BIG BLAZE IN SYDNEY.

Auckland Star, Volume XLV, Issue 34, 9 February 1914, Page 5

BIG BLAZE IN SYDNEY.

STATE JOINERY WORKS DESTROYED. DAMAGE OVER £30,000. SYDNEY. February 7. A fire aIl »ost wholly destroyed the State joinery works and great stacks of timber, covering three acres, at Rozelle. The damage is ronghly estimated at between £50.000 and £70.000. The weather is very hot, and the wood which was perfectly dry, burned with tremendous rapidity. The houses opposite and in a side street were endangered, and all the furniture was hurriedly removed. The works and stock were fully insured. Over 250 men have been temporarily thrown out of employment. The origin of the fire is a mystery. The watchman made his rounds shortly before the outbreak, and everything was then apparently right. The possibility of spontaneous combustion is being discussed. Though the fire 'brigades arrived quickly the water supply was, for a time, poor, and within half an hour the whole yards were blaze. The heat -was so intense that the firemen were unable to fight the fire at close quarters, and they confined their efforts to preventing its spread to the adjoining premises. Tlie inmates of houses across the street made a hurried exit, lightly clad. The houses were scorched, but most of the furniture was caved.

Ten horses were saved just before the flames caught the stablee. The heat kept the great crowds that assembled at a safe distance. Only a small ehed and a few stacks of timber were saved. The building and timber were insured for £41,155. Arrangements have been made to carry on the business at branch works. Many firms have also offered assistance, and some of the offers have been accepted. The Director of Public works is making arrangements so that the progress of public works shall be affected as little as possible.