HEAVY DAMAGE IN FIRE

Press, Volume LXXXIII, Issue 25301, 29 September 1947, Page 6

HEAVY DAMAGE IN FIRE

FLATS AND OFFICE GUTTED

OCCUPANTS’ NARROW ESCAPE

(P.A.) NEW PLYMOUTH, Sept. 28. The biggest fire at New Plymouth for some years gutted a Brougham street office of 16 rooms, and two upstairs residential flats early this morning. The brigade fought the flames for several hours after the receipt of .he alarm at 1.13 a.m., and for a considerable part of that time it was touch and go whether the fire would cross the street to other office buildings. A warehouse adjoining wooden office buildings was saved only narrowly. In escaping, six occupants of th 2 two nats above the office premises lost all their belongings. Miss Erlin Cresswell fell to the pavement while being lowered from the burning building on a blanket by her parents, Mr and Mrs L. T. Cresswell, and is now in the New Plymouth Hospital suffering from scalp wounds and shock. Her condition is reported to be satisfactory. Her aunt Miss S. B. Cresswell, escaped by walking down stairs but flames barred the way to the stairs for Mr and Mrs Cresswell. They climbed through windows on to a ledge overlooking the street, from which they were rescued by firemen With a ladder. Two women occupants of the other flat escaped down the stairs in their night attire. The firm of Duff and Duff, public accountants, and the office of the Automobile Association (Taranaki) lost a large number of papers and records, though steel cabinets protected files to some extent. The electrical supply firm of Porter, Reesby and Company, Ltd., suffered heavily, the stock destroyed being valued at £3OOO, and office equipment at £450. The insurance cover was £1250.

The other occupants, most of whom had bad losses, were P. S. Carrol, public accountant; C. R. Finnerty, land agent; the North British Traders’ Insurance Company; and the United Insurance Company. Fortunately the books of the Automobile Association were being audited and were not in the building. The current year’s records suffered Rttje damage, but valuable records were nearly all destroyed.