Fire Cuts Telephone Line To West Coast

Press, Volume CVIII, Issue 31588, 27 January 1968, Page 1

Fire Cuts Telephone Line To West Coast

A scrub fire west of Springfield yesterday cut direct telephone communications between Christchurch, Greymouth and Hokitika and interrupted services for some private subscribers.

The Regional Engineer of the Post Office (Mr H. W. Wilkinson) said the fire burnt half a mile of the main link to the West Coast and other lines to Arthur’s Pass, Grassmere, Craigieburn, Cass, and Mount White.

Linemen were quickly on the scene to string temporary lines to restore communications for private subscribers. The Post Office put calls to the West Coast through Blenheim.

Mr Wilkinson said it would be a day or two before his department decided how to make permanent repairs in the area. MT COOK FIRE Fire swept through tussock on the Tasman Valley side of the Hooker River yesterday afternoon. “The temperatures today were extremely high, and it is believed that the fire was caused by a broken bottle,” said Mr D. F. Bell, the Mount Cook National Park Board's chief ranger. Three park board headquarters vehicles, as well as two from the Tourist Hotel Corporation, attended the fire, and water was pumped from the Hooker River.

Twenty-six men fought the fire against a 25-knot westerly wind for four hours and a half from 3 p.m. before extinguishing it with beaters and knapsack pumps. PETROL IGNITES A fire which started in a utility vehicle on Mr W. Reid’s farm at Leeston on Thursday

night endangered a house and hay shed. ■ The Leeston and Southbridge Volunteer Fire Brigades took nearly three hours to control the fire. A drum containing 12 gallons of petrol, which was in the utility vehicle, ignited and set fire to a hedge and willow trees. The brigades confined the Are to about 50ft of the 20fthigh hedge.