CONFLAGRATION IN OHIO STATE PRISON

Bay of Plenty Times, Volume LVIII, Issue 10359, 23 April 1930, Page 3

CONFLAGRATION IN OHIO STATE PRISON

Three Hundred and Sixtythree Victims. | PRISONERS TRAPPED IX CELLS. • New York, April 21 I More than 300 men were fatally | burned or suffocated this evening in j a fire which swept through a section of the Ohio State prison at Columbus. I The building comprised 20 blocks of ■ cells. The fire broke out in the old j part on the west side. The flames, I fanned by a westerly gale, were borne j toward the hewer dormitories in the ! eastern block, where they spread with awful rapidity. Almost before a genj eral alarm could be raised the enI tire prison was on fire. One hundred i prisoners were burned to death as they lay trapped in the oldest dormii tory. Five hundred others were im- ! mediately liberated from the build--1 ing and ran into the prison yard. There they were huddled togetheri and many were suffocated by the i dense smoke. Scenes of confusion ! continued as darkness approached. | Then soldiers arrived on the scene i to guard the prisoners who had been i drafted into the yard from the burning section. Heavy guards also were placed at the gates, lest any of the prisoners should make a break for liberty or be driven insane. The yard looked like a battlefield with the heavily-armed guards in all ! directions. No attempts to escape were made by the prisoners, many of whom assisted to man the available Are apparatus. The warden had 700 prisoners removed from their cells when the fire was sweepingg toward them. Great crowds of spectators gathered outside the walls. One‘estimate states that 305 bod- ' ies of prisoners who were trapped in the burning prison have been counted. The warden says he fears the toll will be far greater, as dead and dying are on all sides. The trapped men were heard screaming iin the flames. Late to-night the fire ! was believed to be under control. 1 The majority of the victims apparently died from suffocation. Policemen, firemen, and State and Federal troopers worked hard with the aid of the warders and prisoners to rescue the victims. Doctors also worked valiantly amid scenes of utter confusion. The original fire and subsequent outbreaks are now attx-ibuted to attempts by certain prisoners to escape. It is reported that they threatened to cut the firemen’s hose. A force of 1500 troops surrounded the prisoners in the yard. Many who, early in the evening,, had aided in the rescue work became excited and were difficult to control. However, at latest reports, it was believed that all the prisoners would soon be herded into the dining hall. Major-General Huff, who was in charge of the troops, ordered all women and nurses from the prison. The chief of the fire brigade appealed to the better element of the prisoners to aid in maintaining order. It is now asserted that fires started in several different places and swept swiftly through the . buildings. In one block of cells a group of prisoners screamed for help. The warden discoverer that the beys had been lost and the doors were broken down with a sledge hammer. New York, April 22 The latest casualty list from the Ohio State prison fire places the number of prisoners killed at 363. The bodies lie stretched in rows across the water-soaked courtyard of the gaol. AW even higher death roll is anticipated.