FIRE DESTROYS FLOURMILL

Press, Volume LXXXII, Issue 24987, 23 September 1946, Page 4

FIRE DESTROYS FLOURMILL

HEAVY LOSS AT SEFTON

DAMAGE PUT AT 520.000 Damage estimated at £20,000 was caused by a fire which destroyed the main building of the Sefton Flourmilling Company, Ltd., at Sefton, early yesterday afternoon. Stores of wheat and flour, valued at about £12,000, were lost in the fire, and it was thought last night that little, if any, of the mill machinery—worth about £Booo—could be salvaged. The fire, which was first noticed about 1 o’clock, spread quickly, and within a few minutes the whole building was ablaze. The flames were fanned by a strong north-westerly wind, and it was impossible for firefighters to get close to the burning building. Other buildings in the block were not damaged, as the flames were blown in an opposite direction. One of the undamaged buildings contained a smaller mill, and valuable stocks of flour and grain were stored in another. The mill was closed for the weekend on Friday evening, and the cause of the outbreak was not known last night. The machinery in the mill was covered by insurance, but the amount of coverage on the stocks of flour and grain has not yet been determined. Mr J. V. Maguire, a Rangiora telephone operator, who lives near the mill, was probably the first to notice the fire. About 1 o’clock he saw smoke pouring from the skylights of the main building and immediately called the Rangiora Fire Brigade, which was working on two fires in Southbrook at the time. Residents of Sefton were soon on the scene, but efforts to combat the blaze were fruitless. When the brigade arrived the fire had gained such a strong hold that all that could be done was to play water on the adjoining buildings. The strong wind swept the flames across the main road and an electric power pole was destroyed. The heat was so intense that windows in the building were melted. The centre section of the mill was of two storeys, and the upper section housed the heaviest units of the machinery. When the upper floor was destroyed by the flames the machinery crashed through to the ground. The mill, which was built of corrugated iron and wood, was completely destroyed within two hours. It was the intention of the company to transfer the mill shortly to Blenheim road, Middleton.

TWO tfOUSES DESTROYED OUTBREAK OF FIRE AT SOUTHBROOK Fire broke out in a wooden house occupied by Mr and Mrs L. Crampton, Buckley’s road, Southbrook, about 10.30 a.m. yesterday. The Rangiora Fire Brigade was called, but by the time it arrived the, fire was completely out of hand and* the building was destroyed. The flames spread to an adjoining house, occupied' by Mr and Mrs A. Smith. This house -Was also completely destroyed. While on duty at these two fires, the brigade was called to Sefton, where a fire had broken out in the flour milL ___________