Evening star., 1938-01-18
21bEL|EvEDDEAD,
OTHERS MISSING
IN SCHOOL BLAZE
Six Bodies Taken From
Ruins OF Catholic Institu-
ton Near Montreal.
MANY ARE TREATED
IN NEARBY FARMHOUSES
" Are Carried to Hospital in
Night Clothes Through Sub.
Zero Weather.

ST HYANC1NTHE, Quebec, Jan. Ia
canadian Press) ).-Twenty-one persons
were feared to have died early today in
fire that trapped more than 100
asleep in the College of the Sacred
Heart here.
The only victim identified was
Brother Jean Baptiste, 81, who leaped
from one of the schools upper windows
and died as he reached a hospital.
Police Chief A. Bourgeois said six
bodies had been reported taken from
the still-blazing building and about
25, maybe 80" persons still were miss
ing.
The editor of the local newspaper
said about 20 persons persisted inside
the school besides the brother.
81 In St. Charles Hospital.
Five brothers and 16 students were
In st. Charles Hospital. Four of them
were reported in dangerous condition
from injuries suffered in jumping
from the four-story building or from
exposure.
Most of the colleges occupants had
been quartered in big dormitories on
the fourth floor.
Crumbling wreckage of the 37-year-
old brick structure still was blazing
nearly 10 hours after the fire was dis
covered.
A check-up was being made, but
officials had been unable to account
for many of the 80 boarding students
and 81 teaching brothers who were
trapped in their beds by the flames.
Some had scattered to homes for
shelter in below-zero weather after
escaping, virtually all in scant night
clothing, through windows and down
crowded fire escapes.
The fires origin was not known.
Apparently it had been burning at
least 80 minutes when a passerby
saw the flames.
Deep Snow a Handicap.
The occupants were warned inlme-
diately and an alarm spread in the
town, about 35 miles east of Montreal.
Deep snow handicapped fire trucks
and ambulances in reaching the scene.
AS the thinly clad students and
teachers streamed from the burning
building. f1remen and townsfolk gave
what aid they could. Many lent over
coats and blankets to the shivering
victims.
The flames swept quickly through
the wooden interior of the institution
and blazed high through the roof,
which collapsed and weakened the
dormitory floor.
No survivor was able to say whether
any one was trapped on the dormi-
tory floor when the roof caved in,
shooting sparks and burning timbers
across the grounds
Successfully one floor after an
other, from the top down, followed the
roof in collapse.
A few hours after the fires dis
eovery, the roof and four floors were
but heap of burning wreckage on
the basement floor.
Unable to Search Ruins.
At noon firemen still were pouring
water from Is hose lines into the blaz-
ing wreckage, but made little progress
in extinguishing it. They had not
been able to get into the building to
begin the search for bodies and said
it might be hours" before they could.
In the hospital, near the school, boys
huddled three and four in a room as
doctors went about setting broken
bones. treating burns and bandaging
other injuries. Many victims had
broken arms or legs. Some faces were
so heavily bandaged only the eyes
showed.
Robert Dionne, 18, of Drummond-
vile, Quebec, with a broken leg in
splints, told how he had jumped from
the fourth story. He said he was
awakened by some one calling "Fire!"
Il thought the roof had fallen i'm,
he said. Everybody seemed to be
running around. I followed some of
them. Then I ran to the window"