33 KILLED IN CHICAGO

Press, Volume LXXXVI, Issue 26124, 29 May 1950, Page 7

33 KILLED IN CHICAGO

Tram And Petrol Truck Collide BUILDINGS SET ON FIRE (N.Z. Press Association—Copyright) (Rec. 7.30 p.m.) NEW YORK, May 26. Thirty-three persons were killed and 50 injured some seriously, when a tramcar collided with a petrol truck in Chicago yesterday. The collision occurred in the heart of the city's negro section during the rush hour. Many of the victims were negroes. Seven nearby buildings were destroyed by fire, and 50 families were made homeless. The police said that the crowded tram ran through an open switch and crashed into the petrol waggon. The resulting explosion tore a hole in the street and turned the tram into a fiery furnace. Streams of blazing petrol sprayed over the area. Most of the bodies were found in the rear of the tram. A survivor said that everyone in the car panicked. They rushed towards the rear as the flames swept rapidly from the front. The passengers could not open the exit doors. Some persons escaped through a window after a woman had. smashed the glass. Investigators are trying to discover why the rear doors of the tram were jammed shut, trapping the passengers inside. The Chicago police to-day ordered the arrest of William Liddell, the 29-year-old negro conductor of the tram on a charge of leaving the scene of the accident. Liddell, after his arrest, was released on bail. He told the police that he was at his rear post when the collision occurred. ‘‘l was thrown to the floor,” he told the police. “I was unconscious for a second or so. I pulled the emergency release but the people had jammed the door. I pleaded with them, then I was taken in a wave of people out of a rear window. The others pushed me out.”