The Nome Nugget

Twenty One Lives Lost in School Fire Canada

ST. HYACINTHE, Quebec Province, Canada, Jan. 20, (AP)—At least 21 lives were lost, it is feared, in a fire that trapped more than 100 students in the College of the Sacred Heart in St. Hyacinthe.

Only One Identified

Only one of the dead has been identified. He was Brother Jean Baptiste, 64 years old. He leaped from one of the upper windows of the school building and suffered injuries from which he soon died.

Chief of Police A. Bourgeois of St. Hyacinthe reported this afternoon that six bodies had been taken from the flaming structure and that "25, maybe 30" are still missing.

The editor of a newspaper published in St. Hyacinthe, asserted that in addition to Brother Jean Baptiste, about 20 persons perished inside the school building.

School Fire Dead May Reach 45. 21 Injured and Property Loss valued at $500,000.00

St. HYACINTHE. Jan. 21.(AP)— Forty-five teachers and pupils are reported either dead or missing following the fire which destroyed the College of the Sacred Heart in Hyacinthe. There are 19 known dead and 26 persons are unaccounted for. Some of the missing may be sheltered in nearby farmhouses. The injured number 21, and some of these are in serious condition.

The property loss is placed at $500,000.00.

The fire started shortly after midnight Tuesday morning, and the flames were under way half an hour before they were discovered. After the blaze was quenched, firemen had to wait hours for the ruins to cool before beginning the search for bodies.