Daily News from New York, New York • 170

By Arthur Noble and James Desmond A 102 nd Floor Observation Platform S3 A fog-blind B-25 Mitchell bomber, groping its way southward across Manhattan to Newark Airport, crashed into the 79th lloor of the Empire State Building at 9:52 A. M. yesterday, turning the world's tallest building into a torch in the sky high above 34th St. and Fifth Ave. The crash killed at least 14 persons instantly, including the three men aboard the plane, and injured 24, six seriously.

It was accompanied by a terrific explosion that jolted 86th Flbor MAIN AREA OF FIRE Foot Street 3 0- i 7 Pi4N HIT IN THIS AREA 72nd Floor i I VIM vaa SSergf. S. Domifrovich (A) and Lieut. Cof. William F.

Smith Jr. 1-1 pilot of the B-25, who were killed 'in crash. Col. Smith had 1,000 hours of combat flying. (A, P.

Wiri-fotoio 1 'HIP. i lIWi fl El IWK'Ar. i-' lLf 34th StreetUj thousands in midtown offices. So great was the plane' impact that one of its motors, hurled loose with projectile speed, tore nearly 100 feet through seven walls of the floor and melted the suspension cables of three elevator before it landed with a final explosion on the roof of an adjacent 17-story building. Then came a painfully brilliant sheet of orange flame, conical in shape, that ironically sheared away the early 1 morning fog.

And for a few awful minutes, while he flames held back the fog, uncounted thousands leaning from office build- tmmmmnl Some of the statistic on the Empire State tragedy. i windows and peering from the streets had a closeup view of sud. den death at its worst. It was sudden death coming out of the fog with a thunder. Casualties lira IBoinnilbeir Tfaedv Following are the casualties resulting from the crash of a B-25 bomber into the Empire State Building yesterday morning: O0 -x DEAD.

Mary Scannel, eleva(4ir operator, who wan on one of upper floor of building, in treated by Marie Genereux, nurse, at St. Vincent's. Paul Dearing ing roar for most of the victims office workers employed by the National Catholic Welfare Conference, which occupies the north side of the 79th floor. They were at their desks when the eight-ton plane struck and nine of them died at their work. It was as swift as that.

Firemen, entering the office to fight the blaze that enveloped the 78th and 79th floors, found the nine bodies believed to be those of girls-grouped around a single table. Lieut. Col. William F. Smith 27, of 54 Beachwood Water-town, Mass.

pilot of the plane and deputy group commander of 457th Bombardment Group, recently from overseas. Assigned at Sionx Falls. SSergt. Christopher S. Domi-trovith, 31, Army Air Forces, 1821 Madison Granite City, 111., based at Sioux Falls, member of the crew.

Unidentified Navy enlisted man, a passenger. Name withheld by Navy pending notification of relatives. Paul Dearing, no age or address, Another body was found farther back on the 79ih floor, still another on the Hour below, and the on the 72d floor parapet, near tha Fifth Ave. and 34th St. corner.

The first body identified was that Continued on pnyt S9, col. 1 i yj rXc, (rash Pilot a Veteran Of 1000 Combat fours Pierre, S. July 28 U.R). Lieut. Col.

William F. Smith' pilot of the B-25 which crashed into New-York's Empire State Building, was a veteran of more than 1,000 combat flvinc hours. a press agent for the War Relief Service of the National Catholic Welfare Conference, with offices on the 79th floor, Empire State Building. Mrs. Margaret Mullins.

33, of 736 Garden Hoboken, bookkeeper with the Catholic Welfare Conference. Jeanne Sozzi, 40, 821 Avenue Brooklyn, a clerk in the same office. MISSING AND BELIEVED DEAD Lucille Bath, Anne Gerlach, Patricia O'Connor, Maureen Mc-McGuire, Mary Taylor, John A. Judge, Mary Kedzierska, all known to have been in the athoiic Wel- He wore the French Croix de Nurse looks on as a woman victim of crash and fire is placed in ambulance. Guerre, Distinguished Flying Cross with cluster, Air Medal with three Thursday morning on a combat training mission via Cleveland for Newark, where seven of the ere left the ship that afternoon.

Both Col. Smith and S'Sergt. Christopher S. Domitrovich, listed as being in the plane today, wet being redeployed. clusters and five campaign ribbons.

Bellevue Hospital, severed spine, critical. John Monte," 67, of 2343 Arthur Officials of the Sioux Falls fare Conference office on the 79th floor. INJURED Betty Oliver, 20, of 601 W. 113th elevator operator, to Army Air Forces redeployment center said Col. Smith's plane left (Continued on page 10, col.

S).