 & Burned A Neighborhood"
PBS broadcast was May 5, 1987, but the bombing was May 13, 1985.
Rights
Public Domain
Format
JPEG
Type
Photograph
Still Image Item Type Metadata
Original Format
TV Broadcast
]]>https://movebombing.omeka.net/items/show/27The Morning Call, Sambor claimed that Mayor Goode was making him a scapegoat for the incident. He said in January of 1986 that he "was given a choice... to retire or be fired." Police union officials and detractors of Goode saw this move as Goode refusing to accept blame personally, and instead passing off the guilt to others.]]>2020-04-27T20:56:13-04:00
Dublin Core
Title
"I Was Expendable," Sambor Learned After Move Fiasco
Subject
The investigation of city officials
Description
Police Commissioner Sambor submitted his resignation in November of 1985 following the backlash against his actions in the MOVE bombing. At the time, he claimed that he was not being forced out of his position. However, just three months later in a report by Allentown, PA's The Morning Call, Sambor claimed that Mayor Goode was making him a scapegoat for the incident. He said in January of 1986 that he "was given a choice... to retire or be fired." Police union officials and detractors of Goode saw this move as Goode refusing to accept blame personally, and instead passing off the guilt to others.
This is a collection of interviews done with various people associated with the MOVE bombing. Interviewees include Ramona Africa (a MOVE member and the only adult survivor of the May 1985 confrontation), Officer James Berghaier, Fire Commissioner William Richmond, and Lt. Frank Powell (who dropped the bomb from a state police helicopter). These interviews give a fairly detailed story of the events spanning from the 1978 killing of Officer James Ramp to the bombing in 1985.
The funeral procession of MOVE founder John Africa
Description
The founder of MOVE was one of the victims of the bombing. Here, supporters show solidarity as John Africa's funeral procession passes by Osage Avenue. Their stance shows that what John Africa created was larger than himself. MOVE did not die with John Africa. The group still exists today, though with considerably less of a presence than they had in the 1970s and 1980s.
Creator
Bettmann
Source
Alex Q. Arbuckle, "May 13, 1985: The Bombing of MOVE"
Investigators spent days searching the debris for bodies. In all, eleven people were found dead and sixty-one buildings were burned down. From this angle, viewers can get a better understanding of just how much was lost in a very brief period of time.
Creator
George Widman
Source
Alex Q. Arbuckle, "May 13, 1985: The Bombing of MOVE"
Untitled (First Responders Clear Debris and Bodies)
Subject
The cleanup of Osage Avenue
Description
This photo was taken the day after the bombing. After the fire was put out, first responders arrived on the scene to clean up the damage. Included in that cleanup was taking away the remains of eleven MOVE members who died; five of the dead were children. There was some initial controversy about how the bodies were being cared for and handled, as some alleged that the city used construction equipment to remove bodies from the rubble.
Creator
J. Scott Applewhite
Source
Alex Q. Arbuckle, "May 13, 1985: The Bombing of MOVE"
Untitled (Police Watch The Fire From The Rooftops)
Subject
The fire that spread as a result of the bombing
Description
As the fire spread to the entire block, police and fire crews watched it burn. Here, a police officer watches the fire from a nearby rooftop. While a later investigation would reveal that Police Commissioner Gregore Sambor and Fire Commissioner William Richmond agreed to let the bunker burn as a tactic to get MOVE members out of the compound, there are conflicting reports as to why no effort was made to put out the fire once it spread to surrounding homes until the damage was already done. Before the MOVE compound burned entirely, Ramona Africa and nine-year-old Birdie Africa were able to escape and were taken into police custody.
Creator
George Widman
Source
Alex Q. Arbuckle, "May 13, 1985: The Bombing of MOVE"
Untitled (Neighbors Evacuate While Police Move In)
Subject
The confrontation on the morning of May 13, 1985 before the bombing
Description
After talks to resolve the issue peacefully failed, police were given the order to advance on the compound. Commissioner Gregore Sambor addressed MOVE via megaphone: "Attention, MOVE! This is America." After one final attempt to convince the MOVE members to leave the compound peacefully, police moved in to make a forced entry. MOVE opened fire, and police took cover and shot back. As the shooting began, residents of Osage Avenue tried their best to get out of the way. Here, police round the corner, weapons drawn, ready for a fight. An investigation of the police's actions that day revealed that police officers fired about 10,000 rounds during a ninety minute period.
Creator
Peter Morgan
Source
Alex Q. Arbuckle, "May 13, 1985: The Bombing of MOVE"