The Waterbury Democrat., 1943-02-23
STAGE STAR HURT
IN PLANE MISHAP
CONTINUED from Page y

ut happened so quickly that I
couldn't explain what caused It," she
said. IT only know that when the
plane hit the water, I succeeded IN
escaping through the glass roof. !
swan toward land and was picked
up by people who were on the
beach,"
Lisbon newspapers emphasized the
courage Of Pan American employees
who helped to rescue the passengers.
The search was suspended at IL
.. m. last night after the five bodies
were recovered. Fourteen persons,
including two women passengers,
were rescued and hospitalized.
(Jane F,roman, IS, radio, stage
and screen singer, who was q pas
SINGER, was injured in the crash, her
husband, Donald Ross, said in New
York, Ross is a radio actor and
singer.
1T was understood that Miss Fro
man was going abroad, under auspi-
ces Of the United Service Organiza-
tons, to entertain American troops.
(She Is a native Of st. Louis. Her
injuries were believed slightly
The Clipper, arriving from the
United States, passed over Lisbon
at z p. m. and was over the Tagus
river when q thunder storm sudden
" split the sky. Whether lightning
struck the plane was not clear, but
1t dived into the river and sank al
most Immediately.
Some witnesses said the plane ex-
ploded as 1t hit the water.
Passengers and crewmen bobbed
to the suface wearing hfebelts and
were picked up by trawlers that
sped to the scene with searchlightS
focused on the spot where the
plane disappeared.
The 20 still missing were believed
to have been trapped inside the
plane.
The Clipper was said to have ap-
preached from an altitude Of 500
feet shortly before z p. m. The crash
occurred three miles east Of the air.
port and the plane hoated for 10
minutes.
The left wing tip was sheared of.
Wreckage was found four miles east
of the airport in 20 to 80 feet Of
water.
The plane carried 26 passengers
from the United States and one
from Horta, the Azores, while the
crew numbered IL.
Five crew members, including the
captain, r. o. D. Sullivan, and two
women passengers were among
those hospitalized. The other four
crewmen were David Sanders Ro-
bert John Rowan, w. H. Manning
and John Bruner.
One of the male passengers res
cued was identified as Mr.. Phil
lips.
The news of the crash reached
the American Legation while Minis
ter Bert Fish was entertaining at q
Washington's birthday dinner. He
and other legation officials hurried
to the scene and were Joined by
Portuguese ofiicials, including the
Secretary OF Premier DR.. Antonio
De Oliveira Salazar.
AAE VAAA~k8A9 IAsg NASstga ssAS eAA~
jured at the hospital.
The crash was the first major &C.
cident during the four years Pan
American has been operating Ia
transatlantic service, during
which more than 1900 passengers
and 100000 pounds Of mail have
been carried on LAS lights 70 and
from Europe, "a
Pan American Always 'clall
said today that the Yam. pei
was the flFst flying boat OF Us type
put into tFans-Atlantic service and
the first 10 crash since service WA
started on May !, 1889.
Captain n. q. y. sullivan. who
was plotting the Clipper when she
crashed, piioted her on the iirsl
flight. ne completed his Tooth
transatlantic clipper crossing late
81, ana before making bis first clip.
Dor fight across the Atlantic hao
made 30 flights aoEo@ the Pacine.