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Show ?27 Jet Crashes, $9 Aboard. Flight From Denver Burns on S.L. Runway . , ... 'm-sr . (W ; f' ' "x J ' l '3ft .S- 4 By ZANE R. MISKIN A Boeing 727 jet, originating in New York and bound for San Francisco, crashed and burned at the Salt Lake Airport last night while landing. United Airline Air-line flight 227, carrying 83 passengers pas-sengers and 6 crew members, was the same type of plane that crashed at the Greater Cincinnati Cincin-nati airport just a few days ago. All available emergency units in Salt Lake County were called to the scene. This is the first fatal crash of a commercial air liner in Salt Lake. ONE OF the firemen working to control the flames came over and said, "My God, there's bodies laying all over in there." The exact total of dead is not known, but Salt Lake hospitals reportedly have hospitalized 45 of the 89 aboard, leaving 44 unaccounted un-accounted for. FBI agents at the scene would not permit the dead to be removed re-moved from the wreckage until identification and investigation were completed. Pieces of the plane were scattered over a 200 yard area, and one engine was torn off in the crash. THE ENTIRE top of the fuselage fuse-lage was burned out, and the tail section was almost completely separated from the front. One passenger who survived said, "We came down and there was a slight bump. Then the plane seemed to hit harder and flames and smoke filled the cabin. I went out one of the emergency hatches and rolled along the wing until I dropped to the ground." Another survivor, interviewed at Holy Cross Hospital, , was asked how he felt. "Lucky just lucky." he replied. The pilot, flight officer, and one stewardess were among the survivors. sur-vivors. REPORTS VARIED as to whether whe-ther the plane burst into flame before or after touchdown. Observers Ob-servers agreed, however, that flames enveloped the plane a! most immediately, which has given rise to speculation that there may have been an explosion. ex-plosion. Civil Aeronatics Board investigators invest-igators are flying in from eastern east-ern and midwestern cities to take charge of the investigation into the cause of the tragedy. Latest reports show 38 people unaccounted for, 2 released from hospitals, and 49 still hospitalized, hos-pitalized, some in critical condition. HiIs plane was the crematorium for nearly 50 people last night at the Salt Lake Airport in Salt Lake's first fatal commercial airline crash. This is the third Boeing 727 to crash in three months. Photo by Charlie Pearce, Chronicle Photographer. |