Car Crashes Into Hagerstown Barbershop Next to The Broad Axe

A car crashed into a storefront on West Franklin Street in downtown Hagerstown Friday evening, leaving its front end badly damaged and debris scattered across the sidewalk. The first social media dispatch had people asking whether The Broad Axe had been hit. But a later address update and new photos point to the business next door: In The Cuts Barbershop at 26 W. Franklin Street.

Washington County MD Fire Calls posted an emergency response at about 6:34 p.m. on October 9. The initial report described a vehicle into a building and a person lying in the street, with fire, rescue and EMS units dispatched. A follow-up said some rescue resources were returned to service and a building inspector was requested.

Photo credit: The vehicle crash photograph accompanying this report is credited to Virginia Burke of Hagerstown, Maryland.

It Wasn't The Broad Axe — The Photo Tells a Different Story

The photo shows a dark red sedan with major front-end damage pressed against the ground-floor storefront. Glass and broken material are scattered on the sidewalk near the building's entrance. Another post from Washington County MD fire alerts gives an updated location of 26 W. Franklin Street, rather than the initial 28 E. Franklin Street. Online business listings identify 26 W. Franklin as In The Cuts Barbershop and The Broad Axe as 28 W. Franklin.

In the Facebook discussion, one commenter wrote that the damaged building wasn't The Broad Axe, and another clarified that it was next door. That fits the address correction and what the scene photograph shows. It matters, because naming the wrong business when an incident like this happens can spread confusion before anybody gets an official update.

One of the dispatch posts also says as many as three vehicles might have been involved. That's an initial report, not a confirmed crash count. There is no independently verified public update here on the condition of the person mentioned in the call, the cause of the collision or whether charges are expected.

The photo is enough to show how serious the damage looks. It isn't enough to explain how the crash happened. I'm not interested in guessing about somebody's injuries just because a picture is circulating. The next thing the public needs is a confirmed account from police or emergency officials.

For now, what began online as a report near The Broad Axe is more accurately described as a vehicle crash involving the neighboring barbershop storefront. We'll update the story when additional verified information becomes available.