HOTEL BURNED TO GROUND

Press, Volume LXXIII, Issue 22167, 10 August 1937, Page 10

HOTEL BURNED TO GROUND

YOUNG MAN’S DEATH AT KUROW I THE PRESS Special Service.! OAMARU. August 9. The Railway Hotel. Kurow, owned by the estate of John Greer, and occupied by Mr - Bert McKitterick as licensee, was burned to the ground in the early hours this morning, resulting in the death of David Alexander Robertson, who was staying at the hotel on Sunday night The fire started about 3 o’clock in the morning, and flames spread rapidly through the building, which was an old one, being a well-known landmark at Kurow for many years Guests were hastily awakened, and most of them had only sufficient time to escape from the blazing building clad in their night attire. In the case of Robertson, however, there was apparently no opportunity of giving him the alarm, and the flames overtook him while he was still in bed. McKitterick, who usually leaves the window of his bedroom open, woke up and thought he could smell smoke. Immediately afterwards he heard the crackling of flames. He rushed up and down the passage of the hotel waking up the guests. He and Mrs McKitterick escaped in their dressing gowns. There were 10 boarders in the hotel at the time, and they all lost their belongings, with the exception of a Mr Griffiths, a traveller, who managed to save his personal belongings, but lost all his samples. * Mr Tom* Duffy, of Omarama, who was staying at the Railway Hotel on Sunday night, awakened some of the boarders, and was instrumental in saving Mr Tom Hollands, who was fast asleep, from the burning building. The origin of the outbreak is unknown, but it is thought that the fire must have begun either from a spark from the sitting-room fire or from a cigarette butt thrown down on the floor.

David Robertson, who was 24 years of age, was the only son of Mr and Mrs J. M. Robertson, of “Fernbrook,” Oamaru. He was born at Timaru. and received his education at St, Kevin s College. Oamaru. He had been working at the Berwen station, Omarama, and had left there to begin work for Mrs T. A. Munro, of Kurow Hill, yesterday morning. The hotel, which was then known as the Bridge Hotel, was burned down in the early summer of 1908, and was replaced by the building just destroyed. . . The office of Messrs Appleby and Son’s garage, about 200 yards away, also caught fire from the heat of the burning hotel, and cars and motor vehicles were removed from the building. The heat also caused the paint at the back of the station building to peel off The building was insured for £2OOO, and the furniture for £ISOO.