OUR Daily Features

Bay of Plenty Times, Volume LXX, Issue 13647, 21 May 1942, Page 2

OUR Daily Features

The following paragraph is taken from the Bay of Plenty Times of fifty years ago. “We regret very much to have to record that another of the flaxmills of this district has been destroyed by fire, namely that of Mr P. Bennet of Te Pukke. On Sunday morning at about 2 o'clock, the men sleeping at the mill were awakened by the smell of smoke and on turn ing out found that the fibre shed was on fire. Immediately after the discovery the flames burst out furiously an it was impossible to do anything to check them, and the fibre store with its contents, and mill were totally destroyed, the grocery store close adjourning however, escaped. The buildings were of iron j with Avood framing, hence the fire j Avas not nearly so destructive, as if they had been all of Avood, the machinery suffered but little injury ex-' cept to the wooden parts, and the shafting. Much of the iron Avill be available for rebuilding as it is but i little damaged. In the store there j Avas one ton of baled flax and about, j four tons of fibre, scutched and unscutched. The origin of the fire is j at present unknoAvh but the loss is j roughly estimated at betAveen £ 200 j and £ 300, There was no insur- .’ ance» |