European Stars And Stripes (Newspaper) - April 9, 1986, Darmstadt, Hesse                                Page 2 the stars and stripes wednesday april 9, 1986 memorial service held for disco blast victim by Joe Mapother Bremerhaven Bureau Berlin More than 250 people packed the Mcnair Barracks Chapel tues Day to pay tribute to army sgt. Kenneth tar ranch Ford the 21-year-old Soldier killed in the weekend terror bombing of a downtown disco. The 45-Minutc ceremony was attended by members of Ford s unit and by other friends As Well As by maj. Gen. John h. Mitchell commander . Berlin come and British French and German officers and officials. Ford s first sergeant called the unit s Roll and when Ford s name was reached there was no answer. When his name was called a third time a three Volley Rifle Salute an swered for the dead Soldier. A bugler played taps and a Lone Piper sounded a final Farewell. Outside the Chapel soldiers who could not fit inside occasionally wiped their eyes As loudspeakers carried the service to them and members of the press. Ford and a turkish woman were the Only two fatalities of the blast Early saturday that injured More than 200 disco patrons. Of the five most critically injured Ameri cans army officials said two burned sol Diers remained very seriously ill tuesday. Doctors were considering whether to Fly them to the army Burn Center at fort Sam Houston Texas. The conditions of two american civilians also severely burned in the explosion have soldiers fire a Salute for sgt. Kenneth t. Ford at Mcnair Barracks Chapel Berlin. A photo improved officials said. Another Soldier who underwent artery surgery at the army Hospital in Lan Stuhl was in serious but stable condition tuesday afternoon. Manfred Ganschow spokesman for the police task Force investigating the incident told United press International that police had re Vised their estimate of the number injured to 230, including 64 americans. Ganschow said 53 people were still hospitalized. A . Spokesman told up a casualty list could not be published because 38 of the americans had asked the army not to notify their families that they were Hurt in the bombing of the la Belle nightclub a popu Lar hangout of soul music fans. Indications coming from american officials continue to Point to Libya As the instigator of the attack. The associated press reported tuesday that Germany has increased its surveillance of Libya s embassy in Bonn and tightened Border controls in the Wake of the bombing. Precautionary Security measures have been strengthened at Borders airports and at the libyan people s Bureau embassy a government official told the a. The Bonn government official also said the germans had no Concrete indications that libyans were involved in the bombing. The Berlin prosecutor s office has offered Reward Money totalling 150,000 Marks $63,000 for information leading to apprehension of the bombing perpetrators. A Berlin police spokesman told the stars and stripes there have been no new developments in the Case. He could not provide further information on the bomb which officials earlier described As packing 6 to 10 pounds of explosives. Police Are analysing Metal splinters taken from the victims. In his Eulogy of Ford 1st it. Brian Jones said Ford often would take Candy along on patrols of the Berlin Wall to pass out to Chil Dren living near the Southern Border of the City. Ford arrived in Berlin from fort Ord calif., in late 1984 to serve first with cob 4th in of the Berlin brigade 502nd regt. Shortly thereafter he became a member of the elite scout platoon with combat support co 4th in. He was promoted to sergeant in a gust. Ford was the coach of his company basketball team and was known for his sense of humor Jones said. Ford was born in Little Rock ark., but called Detroit his Home. His survivors in clude a brother in the army assigned to a v corps unit. Officials said the brother has left Germany on emergency leave but declined to release his name or unit. A c-141 left Frankfurt s Rhein main a tuesday at 5 . Carrying Ford s body to Dover a Del. The body was escorted by staff sgt. Fredrick Whitcomb a Mem Ber of Ford s platoon. A just gof on my Bike and took off says injured a re Nir if i4nnrcr�ivi j. Dick Hodgson Kaiserslautern Bureau Lan Stuhl Germany when spec. 4 Tracy Billingslea found his Way out of the wreckage that moments before had been the la Belle disco in Berlin he decided not to wait for medical care. He hopped on his motorcycle and Rode three Miles to the army Hospital emergency room. Billingslea 24, said he was Only about 15 feet from where the bomb exploded. He suffered a perforated eardrum and Burns which stripped the skin from the right Side of his face and upper body. He spoke to the stars and stripes in an interview monday night at the army Hospital in Lan Stuhl. I was standing on the Steps going up to the bar when it went off he said. We crawled out through a paint shop off to one Side of the bar and got outside. There were a lot of people and police vans were show girl hit by fragments of Shell reported in serious condition Muenster Germany a 6-year-old English girl remained in very serious but stable condition in a Hannover Hospital tuesday after being wounded by an errant . Army artillery round a British army spokesman said. Emma Boughey was hit in the head Friday with Shell fragments from an american 155mm howitzer while Tak ing a walk in the Woods outside an artillery Range with her grandmother and three other children maj. John Wool Dridge said. The other children Are hospitalized in satisfactory condition the spokesman said. The grandmother was treated and released. The american unit firing the round was identified As Btry a 94th Field arty of Berlin. The incident at the Muenster training area is under investigation. Correction a Story in tuesday s paper said the 52nd tac fighter Wing would replace its f-4e phantoms with f-16 fight ing Falcon aircraft implying that the Wing would convert completely to the f-16. The Wing flies two models of the f-4 and plans a Tyfo part conversion. This summer 12 of its f-4es will be re placed by 12 f-4gs. In Early 1987 the remaining f-4es will be replaced by new f-16 c and d models. When the conversion is Complete the 52nd will Fly a 50 50 mix of f-16 and f-4g aircraft. Also tuesday in the Story on Eagle scouts the name of one scout was misspelled. Robert Richardson is the Correct spelling. The stars and stripes regrets the errors. Ing up and everything. I figured it would take them medi Cal teams a Long time to get to me. So i just got on my Bike and took  Billingslea said the pain from his Burns was cooled by the wind As he Rode through the streets of Berlin. My right Eye was kind of blurred and i ran a couple of red lights but i did t have any problems Riding he said. My helmet was still inside the la Belle but i could t have put it on  Mcnair Barracks emergency room workers were sur prised by his arrival Billingslea said. I wandered around in the clinic for a few minutes because i was t sure which door i was supposed to use he said. Then i found someone on one of the wards and she took me Back Down to emergency and they started working on  Billingslea a mortar Man with co a 4th in 502nd inf has been stationed in Berlin for almost a year. He said that he went to the la Belle three or four times every month and that the disco was not As crowded As usual when the 2 . Blast occurred. If it had been an hour later there would have been a lot More people in the place he said. I had Only been there a few minutes when the bomb  the la Belle is an after hours spot particularly popular with Black and hispanic soldiers Billingslea said. Whoever did this is sick in the head and cowardly he said. I feel they should be Able to face off with whoever they want to one on one. There s no reason to Hurt women and innocent people. These people responsible forthe blast just Don t  khad Afy s top military aide says . Missiles killed 56 during clash Cairo Egypt a libyan Leader Moa mar khad Afy s chief military commander was quoted by a weekly egyptian newspaper tuesday As saying . Missiles killed 56 people in the Gulf of Sidra fighting. The report also quoted khad Afy As saying that Libya s fight against the United states is  khad Afy and brigadier Abu Bakr Younis com Mander in chief of Libya s armed forces were quoted by Al Shaab an Organ of Egypt s opposition socialist labor party. It said the remarks were made to a labor party delegation that visited Libya last week. The report said that when asked whether the confrontation with the United states had ended Hadaf said  it has ended temporarily in front of the Gulf of Sidra but the Battle against America is escalating everywhere he was quoted As saying. It began in the Gulf of Sidra yes to make America understand that this Gulf has brought it nothing but a worldwide curse and that the Earth is shaking under its feet everywhere because of its idiotic and unjust policy against Small  in the first known libyan estimate of casualties from the March 24-25 clashes Younis was quoted As saying 56 people were  he was quoted As claiming that . Planes rocketed a libyan fishing boat and a tugboat sent into the Gulf to Rescue some  he did not explain Why any Rescue Mission was necessary. The Reagan administration has said that . Forces sunk at least two libyan patrol boats and attacked a missile base after Libya fired Sa-5 missiles at Ameri can warplanes flying Over the Gulf. Libya claims the Gulf of Sidra As its territorial Waters but the United states Only recognizes libyan sovereignty to 12 Miles offshore. Younis did not specify whether All the dead were libyans. Western diplomats in Tripoli said last week that some soviet advisers at libyan missile batteries might have been hit by rockets fired from . Jets. He was quoted As denying a missile base was hit during the confrontation. The americans hit a boat a fishing vessel and a tugboat he said. Some missiles fell into the sea one exploded in a desert area and another failed to explode. Our air defences sustained no  khad Afy was quoted As saying Libya has an unexploded . Missile. We have conducted tests on it he was quoted As saying. To spite America we Are considering turning it Over to Russia to discover its  he was quoted As saying the soviet Union Cooper ated with us politically with All sincerity during the crisis. He did not say whether the soviets were involved in military action but noted that ideological differences Between us and the soviet Union did not prevent us from establishing a solid Friendship which proved its Worth in those moments according to the report