PRINCESS DIANA DEAD; PARIS CAR CRASH KILLS FAYED, DRIVER.

Byline: Christopher Burns Associated Press 

Britain's Princess Diana, who had been struggling to build a new public and private life after her turbulent divorce, was fatally injured Sunday in a car crash that killed her companion, Dodi Fayed, as their Mercedes was being pursued by photographers.

The 36-year-old princess died at 4 a.m. after going into cardiac arrest, doctors told a hospital news conference.

The crash happened shortly after midnight in a tunnel along the Seine River at the Pont de l'Alma bridge. It came as paparazzi - the commercial photographers who constantly tailed Diana - followed her car, police said.

The death was announced at a 6 a.m. hospital news conference by Dr. Alain Pavie, head of the cardiology department.

``The death of the Princess of Wales fills us all with shock and deep grief,'' said British ambassador Michael Jay, who was at the hospital.

Diana's death from cardiac arrest came after she suffered heavy internal bleeding in the early morning crash. French radio said the paparazzi were trailing Diana's car on motorcycles. Five photographers were arrested, it said.

The high-speed pursuit ended in a crash in the tunnel that trapped several people in a pileup. The force of the crash crumpled the roof of the Mercedes to door-high level.

Fayed, the 42-year-old son of the billionaire Egyptian owner of London's prestigious Harrod's department store, was also killed in the crash, along with the chauffeur.

His father, Mohamed Al Fayed, was on his way to Paris, said his spokesman, Michael Cole.

France Info reported the chauffeur was a security agent at the Hotel Ritz, owned by Fayed's father.

The fourth person in the car, a bodyguard, was also seriously injured in the crash.

Diana died at the Hospital de la Pitie Salpetriere in south-central Paris.

Before news of the death, a Buckingham Palace spokeswoman in London said Prince Charles, now in Balmoral, Scotland, had been informed of the crash.

``We are aware of this awful accident, but we are awaiting further details about what has happened,'' the spokeswoman said on condition of anonymity.

American tourists Tom Richardson and Joanna Luz were among the first on the scene.

They told CNN they were walking nearby when they heard the crash and ran into the tunnel.

The car Diana was in ``looked like it hit a wall,'' said Richardson, of San Diego.

``There was smoke. I think the car hit a wall. A man started running towards us telling us to go.''

Luz said: ``The horn was sounding for about two minutes. I think it was the driver against the steering wheel.''

British Prime Minister Tony Blair, who was awakened with news of the fatal crash, said he was ``shocked and saddened'' by the ``devastating, appalling tragedy,'' a spokesman said.

Fayed's and Princess Diana's close friendship became clear to the outside world over the past five weeks, as the couple took a series of holidays together in the Mediterranean.

Newspapers reported Diana first met Fayed almost 10 years ago when he and Prince Charles played polo on opposing teams. Films he has produced or co-produced include the 1981 Oscar-winning ``Chariots of Fire,'' ``The World According to Garp,'' ``F/X'' and ``Hook.''

On Aug. 21, Princess Diana and Dodi Fayed flew to the French Mediterranean resort of St. Tropez for their third holiday together in five weeks.

Reportedly a multimillionaire, Fayed had homes in London, New York, Los Angeles and Switzerland as well as a garage full of luxury cars. His 1994 marriage lasted just eight months.

Mohamed Al Fayed was a friend of Princess Diana's father, the late Lord Spencer.

In the first week of August, British newspapers speculated that Dodi and Diana were in love. On Aug. 10 a tabloid newspaper published blurred pictures of the couple kissing.

Diana and Prince Charles, heir to the British throne, separated in 1992 after 11 years of marriage and divorced last year.

Last week, Diana told the French newspaper Le Monde that she would have left Britain if it wasn't for her children.

``Any sane person would have left long ago. But I cannot. I have my sons,'' Diana said in the interview.

CAPTION(S):

2 Photos, Map

Photo: (1--color) Princess Diana

Dies in hospital

(2) Police inspect the wreckage of the Mercedes in which Princess Diana was riding when it crashed in Paris.

Associated Press

Map: Pont de l'Alma bridge: Site of car crash killing Princess Diana