FIRE ON THE MANUKA.

Ashburton Guardian, Volume XLVI, Issue 10685, 31 December 1925, Page 4

FIRE ON THE MANUKA.

SLIGHT DAMAGE TO CARGO. VALUABLE RAMS SMOTHERED. (Per Press Association.) DUNEDIN, This Day. The Manuka is a vessel of many troubles. Her list was added to last night, when, a little before 10 o'clock. smoke was seen pouring out of No. 2 hold in dense columns. The fire had a firm grip below, and three or four leads that were directed into the hold! seemed to make no- appreciable difference. An attempt was made to get below with the aid of a smoke helmet, but the smoke was too thick, and the undertaking too dangerous. The difficulty of dealing with the' outbreak was intensified by the fact that a consignment of rubber tyrea created dense" black smoke. Close alongside the material actually on fire were eight valuable motor-cars in cases, but as far as has been ascertained the damage to them is slight. Four valuable stud rams from Melbourne were smothered.

It is probable that the damage to the cargo is small, except by water, smoke, and steam. Captain "Whybrow, his chief officer, and the deputy fire superintendent (Mr Salmon) took charge of the under-deck fighting, and four leads of hose with, special pumping plant reached the actual seat of fire an hour after the alarm was given. The origin of the fire is not known. The four rams smothered were insured for £BOO. They were shipped at Bluff, to be transhipped at Wellington, for the Argentine. The structional damage to the vessel is practically nil. Several bales of flax were soaked by water, and cases containing motor-cars were charred, but no damage was done to the vehicles. The Manuka is expected to sail today.

Over 50 passengers' from Melbourne booked to Wellington transferred to the Mararoa, which sailed this morning. Some Lyttelton passengers went by rail.

DELAY IN DUNEDIN. SHORTAGE IN THE CREW. DUNEDIN, December 3©: A shortage in the crew of the Union Company's intercolonial passenger steamer Manuka was responsible for* the vessel being held up at" Uunedin to-night. The vessel arrived at 8 a.m. to-day from Melbourne via Bluff, and was timed to.sail at 4 p.m. for Lyttelton, Wellington, and Melbourne. Two ordinary seamen signed off the articles, during the day, and the company's representatives obtained the services of only one man. Several members of the stokehold crew wer© ashore when the Manuka was ready for sea. These men, however, returned about 6 p.m., but the ship was still short of her complement. The services of another ordinary seaman could not be obtained, and as the ship had missed the tide, her departure was postponed until midnight. When a notice was posted up to .this effect, many passengers and members of the crew spent the evening ashore. The detention of the Manuka cannot be attributed to job control on this occasion, as the engineers stated last night that all members of the stokehold crew were accounted for. The Manuka's draught would have prevented her from negotiating the channel at dead low water. The Manuka has been held up at every port of call during the past few weeks. All these hold-ups were attributed to job control. She was detained at Melbourne on December 24 for four hours owing to several stokehold hands being absent from the ship. The vessel has over 115 through passengers from Melbourne on board.