Six More Victims of Fire Identified, Coroner Says

Dr. Carl Rabin, the Orleans Parish Coroner, issued the names Thursday of six more victims of Sunday’s French Quarter bar fire which killed 29 persons.

Twenty-one of those are now positively identified, he said. Three more have only been tentatively identified.

Dr. Rabin said “three or four identities” may be positively established Friday. As for the other victims, he said, “It’s very positive they may never be identified.”

He said ages, residences and birthplaces of those just identified are still unavailable in most cases. Their names are: Joe Adams; Adam R. Fontenot; Horace Getchell; Glenn R. Green, age 32; Robert K. Lumpkin, 29, of 710 Magazine; and Dr. Perry Waters.

Identifications of the following are still only tentative: George Mitchell, Guy Anderson, and Norman Laverge.

A list of other victims already positively identified follows (in some cases a New Orleans street address is available, in others only a birthplace): 

James Curtis Warren, 26, of Pensacola, Fla.

Eddie Hosea Warren, 25, of Pensacola, Fla.

Inez Warren, 60, of Monroeville, Ala.

Louis Horace Broussard, 26, of Kaplan, La.

Donald Walter Dunbar, 21, of Tampa, Fla.

Leon Richard Maples, 31, of Jacksonville, Fla.

John F. Gording, 39, of New Orleans

Joe William Bailey, 29, of Talapopsa County, Ala.

George Steven Matyi, 27, of 130 Mikal St., Slidell

Gerald Gordon, 37, of Cornersville, Tenn.

William R. Larson, 47, of Kresge, Ky.

Douglas Williams, 20, of Waggaman

Clarence Joseph McCloskey, 48, of 816 Gayoso

Kenneth P. Harrington, 48, of 1035 St. Peter Street and David Gary

In another development, the director of the blood bank at Charity Hospital Thursday appealed for blood donations for fire victims still in the hospital.
Dr. David de Jongh also discounted reports that blood donations for the victims were going slowly because they were connected with the lounge, frequented by homosexuals.

He said he is pleased with the community’s response to the need for blood but that additional donations are needed.

Another report—that some victims’ families refused to claim certain bodies because they were ashamed to—was denied by the coroner’s office.

A spokesman said various funeral homes contacted the coroner’s office for “almost all” victims thus far identified.

And the Rev. Troy Perry, founder of the Metropolitan Community Church movement, said his organization has started a memorial funds to assist families financially unable to bury victims of the blaze.

He said families of our victims have told him they are without funds to make funeral arrangements for their dead.

The Rev. Mr. Perry said those victims’ funeral arrangements will be handled by his group and that they will be buried in New Orleans.

He said the fund, which has already collected some donations, will be administered by the Universal Fellowship of Metropolitan Community Churches.

The Rev. Mr. Perry said the group’s only problem has been locating a church in which to conduct memorial services for the dead on Sunday.