In Reply to: Re: December 16, 1960 posted by Matty from Flatbush on Friday, December 19th 2025:

Matty, it was also on this date, Dec. 19th (in 1960), some three days after the
mid-air collision, that a massive fire occurred on the USS Constellation, which was an aircraft carrier being built at the Brooklyn Navy Yard. In those days (41 years years prior to 9/11/01), the resources of the police, fire, and rescue workers in Brooklyn, were taxed to the limit. It was also a very sad day for the families of the victims of that massive fire. About a year later, during sea trials the Constellation had another fire onboard. I saw it being brought back into the Brooklyn Navy Yard (in 1961), for repairs. I was on the Brighton Beach subway line, crossing the Manhattan Bridge, going from Manhattan into Brooklyn, and I could see the Constellation moving slowly into the Navy Yard. The Navy Yard as you know had a very proud history, as it built many warships during World War Two, including the USS Missouri, which was the battleship on which Japan formally surrendered on Sept. 2, 1945. When I visited Pearl Harbor in 2002, I could see the USS Missouri nearby, as it is now permanently docked there, as an historical museum.

Reference ID: BK97298

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