Fire guts Nelson hardware store

Press, 3 February 1987, Page 1

Fire guts Nelson hardware store

By

BARRY SIMPSON

in Nelson

Much of Placemakers hardware store in Nelson was destroyed in a fire yesterday morning. Six engines from the Fire Service were called out to contain the fire, which threatened to spread from Placemakers into adjoining properties. Firemen from as far as Richmond fought the blaze on two fronts and managed to contain it to the Placemakers

premises. The fire was the biggest in the Nelson inner-city area since a number of

fires were lit by an arsonist in the mid-19605. 4; ; i j Nelson’s assistant 1 >fire commander, Mr Gordon Mitchell, said a fire-safety officer had inspected the gutted remains but his initial investigation. had

shown nothing suspicious. It is not yet known how

the fire started. A fire alarm within the building sounded at 6.20 a.m, and this was closely followed by a 111 call. The seat of the fire seemed to be at the rear and towards buildings fronting on to Hardy Street. A wooden building known as the Old Stables, which was built about the turn of the century, lies alongside the main ware-

house and store of Placemakers and is part of the company’s operations. "

A fire door and a Concrete wall between the n Wb*'bUiidfiigs-saved the older building from catching fire. It, too, was packed with building materials. To the rear of the

premises concrete walls prevented the fire from spreading towards the historic old Theatre Royal, the Nelson Repertory Society’s headquarters. At one stage the big crowd that gathered was cleared from the area by the police when it became known that a cylinder of L.P.G. was in the building and an explosion was feared. However, Mr Mitchell said the cylinder was only a small one and was brought out without trouble.

Mr Don Andrews, Fletcher Challenge’s , in-, suranCe spokesman, flew to Nelson yesterdhy "to assess the damage. He confirmed that the business and stock were fully insured. He felt the loss could be about $1 million to $1.5 million.