Evening star., 1944-04-17
Crimeun Port
Described as
Scene Of Chaos
By the Associated Press.


LONDON, April 1.-THE fall
Of burning Sevastopol, last ma
jor bastion in Southern Russia
appeared imminent today as
Russian troops were reported
smashing through the suburbs of
the city, while Soviet bombers
and warships lashed at thou
sands of Germans and Roma
mans trying to escape by sea.
Field dispatches painted a scene
of chaos in the big Black Sea port
bombarded necessarily by Russian
siege guns commanding the nearby
hills and attacked by swarms OF
planes bombing Axis troops stream
ing for the last ships in harbor
strewn with wreckage and bodies.
Rushing on the besieged city from
the southeast, Soviet communique
said, one Russian column early last
night siezed Yalta, once summer
residence on the Czars; and today it
was reported moving along the 80
miles of coastal highway separating
1t from Sevastopol. This force also
captured nine other towns along
the Russian Riviera" the bulletin
said.
Other Troops Advance.
Other troops were converging on
Sevastopol from the mountains in
land, advancing along trails chosen
to avoid elaborate German mine
fields and BOBBY traps left along
the roads in an attempt to gain
time.
Altogether the Russians seized
5000 prisoners in the Crimea yes
terday, the Soviet communique said.
boosting to 10000 the total cap
tured insethe lightning eight-day
conquest which has left the Ger
mans holding only $50 squase miles
OF the s,s00-s square -mile peninsula.
The communique quoted German
prisoners as saying the commander
of the 98th Infantry Division and
regimental commanders, routed on
the Kerch Peninsula, "fell sick with
'Crimean sickness and few on In q
plane 1t added that many other
German generals cleft their soldiers
to their fate and deserted the
Crimea.'
Toll Raised to 45e, ,eeo.
when tl1A Crimeai, taliies are COM
pleted the, MOSCOW announced toll
OF Axis troops killed or captured In
Russia since March 4 is expected to
exceed 100000. The number was
raised to approximately $50, 900 yes
terdAy by special communique an
nouncing the death or capture OF
las, 1893 men between March and
April Is in the offensive which car
ried the I'd Ukraine Army so miles
inside Romania.
A midnight bulletin last night also
ahnounced that Russian troops on
the mainland had killed 1900 Ger
mans in a new drive which forced
the Lower Dnestr River in the Tiras-
pol sector, outfanking the rail juno
tions of Tighina and Chisinau in
Bessarabia. The push apparently
was aimed at collapsing the east
west Chisinau-Iasi defense line
guarding the approaches to the
Galati Gap in Southern Romania.
Nazi Transfer Reported.
A Tass dispatch broadcast from
Moscow last night said a large
scale transfer of German troops
from west to east is under way
and added that it was believed "the
German general staff has been able
to convince leading Nazi circles that
from every point of view it would
be more correct to weaken the
western side of the European for
tress."
The dispatch which indicated
Russian impatience for the opening
Of the invasion from Britain, quoted
private information" from Istanbul
Berlin Denies Tarnopol Fall.
Berlin maintained today that the
Tarnopol garrison in Poland still was
holding out, although Moscow an
nounced Saturday it had been an
initiated.
A German broadcast declared Nazi
troops west of the city yesterday
broke through Red Army strong
point land linked up with part of
the gallant Tarnopol garrison who
had broken through the ring of
encirclement according to orders. p"
Other parts Of the defenders, y
the broadcast added, still are en-
gagged in fierce fighting with a
strongly superior enemy"