TAUPO BLAZE.

Auckland Star, Volume LXX, Issue 263, 7 November 1939, Page 6

TAUPO BLAZE.

TOWN THREATENED.

SEV'EN-HOtfß FIGHT.

COUNTRYSIDE BLACKENED.

COTTAGES EVACUATED.

(By Telegraph—Special to "Star.")

TAUPO, this day

The fiercest fire ever known in the district last night swept down on the village of Taupo, which is the headquarters of many visiting anglers. Not till the early hours of this morning weie the volunteer lire fighters able to get the blaze under control and stem its advance on the closely-built area. Though the damage is estimated at only a few hundreds of pounds, the charred track of the fire and burned tree stumps make an ugly blot on the lanclsca pe. Believed to have been started from I'luy Fawkes fire- on Saturday and Sunday. the fire suddenly = pran:r to liie in several spits about, one mile from the village. A sliylit breeze from the lake swept the lire cast towards Mount '.liiuhara and dangerously near the palatial residence of Mrs. M. Milburn, of England. At 10 o'clock lact night the wind changed and swept the tire back to the village in a roaring semi circle extending four miles. The vivid glow lit up miles of the countryside. Squads Formed. Squads of lire fighters were formed by Mr. (i. <1. Potts, well-known fisheries ranger and fire warden of the district, and areas skirting the roads to Taupo were back-burned. Several occupiers of cottages in the path of the fire, including Mrs. H. Simcox and her two sons, of Hawke's Hay, and Mr. and Mrs. J. M. Carpenter, of Remuera, were warned by the. warden of the treacherous nature of the fire and to vacate their houses. Cars were loaded with personal belongings, and residents, some clad only in coati? and pyjamas, gathered in the safety of the lakeside road. The women were taken to the home of Mrs. Potts until the danger was over. Twenty employees of the Taupo Road Board under the foreman, Mr. P. Grey, assisted by dozens of willing residents, after a seven-hour fight, finally averted the danger about two o'clock this morning. There was only a flight breeze throughout the fire and residents agreed that had a. north-east wind sprung up nothing could have saved the township of Taupo and hundreds of cottages. Thousands of Pounds Saved. There U no water pressure or firefighting ei]ui|i4iient at Taupo, and residents wen: impressed by the skill of the oflicials in back-burning and beating out the flames at the danger points. Mr. W. H. Hill, local representative of insurance companies, said that only a. miracle saved thousands of pounds of damage and that precautions should he j taken in the future to clear sections and firebreaks. Dr. .T. S. Armstrong, chairman of the road board, stated that the Hon. W. E. Parry had promised recently to bring in legislation to cope with the fire danger at Taupo. It was too late to do anything this year, hut the road board had done its best by clearing the roadsides. The fire was still smouldering at many points this morning and was being watched closely in case of a change of wind.