Winona Daily News (Newspaper) - March 13, 1969, Winona, Minnesota THE RIVER Yesterday 6.34 Today 6.34 Crest 1965 6.15 20.75 1952 5.83 17.93 5.35 WINONA DAILY NEWS of Publication TOMORROW SUN RISES SETS NEW MOON MARCH 17 WINONA MINNESOTA 55967 THURSDAY MARCH TEN CENTS PER COPY Want Ad Number Is 3321! 2 SECTIONS 22 PAGES Mississippi to Rise to at Least 19 Feet Here RECOVERY IS QUICK The three astronauts James McDivitt David R Scolt and Russell were hoisted aboard the Guadalcanal deck at just 48 minutes after they returned to earth The bearded trio appeared t bit shaky hat happy as they from the copter We had a good time and I hope we accomplished Divitt said CRAFT HITS SIGHT OF RECOVERY SHIP Apollo Splashes Down on Target ABOARD USS NAL AP Climaxing a day space flight that qualified all Apollo hardware for voyages to the moon the Apollo 9 astro- blazed back to earth day and parachuted to a point landing in the Atlantic Ocean within sight of the ery ship Guadalcanal Air Force Cols James A McDivitt and David R Scott and civilian Russell Schweickart rode their spaceship to a splashdown in gentle seas just three miles from this helicopter carrier 300 miles north of Puerto Rico They touched down at CST ending a significant mission that advanced the ed States a major step toward an historic landing two men on the moon in July The pinpoint landing was a ting climax for a flight that bad been perfect all the way Television pictures relayed through a communications ellite enabled millions of to share the triumph of their newest space heroes on their successful return to earth Viewers had a ringside seat as cameras focused in on the Apollo 9 floating down from space dangling under three foot orange and white para- chutes Hundreds of sailors wearing dress blue lined the deck of the Guadalcanal to watch the ring sight A loud cheer erupted and in Mission Control enter in Houston as the ship it the water Helicopters had spotted the several minutes be- ore they landed and were ring overhead when Apollo 9 into the sea Within minutes Navy men leaped from the Recovery helicopter piloted by Cmdr eorge M Hankin Jr a Md The swimmers attached ion collars to the bobbing and plugged in a tele- to talk with the astro- lauts The helicopter reported the spacecraft was slightly scarred mt rather good 789 Americans Dead in New Red Offensive SAIGON AP The U.S Command reported today that 789 American troops were killed in action during the first 14 days cf thi Viet Cong's spring offensive an average of 56 battlefield deaths every 24 sours The weekly casualty report wed by U.S Headquarters said 336 Americans died in action during the week of March the second week of the current offensive This was 117 less than the 453 Americans reported killed ing the first week of the sive But it was double the age of 170 Americans killed each week this year of- fensive began South Vietnamese and enemy casualties also were ly less than the week before cording to the weekly allied summaries The Saigon government said 259 of its men were killed while the two allied commands ed Viet Cong and North Vietnamese battle dead With 521 government troops and of the enemy reported killed the week before this brought battle dead during the first two weeks of the offensive to 780 government troops and of the enemy Military analysts noting the drop in casualties said that my attacks last week declined from the level of the first seven days of the offensive They said however that the communist command apparently was re- grouping and resupplying its units in preparation for a new phase of the offensive The U.S Command also an- Americans were wounded last week comparet with the previous week South Vietnamese wounded taled down from tie week before Another 27 South Vietnamese were listed as ng in action last week The weekly summary American casualties in Vietnam since Jan 1 1961 to cilled in action and missing or captured The U.S Command said at leas Viet Cong and North Vietnamese have been killed in hose eight years Meanwhile the Viet Cong stepped up its offensive again pummeling about 40 mill ary bases and towns with mor ars and rockets during the night South Vietnamese said five persons were and 55 wounded in four at lacks in the Mekong Delta U.S headquarters said over-all mill iary casualties and were light But six were damaged when 20 landed on the airfield at Ban Mi capital of the centra highlands The U.S Command an that American infan try artillery and helicopter gun ships killed 54 enemy troops in three clashes northwest anc south of Saigon Wednesday Th command said three American were killed and 18 wounded the fights WEATHER FEDERAL FORECAST WINONA AND VICINITY Partly cloudy to cloudy occasional light snow tonight Fair to partly Friday Colder tonight Lows night Highs Friday LOCAL WEATHER Official observations for th 24 hours ending at 12 m Maximum 33 minimum 19 noon 32 precipitation trace Apollo 9 was a space mission with two distinct faces During five days at the start the pilots proved the flight worthiness of the lunar module or LEM including a tricky and a space walk by Schweickart The last five days were surely as McDivitt Scott and Schweickart stayed alott to prove the durability of the com- mand ship As a result Apollo 9 is the last manned earth orbit flight planned hy the United States un- til late 1971 when a small three-man space station will be launched The entire U.S effort until then will be devoted to moon orbit and moon landing From liftoff to splashdown the Apollo 9 mission lasted 10 days 1 hour 53 seconds It was extended an extra avoid a landing in storm-tossed seas in the original splashdown area southwest of Bermuda The space triplets started their return to earth at EST by firing a blast from their spaceship engine 280 miles above the Pacific Ocean It slowed their speed by 350 miles and enabled gravity to take hold and tug them out of orbit The burn looks mighty Scott commented after the second hurst It felt good Apollo Comes Home drawing shows 1 the final stages of Apollo 9 flight Top left the carrying command ule separated from the service module on com- of the last earth orbit Top right the com- mand module burned rockets to adjust heat shield before re-entering atmosphere Bottom left parachutes opened tom right the module landed in the sea near Grand Turk Island as helicopters arrived AP Ray Now Is Sorry He Pleaded Guilty By THE ASSOCIATED PRESS James Earl Ray quoted as wishing now he had elected to stand trial for the Martin ther King assassination was joined in his regrets today by U.S Justice Department A source in the department said the feeling there over Ray's abrupt guilty plea is one of frustration The A full-fledged trial had one been held might have shed light on questions which have led to widespread suspicion around the country that Ray was only one figure in a conspiracy In Nashville the Nashville Tennessean said in a copyright story that Ray disclosed second thoughts about the guilty plea within hours of his sentencing in Memphis to an agreed 99 years in prison Ray also has inquired about how he could hire a new attorney the paper said The story said unidentified of- sources quoted Ray as I went to court day I was convinced if I didn't plead guilty I was going to the electric chair I wish the hell I hadn't now because with whal they had on me I believe the worst I'd gotten would have een life Under Tennessee law a life prisoner could be eligible for role afer 13 years 7 months or even earlier if he earned mum good behavior time Un- der a sentence a SOVIET SHIP SINKS AFTER COLLISION PORTSMOUTH Va U A tanker and a Soviet fishing trawler col- in pre-dawn darkness off the North Carolina coast today the Coast Guard said and the ian vessel was reported to have sunk with all hands lost Fifteen crewmen were be- to have been aboard A Coast Guard airplane helicopter and a were sent to the scene some 31 miles off Inlet and reported finding an oil slick debris and an empty life raft er must serve at least 30 years The Tennessean said a prison source further quoted My attorney and my brother loid me about six weeks ago that the best thing for me to do was to plead guilty if we could work out a deal to keep me out of the chair They told me they thought this could be done I was thinking about it and everyday they thought I plead guilty Last week I just told them if they thought this was best and what I ought to do then I would plead guilty In Washington Justice De sources acknowledged the government was informed in advance that Ray would plead guilty and take 99 years But they denied the ment was involved in any way with decisions leading up to the sudden move by Ray and his lawyer Percy Foreman of Houston Tex The only federal action ing against Ray is an FBI charge issued in Birmingham Ala April 17 1968 accusing him of conspiring with a mar to be his brother to violate King's civil rights in that state Apollo 9 Space Bonuses SPACE CENTER Houston AP Apollo 9 has not only put America squarely on course toward a July lunar landing but chalked up a bundle of bonuses that will make flights to the moon and beyond easier and safer With the exception of testing some tions techniques that may be used in future trips to the moon aU mission objectives have been said flight director Eugene F Kranz In addition the astronauts discovered a saving way to sight navigation landmarks formed an unscheduled ment that could be useful in rescuing men aboard a disabled spaceship and got new engineering dates for planning future missions Across the board we've had a good Kranz told a news conference as Apollo 9 circled the globe on its final orbits before today's with its crew of three Their risky journey flight qualified the last piece of hardware needed to land Americans on the moon the spidery lunar module LEM that will shuttle spacemen from a command ship to the moon's surface Enough questions remain particularly about navigating around the moon that the space agency is expected to fly one more mission before attempting a lunar landing The next flight uled to blast off May 17 will call for three Apollo 10 astronauts to circle the moon for 63 hours sources said On that schedule the landing mission would come in mid-July Overshadowed hy Apollo feat of qualifying the LEM were many less dramatic but important accomplishments Proving the space suit with backpack to be worn by astronauts walking on the moon is safe and comfortable Operating for the first time the type of television camera to be used in a lunar landing Blazing the trail for a new unmanned program aimed at locating unseen sources of minerals and food supplies on earth Film re- turned by Apollo 9 will show whether development plans need to be altered Tracking an old unmanned satellite named Pegasus and the discarded LEM proving a dis- craft can under certain conditions be seen hundreds of miles away Strub Predicts River Could Hit Record 21 Feet By FRANK UHLIG Daily News Staff Writer Winona and other Upper Midwest communities on major waterways face record floods this spring according to an forecast today by Joseph Strub Twin Cities Weather meteorologist Flooding is the only word for this 1969 spring Strub said In some locations such as Mankato and the end of the Mississippi River upstream from Fort Ripley ie 1965 high water is forecast to be equalled or exceeded ACCORDING TO bureau's figures Winona can a crest of at least 19 feet about the second or third week in pril This is the potential of the present snow cover alone If normal precipitation of 1.5 inches falls between now and early April the predicted flood crest here could reach 21 feet a new record In 1965 the river reached a record height ot 20.8 feet at Winona City officials said today that current plans for meeting a flood emergency have to be revised Present planning s based on an crest at Winona The city has contracted or construction of a ring of temporary dikes in central and easterly portions built to a elevation and designed or an flood The City Council will be asked next Monday to authorize an amended contract that would provide for dikes 21 feet high designed to withstand a stage Carroll J Fry city ager said this morning THE PRESENT contract with a price tag will go into effect as soon as the council gives he formal work order Total cost of the flood effort had been estimated earlier this week at If the prediction continues to hold Fry said the city will have to study prospects of setting up further contract change orders to meet the threat He said the city will not commit expenditures without fairly solid assurance that they are necessary The city have to order more than the 30 pumps it now has reserved for flood use City Engineer Robert J Bollant said today He estimated that as many as 20 more may ba needed to match the demands that would be imposed by higher water than the level The area that was protected to 1965 is fairly secure lant said provided that the crest does not greatly exceed the 1965 level Other areas notably those in the city's which were not protected in be more difficult to defend Bollant said Lack of sufficient space at some points will hamper forts to build dikes up to beyond the height Bollant explained In addition the subsoil characteristics at some of the riverfront are unfavorable Large amounts of sawdust leftovers from the city's heyday as a lumber milling center lie beneath the ground Bollant said This creates an unstable condition and means that areas are susceptible to eruptions that can breach the dike system The snow cover along the Minnesota River drainage area contains the greatest water content the Weather Bureau said today and threatens flood waters two feet above the 1952 record at Montevideo THE TWIN Cities airport weather station In its latest flood Page Col 2 FLOODING Flood Predictions City Flood Stage MISSISSIPPI RIVER WINONA 13 Libby 13 15 Fort Ripley 10 Minneapolis 16 St Paul 14 15 RED WING U LAKE CITY 16 WABASHA 2 ALttA LA ROOT RIVER 47 HOUSTON RIVER ROCHESTER Zumbro Falls IB 38 CHIPPEWA RIVER EAU CLAIRE 773 DURAND RIVER 2 RIVER DODGE 7 Anticipated Levels Existing 1.50 Inches Snovi More 19.0 20.0 15.0 18.0 22.5 21.5 17.5 19.0 16.5 16.5 16.5 48.5 14.0 23.5 75.0 12.5 Ml Montevideo Mankato Savage Mendota U 698 699 29.0 716.0 21.0 19.0 26.0 16.0 20.5 25.5 25.0 19.0 21.0 19.5 18.0 51.0 19.55 67.5 28.0 46.0 777.0 15.5 12.5 22.0 32.0 718.5 717.0 1965 20.75 14.5 20 26.1 25.4 20.5 22.2 20.1 20.0 17.9 19.5 19.1 28.4 45.8 779.6 17.0 15.2 13.6 5.1 20.0 29.1 719.4 717.5 The Twin Cities airport weather tion in its latest flood outlook predicted record or levels for areas along the Mississippi River Flooding is the only word for this 1969 spring flood said Joseph Strub Weather Bureau meteorologist and hydrologist The above table shows pre- dictions for Mississippi River basin cities
