Kelly Drive

It took 40 wheels (count 'em!) to keep this convoy rollin' yesterday along Kelly Drive near the Philadelphia Museum of Art. Enjoying the brisk afternoon were (at their request, first names only) adults (from left) Eva, Viletta, Kasla and Mariola with (also from left) twins David and Deborah, twins Robert and Jillian, Natalie and Winnie.

Kelly Drive was closed for nearly three hours Monday afternoon following a two-car crash that killed two people and left a third in critical condition, authorities said. Fire rescue crews were dispatched at 2:52 p.m. to the scene of the accident at Kelly and Strawberry Mansion Drives, authorities said. Police said a silver Volkswagon was traveling at a high rate of speed north on Kelly Drive when it crossed the roadway and collided head-on with a green Toyota Sienna. The Volkswagen's driver, a 34-year-old woman, and passenger were pronounced dead at the scene, police said.

A West Oak Lane man died Wednesday afternoon after crashing his Suzuki motorcycle on Kelly Drive, police said. About 1 p.m., Robert Sparrow, 36, of the 1600 block of 68th Avenue, lost control of his motorcycle while trying to make a right turn from a northbound lane at Brewery Hill Drive. Sparrow, who was riding with a 25-year-old female passenger, struck a car and then a stone wall. - Mike Newall  

Three people were taken to a hospital following a four-car pile up in the Kelly Drive near the Schuylkill reviewing stands this morning, officials said. The weather is believed to have been a factor in the crash involving three cars and a taxi, police said. The Fire Department said three people were taken to Hahnemann University Hospital following the 9:45 pileup for treatment of injuries that were not considered life threatening. The crash snarled traffic in the area for some time.

While Philadelphia police finished notifying relatives of three people killed Wednesday night in a two-car crash on Kelly Drive, accident investigators continued yesterday to seek the cause of the grinding collision. The vehicles, a sporty 1991 Nissan 300 ZX and a sleek 1966 Shelby Cobra, struck each other almost head-on about a half mile north of Hunting Park Avenue. Killed were Dale A. Bluebond and his wife, Leslie M., both 32, of South Philadelphia, and Robert P. Barnes, 42, of Bala Cynwyd.

A 19-year-old Philadelphia man was pronounced dead just after midnight today from injuries sustained when he lost control of his Suzuki motorcycle and slammed into a tree on Kelly Drive. Philadelphia police in the Accident Investigation District say the motorcycle was traveling southbound on Kelly Drive, when it crashed about 300 feet before Fairmount Drive about 11:50 p.m. Tuesday. The driver was rushed to Hahnemann University Hospital in Center City. Police said they were not sure what caused the motorcyclist to lose control and that the accident is still under investigation.

Motorists will find themselves inconvenienced today at two spots in the city: a stretch of Kelly Drive just south of Roosevelt Boulevard, and an area near the South Philadelphia sports complex, including the Platt Bridge. Beginning tomorrow, another section of Kelly Drive will close for three days. At 10 a.m. today in South Philadelphia, the Law Enforcement Memorial Run will start near the Navy Yard, head north on Broad Street, turn west on Pattison Avenue, take Penrose Avenue across the Platt Bridge, continue north on Island Avenue, then go west on Bartram Avenue to the city limits.

Kelly Drive was closed for nearly three hours Monday afternoon after a two-car crash killed two people and left a third in critical condition, authorities said. Rescue crews were dispatched at 2:52 p.m. to Kelly and Strawberry Mansion Drives, authorities said. Police said a silver Volkswagen was traveling north at high speed when it crossed the roadway and collided head-on with a green Toyota Sienna. The Volkswagen's driver, a 34-year-old woman, and her passenger were pronounced dead at the scene, police said.

The two people killed in a two-car crash Monday on Kelly Drive were a 34-year-old Upper Roxborough woman and her 11-year-old son, officials said Tuesday. Karen Watts and her son Quinn Fleming were pronounced dead at the scene of the 2:45 p.m. crash, authorities said. They were in a northbound silver Volkswagen that crossed the roadway near Strawberry Mansion Drive and collided head-on with a green Toyota Sienna, police said. The 61-year-old woman behind the wheel of the Toyota was reported in critical condition at the Hospital of the University of Pennsylvania.

FAMILY Mt. Airy Kids Literary Fest This weekend-long book fest aims to please tots through teens. Visits from authors of Poppy's Pants and Boy + Bot , plus kids' yoga, craft time, music, creative writing, poetry slamming and loads more fill the kid-genda. Big Blue Marble Bookstore, 551 Carpenter Lane, 10:30 a.m.-6:30 p.m. today, 10:30 a.m.-3 p.m. tomorrow, 10:30 a.m.-12:15 p.m. Sunday, most events are free, 215-844-1870, bigbluemarblebooks.com and Color Book Gallery, 6353 Germantown Ave., noon-4 p.m. tomorrow, free, 215-844-4200, colorbookgallery.com.

Friday and Saturday on the Schyulkill When: 7 a.m. to 5 p.m. Friday and Saturday, rain or shine. Where: On the Schuylkill. Races start at the intersection of Kelly Drive and Hunting Park Avenue and end just before the Columbia Avenue Bridge. TV: Saturday's finals will air live on 6ABC, starting at 11 a.m., and will be streamed on ESPN3.com. Admission: Free. The grandstand at the finish line is the best place to watch. Parking: Park in remote lots in Fairmount Park.

Brian Smith sincerely believes that basketball is a means for inner-city children to gain positive opportunities out in the world. And he would do just about anything he could to bring awareness to that ideal. How about dribbling a basketball 10 miles? Smith, 27, a basketball trainer and instructor from North Philadelphia, will participate in Sunday's Broad Street Run and plans to dribble a basketball for the entire 10-mile route, from Fisher Avenue to the Philadelphia Navy Yard.

A CAR plunged into the Schuylkill off Kelly Drive late Tuesday afternoon, leaving a passenger hospitalized and the driver dead. Police said the driver, Devon Womack, 31, of 29th Street near Huntingdon in North Philadelphia, lost control of the 2000 Pontiac in a parking lot off Kelly Drive about 5 p.m. when Womack attempted to reverse, but accidentally put the car in drive and accelerated into the water. The accident prompted the closure of Kelly Drive in both directions between the Strawberry Mansion Bridge and Fountain Green Drive, police said.

A 31-year-old North Philadelphia man was killed after he lost control of his 2000 Pontiac near the crew grandstands on Kelly Drive and plunged into the Schuylkill, police said. Police said Devon Womack of the 2600 block of North 29th Street was parked with a passenger in a lot near the finish line for crew races. Trying to leave, he put the car into drive instead of reverse and accelerated into the river. A high school crew team helped rescue the 30-year-old passenger. Police said the accident occurred at 5:01 p.m. Firefighters and a police marine rescue squad retrieved Womack from the water at 6:09.

A 28-year-old man was in critical condition after colliding with a city vehicle Thursday evening on Kelly Drive, police said. Two City Council employees were in a city-owned Ford Explorer when the accident occurred about 6:22 p.m. near Strawberry Manion Bridge, police said. They reported minor pain but refused treatment. The man was driving a Chrysler PT Cruiser south on Kelly Drive when the car apparently hydroplaned on the wet road and crossed over into oncoming traffic, striking the Ford Explorer.

T WO City Council employees suffered very minor injuries when they were involved in a car accident while traveling in a city-owned SUV early Thursday night. Police said the city employees, who are not members of City Council, were traveling northbound on Kelly Drive near Fountain Green in a city-owned Ford Explorer around 6:30 p.m. when a car traveling southbound lost control due to slick road conditions and slid in front of their SUV. The driver of the car that lost control was taken to Hahnemann University Hospital in critical but stable condition, police said.

A 19-year-old Philadelphia man was pronounced dead just after midnight today from injuries sustained when he lost control of his Suzuki motorcycle and slammed into a tree on Kelly Drive. Philadelphia police in the Accident Investigation District say the motorcycle was traveling southbound on Kelly Drive, when it crashed about 300 feet before Fairmount Drive about 11:50 p.m. Tuesday. The driver was rushed to Hahnemann University Hospital in Center City. Police said they were not sure what caused the motorcyclist to lose control and that the accident is still under investigation.

A section of Kelly Drive will be off-limits to cars for three days because of the Dad Vail Regatta. The closure, between Strawberry Mansion and Fountain Green Drives, was scheduled to start at 10 this morning. Reopening is set for 8 p.m. Saturday. Traffic heading toward Center City will be detoured south up the Strawberry Mansion Drive ramp to Reservoir Drive, south to Fountain Green Drive, then west back to Kelly, according to police. Outbound traffic, will be routed east on Fountain Green Drive to Reservoir Drive, north to Strawberry Mansion, then north on the Strawberry Mansion Drive ramp back to Kelly.

The southbound lanes of Kelly Drive - between Eakins Oval and Fairmount Avenue - will be closed Sunday morning, police said, for the March of Dimes' "Walk for Babies. " The closure will begin at 6:30 a.m. and be in effect until about 1 p.m., police said. For more information on the event, visit www.marchforbabies.org . - From Inquirer staff