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Show GERMAN BUST KILLSHU N ORE DS EXPLOSION WIPES OUT FRENCH TROOPS AND CAUSES HEAVY ' LOSS OF LIFE Rescuers Wearing Gas Masks Penetrate Pene-trate Ruins of German Plant to Save Possible Survlvers Who Might Yet Be Alive Berlin Casualties In the explosion disaster at Opium will amount to moro than 4000 killed uml Injured, It wasps-tliuatcd wasps-tliuatcd Thursday, us rescue parties penetrated the fogs of poison gas which hung over the scene of tho tragedy. Nearly 1000 bodies already have been recovered. .More than li.500 injured are being treated at hospitals, French troops are guarding the area. One report said a company of French troops, stntloned at the factory, was wiped out by the explosion, Wednesday. Wednes-day. Hescue corps, gas masked, fought for the Hvch of possible survivors, while reports camo back that the death roll would total at least 1500. Five hundred bodies have been ex trlcated from the shattered ruins about tho Bynthlcnted nitrate plant of the Hailjssche Analine works, near Lud-wlgshafen, Lud-wlgshafen, which was destroyed, to-gether to-gether with the little town of Oppnla, by a series of terrlllc explosions Wed-nesday Wed-nesday morning. Scores of Injured we're taken from the wrecknge far from the scene of tho original explosion", but It was feared fear-ed that all those trapped In the fatal urea had been killed by poisonous fumes which Wednesday, prevented rescue work. 1'lteous scenes were witnessed at tho cemetery at Mayence, where bodies bod-ies of nearly 200 dead were laid out for Identification by relations. In most Instances tho victims had been so mutilated by tho explosions that they could not be recognized. Investigation as to the cause of the explosion will be started at once. Humors Hu-mors blaming tho bolshevlkl and other enemies of Germany for tho disaster were current here and near the scene of the disaster, but were uuconflrificd. The first explosion occurred nt 7:30 Wednesday morning while n change of shifts was under way. It was follow, ed an Instant later by another more terrltlc which actually lifted the main factory building from the ground, hurled hurl-ed chimneys, machinery and men hundreds hun-dreds of feet Into the air, completely hurled and destroyed three shift trains bringing workmen to the factory imd wns folt foi- a distance of fifty miles around. All workers In and about the plant, about 800 In number, were flead. Further explosions followed. The Ithculsh high commissioner has allocated 100,000 marks for rcllof work-in work-in Appala, the little vlllngo which was Completely destroyed. The French supply sup-ply corps near the scene of the disaster dis-aster has opened free food kitchen? and shelters for refugees |