European Stars And Stripes (Newspaper) - December 27, 1989, Darmstadt, Hesse                                Wednesday. December 27, 19b9 the stars and stripes Page 5 toll in Tenn. Nursing Home fire rises to 16 Johnson City. Tenn. A firefighters comb ing the wreckage of a High Rise retirement Home that burned Christmas eve found a 16th body monday but ii residents who had been listed As missing were All discovered to be Safe. All those have been confirmed. They have been  fire chief Doug buckles said at a news Confer ence. Officials said 10 of those who had been Unac counted for had been spending the Holiday with rela Tives or friends and the remaining person was believed to be with relatives out of state. City safety officials said at the news conference that the cause of the fire was still unknown but it was believed to have been accidental. Christmas eve fires killed at least 32 people in five other Stales. Among the dead were six people at a Holiday family reunion in Atlanta a Mother and four daughters in suburban Dallas four members of a Pitts Burgh family and a woman and her three children in new York state. Firefighters in Manchester. N.h., wept As they tried to revive three children who died in an apartment building fire. Their Mother died later at a Hospital. Elsewhere in the state one Man died in a House fire in Londonderry. Also in Manchester faulty wiring in a Chapel s nativity scene sparked a fire in a Convent nursing Home sunday. Firefighters rescued 26 elderly nuns two of whom were hospitalized in satisfactory condition. And on monday three Young boys in Zanesville. Ohio were killed when fire destroyed their Home. Four Young children were killed and their parents seriously burned in a fire in Hammond la., firefighters said. The Christmas eve fire in the Johnson City Home injured 51 people including about 25 firefighters authorities said. About 145 people were living at the 11-Story John so vice retirement Center. It was terrible last night. It was a terrible ordeal Samuel Williams 52. Said this morning after red Cross volunteers served him breakfast at a Motel where he and 16 other survivors were Given temporary shelter. Williams said he escaped his third floor apartment through billowing smoke. What really got to me after we were out on the Street and looking up he said we saw people laying out their windows saying. Help me and we could t help  1 killed 1 missing in Exxon refinery blast Baton Rouge. La. A investigators slogged through firefighting foam and charred remains of Stor age tanks monday trying to find the cause and the extent of damage in a deadly explosion and fire at the nation s second largest petrochemical refinery. The intense Blaze at the Exxon refinery burned for 15 hours before it was extinguished at 5 . Mon Day said company spokesman Dave Gardner. One contract worker died sunday when his pickup truck caught fire in the explosion. Crews searched monday for an Exxon employee missing following the blast. Gardner  blast shattered windows up to six Miles away and was Felt up to 15 Miles away. The fire sent a plume of thick Black smoke 500 feet into the air. Gov. Buddy to cmdr called out 50 National guardsmen overnight to prevent looting of stores where plate Glass windows were blown out. Initial reports said looters hit some Siores but police it. Willie Stevens said monday that there had been no  engulfed eight storage tanks holding More than 4 million Gallons of Oil and lubricants and two separator units which remove water from Oil officials  was believed to have been ignited by a Gas re lease but what caused the release was under investigation said Plant manager de Galante. A maintenance work Center a building that was in the area that used to be a Small office satellite Complex was destroyed Gardner said. Luckily there was nobody in  production was halted at the refiner which has capacity of 455,000 barrels More than 19 million Gallons of crude Oil a Day. Exxon spokesman Ron Embry said he did not know whether that would Worsen any shortages of Home heating Oil during the nation s record setting cold snap. Generally the limit to fuel Oil seems to be due to transportation problems in bad weather and not supplies Embry  investigative teams have been assembled one to determine the cause of the Accident and an other to assess the damage and decide what s Nec Essary to get the Plant Back in operation Gardner  will take some time and some Effort. At this Point it s almost impossible to say How  he said. The worker killed in the blast was identified As smoke and names engulf the Exxon refinery in Baton Rouge la., sunday afternoon. One person wan killed. Mechanic Harold Guillory 31, of Irwinville an employee for contractor Vernon Mckenny Enterprise. Gardner  died when his pickup truck caught fire 100 to 200 feet from the explosion Gardner said. The missing Exxon worker was not identified and no other information about his disappearance was released. His family has been notified Gardner said. Three Exxon employees and four contract workers were treated for injuries at Baton Rouge hospitals and released sunday Gardner said. Numerous employees had cuts and bruises but did t go to hospitals Galante said. A Skeleton Crew was on duty because of the Christmas Holiday he said. The refinery on the Mississippi River in North Baton Rouge has been on the site since 1909. Petroleum inspectors David Abshire and Wiley Aymond said they were 300 feet from the tanks when they exploded. The explosion caved in the whole Side of the building Abshire said. We would have been worse off if we were inside because of the All the flying  i looked up. I saw the sky full of stuff pieces of Wood insulation just a sky full of stuff he said. I was in a Daze and was just running in circles looking for some place to get away from it All. And there was no place to  the blast temporarily knocked out electricity an Telephone service in the area and forced the closure of a Section of nearby interstate 110 for the night. 9 slain in los Angeles los Angeles up Christmas offered Little respite from the unrelenting violence plaguing los Angeles with at least nine slayings marring the Holiday weekend authorities said monday. On Christmas morning the body of a 29-year-old Man was found by a South los Angeles resident who walked into his Back Yard and discovered it lying in an Alley near his House police sgt. Michael Darling said. The victim whose name was not re leased until his family could be found. Had been shot to death. In a Christmas eve slaying. Anna at Faro 22, was dragged from her apart ment in Van Guys by a gunman who pulled her behind a nearby House and shot her in inc head sol. Wendy Massa  violence also flared up with three people killed in youth gang relate attacks. One was a 15-year-old boy shot to death Christmas eve in a territorial dispute in South Central los Angeles. The victim s Friend Carlos Perez also 15, was wounded in the gunfire which broke out ab9ut 5 . Sunday detective Paul Miz said. At about the same time a 19-year-old Man was killed in a gang related drive by shooting in was los Angeles sheriff s deputies  a third incident Steven Renell Wil Liams 25, identified by police As a gang member was killed late saturday in a drive by shooting As he stood with group of people detective Bernie skills said. Sands of time in the stars and stripes 40 years ago foday. Dec. 27, 1949 three earthquakes rocked Japan All within 70 Miles of Toyko. At least seven people were killed and 50 injured. 30 years ago foday. Dec. 27, 1959 saying his decision was definite and final. New York gov. Nelson a. Rockefeller announced he would not become a presidential candidate. 20 years ago foday. Dec. 27, 1969 . John s. Mccain jr., commander in chief of . Forces Pacific reported that the armed forces of the Republic of Vietnam were making such strides that they would be Able to take Over the fighting and defeat North Vietnam. 10 years ago today. Dec. 27, 1979 the Price of Gold hit $501 an ounce going Over $500 for the first time in history