The Courier-Journal from Louisville, Kentucky • Page 1

Tin; ON CAMl'US VOL. 22l, Jb! 126 CKLTICS WIN NliA PLAYOFF Page It tut UMJISVII.U:, TUESDAY MAY 6, )() 10 ci; Specliiciilar Klaxc Lights City's Night Sky 225 Firemen Battle Chemical Firm Fire ill mni ir in surrounding residences, a paint products plant and a lumber company. At least four firemen were reported hurt, including Joseph Shofncr, 40, of 1000 Plaudit Way, Valley Station, with a sprained back. Another fireman, unidentified, was reported suffering from smoke inhalation. All were taken to General Hospital.

Hut early this morning there were no reports of civilian casualties. Although there was no determination as to the cause of the blaze by early this morning, Fire Chief Eugene Dodson said there was no indication of arson. Police Chief C. J. Hyde said he had more than 130 men at the scene, many Spewing flumes more than 200 feet into Hie air, a three -alarm fire last night destroyed the Bronoco Company at HN5 VV.

Kentucky while more than 12!" firemen fought to keep it from spreading. The Maze, ol undetermined origin, broke out about 10 last night, in the block occupied by the company, a subsidiary of Ashland Chemical Company, between 141b, Kentucky and Garland. The spectacular fire cast an orange glow over the downtown Louisville area. Halls of fiie, apparently resulting from explosions, repeatedly billowed into the night sky. The eerie glow from the blaze was visible from IS miles away.

Nearby residents were evacuated, And of them being used to control a huge crowd that gathered to witness the fire. However, the onlookers, who numbered 400 at 15th and Kentucky at 11 p.m. were forced to remain at least a black away because of intense heat and the threat of continuing explosions. The blaze was punctuated by a series of spectacular fireballs that reached 200 feet into the sky, as the two dozen storage tanks burst into flame. Police quickly evacuated residents of homes for at least two blocks north and south of Kentucky Street.

The Louisville-area American Red Cross chapter opened a shelter at Park-hill Community Center, 1218 W. Oak, about 12:4.) p.m. for people evacuated from the area because of the threat of explosions. firemen were unable to determine at first which chemicals were involved in the blaze, and they restricted their fire fighting efforts to using water. They made sporadic progress, only to be beaten back time and again as another tank exploded, billowing tremors of heat and flaming chemicals toward the firemen.

At 11:15 p.m., two pumper units seemed trapped by a flaming stream of chemical See i iri: Hack page, col. 2, this section thought was neoprene, a component of synthetic rubber. However, Ashland's district manager, Robert Hicdenbender, arrived at the scene and told the fire officials that gallons of petroleum solvents were contained in the 65 tanks on the company property. It was too early, Hicdenbender said last night, to make an estimate of the amount of the loss. The first alarm was turned in at 10 p.m.

and the third only 14 minutes later. And as of this morning, the 15 engine companies at the scene pouring cascades of water on the blaze had managed to keep the flames from spreading to the firemen were forced from their equipment by the intense beat. According to a company spokesman at Ashland Chemical Company the parent firm, Bronoco is a warehouse facility with storage tanks of hundred thousand gallons capacity," usually slocked with hcxane, toluene, xylene, acetone and other volatile and inflammable chemicals. firemen were handicapped, at least in the first minutes after the blaze began, by not knowing just what kind of a fire they were lighting. Karly reports were only that (he tanks contained "a very volatile substance," which firemen at first ti t' 'A If yf-- I if ii -niiiii immnwmri a f.

IT drove firemen from the immediate area Ail iiiimaiim Times Writ Force Formed to Deal explosions and sliflinj; heal Police Task With Street Trouble, Young Gangs Gl Pholo Essay Wins Pulitzer for Feller man characterizing the outbreaks as having racial overtones. "I wouldn't tag it as racial," Hyde said. "It's just a bunch of hoodlums, and if a Negro got in their way, they'd do the same to him." Schmied described the roving bands of juveniles as "a minority group of hoodlums who want to loot and rob and destroy property." However, the superintendent of the police department's youth unit said yesterday he believes the two juvenile outbreaks had racial overtones. "I believe it is more racial than juvenile," said Capt. George Haendiges.

Both Hyde and Haendiges reported Republicans Staff Pheto by Jim Harlan that the bands of juveniles apparently arc not organized gangs such as those that "control" sections of some big cities. "They probably don't plan to do this," Hyde said. "It's just something that comes up, so they do it." Capt. Haendiges said he believes the outbreaks "arc still spontaneous," but. he reported that perhaps three or four individuals make up the nucleus of each band.

Then when some crowd drawing event occurs, the band "snowballs" in size, he explained. "We never catch any strangers any Sec POLICE Back page, col. 1, this section Tell Fortas use this" to embarrass the entire high bench. Senate majority leader Mike Mansfield, who carried much of the brunt of the Fortas confirmation effort last sum. Editorial, I'aac A W.

nier, declined comment yesterday. "It's in the hands of the Justice he said. Many persons here including members of the Inn' as well as political figuresappeared stunned by the second disclosure within a year that Fortas had taken money under questionable circumstances after joining the Supreme Court. The impact has been intensified by the publication in recent weeks of rumor that Fortas planned to resign at the end of the court term. He appeared linchaiac-teristicidly restrained and ill at ease us he sat silently through the court's sion ye.slenlay morning.

Fortas has been popular with member of the bar in Washington because of hii ler 1 competence and his liberal views. Sec REPUBLICANS Hat page, col. 1, this c( Uo firclruck juimps water on The family hoped to show that behind each statistic of death there is deep personal grief and shock that affects an entire family anil an entire neighborhood or community. Fetterinan spent three flays at the Gibsons' home, recording the story in words and pictures, and he did it in but eloquent photographs and prose. Here arc a few excerpts: "It was late on a Wednesday night and most of the people were asleep in llindmnn, the county seal of Knoll County, when the body of Private First Class James Thurman (Little Duck) Gibson came home from Vietnam.

"It was hot. Hut as the gray hearse arrived bearing the gray Army coffin, a summer rain began to fall. The fat See Gl Hark page, col. 5, this section JOHN FETTEKMAN: STORY 1 tlir Itronoco do. hlaziv after Rastcr Furnished by tht U.S.

Wnthtr Burtau IOUISVIUE area Partly cloudy, warm flouch tomorrow with 20 per cent chance of rain today and tonight. High 86, low in upper 50i. KENTUCKY Fair to partly cloudy, widely scattered showers in west tonight and tomorrow. Higlii in th 80s, low in 50s and 60s. TENNESSEE Fair to partly cloudy, little change in temperature.

Widely scattered showers in west. High in the 80s, low in 50s and 60s. INDIANA Partly cloudy and humid with chance of showers in southeast today and tomorrow. High in the 80s, low 57-59. High yesterday, 86; low, 55.

Yrar Ago: High, 63; low, 35. Sun; Rises, sets, 8:38. Moon: Sets, 10:22 a.m.; rises, 1:15 o.m. Weather map and details, Pag A 14. On Inside Pages Amusements 4 Classified 15 lii Kdilorials A 10 Financial 11-14 Obituaries 3.

5 lladio, TV 2 Sports II (MO Women A 16-1!) Stall Phots WINS ON "LITTLE DUCK" V) Quit Supreme Court Hv joiin itm.i;y Courier-Journal Staff Writer A riot-equipped police group to deal with street trouble and with marauding bands of juveniles was organized yesterday by Louisville Police Chief C. J. Hyde. Hyde said he has assigned Hi patrolmen to the special task force, which will deal specifically with outbreaks such as that hich followed the Pegasus Parade Thursday night and with gang violence at Fontaine Ferry Park Sunday night. The (i4-year-old West End recreational landmark was closed down permanently yesterday because of the possibility of a recurrence of Sundav night's destruction.

(Story. Page 1.) Chief Hyde said that besides the special task force, manpower on all four city police districts has been increased 30 per cent. The police chief reported (hat the special task force will cruise in four ears and answer only reports dealing with street trouble. Capt. Kininett Paul, operations officer, will be in charge of the task force.

Will Patrol Trouble Spots Hyde said the men in the force will he equipped with helmets, gas masks, tear gas "and everything they need under these circumstances." By knowing what events are likely to attract large numbers of teen-agers, police hope to he able to predict the likelihood of possible future outbreaks. When such an event is going on wherever it may he in the city the special task force will patrol in the area. Otherwise, Hyde said, the task force will patrol mainly in the 4th which encompasses (ho city's est Knd. Police described the disturbances fol-bwing the Pegasus parade as "random acts of vandalism." Several cars were overturned and battered, and windows in more than a halfdoen stores were broken. Kocks were thrown at persons returning from the parade.

In the Fontaine Ferry Park disturbance, at least seven persons were hurt as youths attacked and robbed several cashiers and vandalized park facilties, doing damage estimated at tjilii.OOO or more. Although Negro youths were involved in both incidents, both Hyde and Mayor Krn''lh A. Schmied yesterday avoided I Kellcrman, a staff writer for The Courier-Journal Times Magazine, won a Pulitzer Prize yesterday in the category of general local reporting. The award is for a picture-essay, "Pfc. Gibson Comes Home," a report on the funeral of a Kentucky soldier killed in Vietnam.

The article appeared in the July 28 issue of the Magazine last year. Fctterman's award is the second Pulit icy Prize won by The Courier Journal 5n three years. The newspaper was cited Norman Mailer's "The Annies of the. wins Vulitzcr Prize in von fiction aitcfiarji. Other prize winners, Vm.ic A 8.

in for "its successful campaign to control the Kentucky strip-mine industry," and Fetlerman did part of the reporting in that series of articles. A veteran of newspapering as a reporter and photographer, Fetter-man is blessed with a wry, quick wit. Kill be also has sensitivity and understanding, finalities that enable him to add depth ami warmth to the human-interest articles that have been his hallmark. His Pulitzer prize winning effort showed this clearly. It dealt with the return to Knott County of the body of Pfc James Thiirmnn (Little Duck) Gibson, a casually of the Vietnam war.

His family agreed to let Fetlerman be present when Gibson's body canw home. Honor Students Sit-in: A HUmUvly HlanU lllanh TORONTO (AIM Five honor students of the University of Toronto Sebool, a private high sebool run by Hie university, staged a sit in yesterday. They carried blank placards and said their protest had no purpose and l.he, to achieve nothing. "These arc our-demands," said Piian HiiMgeruian, 15, passing around a blank sheet, of paper. "We won't, budge until they met." By FRED P.

CI! All AM New York Timtf Niwi Sarvict WASHINGTON Congressional Republicans- began to call yesterday for the resignation of Justice Abe Fortas after the disclosure that he received a $20,000 fee from the family foundation of convicted securities manipulator Louis E. Wolf son. Many of the same demands were being made by the same persons nine months ago. when Fortas' ill-fated nomination to the off ice. of chief justice was being debated in the Senate.

Yesterday, however, there were no statements of support from the Democratic forces that fought for his confirmation last summer. Sen. Edward M. Kennedy of Massachusetts even suggests that Fortas might consider explaining things to the Senate Judiciary Committee, which handled him roughly in hearings last year. 'These aie extremely important charges that have been leveled," Kennedy told reporters before the Senate session yesterday morning.

"They reach to the integrity of the justice as well as the court." lie expressed hope rsinies of the court in the past will not.