Suspicious fire in haybarn at Islington

Press, Volume CXIV, Issue 33676, 28 October 1974, Page 1

Suspicious fire in haybarn at Islington

Hay worth $lO,OOO was burned in a suspicions fire in a barn at Islington last evening.

A motorist noticed the blaze about 8.40 p.m., and the barn was burning from end to end when the fire brigade arrived.

Firemen, hampered by poor water pressure, took more than an hour to bring the fire under control. Detectives began an investigation of the scene late last evening. The barn, which was filled 1 with hay and lucerne, had] been built only recently to I replace another barn which! burned down 18 months ago. “It is a serious loss,” said Mr D. A. Clifford, chief engineer of New Zealand Refrigerating Company, Ltd. “There was about $lO,OOO worth of hay and lucerne in there, and the bam itself was worth another few thousand. “We will have to buy more hay and lucerne to compensate for the loss.”

n The hay was fed to live--stock before they went '-through the works. ! Engines from two fire sta-’-tions, a water tanker, and the--'works industrial brigade ’Turned out to the fire. Water -pressure was strong for about -10 minutes, but then tailed off, and the fire continued at I-the higher parts of the barn. The corrugated iron sides , - glowed red hot at times with j the heat. Other parts of thei building were ripped off to - give access to the flames, and . a large section of the roof I caved in. A bulldozer was used to ) spread the hay afterwards i for dousing down by the bri- ; gade. “I saw cows being dis- ! turbed right next to the bam • this afternoon, and we are pretty confident that the

cause is suspicious.” said Mr IN. M. Chandler, the works chief fire officer. “Children have played among the hay before—there appears to be little other rea--son for the start of the fire.” Two other hay sheds are near the one burned down, but Mr N. C. McLeod, fore--man of the freezing works, said the one destroyed contained the best lucerne. “It was a good new shed, and had been filled right to the brim with feed,” he said.

The police kept a guard overnight on the barn to preserve the scene for further examination by detectives.