OPERATING UNDER DIFFICULTIES.

Dominion, Volume 1, Issue 102, 23 January 1908, Page 7

OPERATING UNDER DIFFICULTIES.

When the .alarm was given an operation was proceeding in tho operating theatre. Tho attending nurses, all oscopt one, were sent flying to help in the women's wards while.Dr. Stevenson finished the operation with thoi aid of tho ono nurse.-

S It was, probably a unique experience, for : all parties. Outside were the roar' of the > • fire, tho shouts of tho crowd, the hiss of: the' 1 ' , water being thrown on the fire, arid other i diiiconcorting; noises, But in the operating ! tlieatro, which is next,, to the Marks AVard, I tho operation proceeded as though there -woro nothing unusual to distract attention ' or discompose tho general procedure. }- The main corridor between' AVard -No.. 6 and tho Marks AVard, was blocked during tho fire by an iron door. Though the lire did not come up to tho door, the heat to which it was subjected was iritcriW.;; ; ;_The' patients iri- AVard No., 6, though very .'much , . excited by the proximity of tho' firo, did . not havo to bo moved. .Their only regret was .tlwt they could not get up and give assistance in checking tho. fire. • - The firo was watched by a crowd of several hundred persons, many of whom gavo' valu-' • able, assistance in moving 'rescued; furniture' to places of safety. .There was ' a strong force of polico present, and admirable order .. maintained by'them. Inspector r G.illieS d called out every riian,;'and, : ' under his direction, the services rendered were invaluable. At no time was the crowd -'; permitted to too closely approach the' build- ' ' J n ? 3 , or -I* o .'hamper tho'-operations' of the' ■; brigade. •-• /■ ' ' VICTORY FOR THE BRIGADE. ' ' - 'An hour nfter tho alarm was given- the -■ fire still, maintained..a ,tenacious grip, 1 and ; struggle for mastery weht doggealy'oii'.' Every now, and again the grimy, sweating, ;/< I.LCO of a- fireman would appear through, a ; It slate roof iu search of fresh ajr.. 11.30. tho fire .was. still advancing against , . • 'the wind, the, staircase and other, heavy'- . : timber burning fiercely. The northern upper, h oalcony-, remained unharmed, , s'avo for the • roof being' burned.; .A. quantity of .fur- ; mt-iiro massed in chaotic confusion forlornly. • J- a ceaseless deluge of water f . above, whilo vascs of flowers (not- even.these : : were overlooked in the. process of refreshment . from', the ; all-pervading, ' dampness., Firemen toiled up' and down ana ■ goiuid about with swelling lengths of ,hose,', , .wnilo members of _ aii' excited populace shouted adyice andi incoherent .directions. .. flowevcr, fight,, was vigoiou'slv susand by 12.30 all . danger o'f . the, .: conflagration s further spread.. was: at an end. Jhe buuding, was not equipped with. 1 apparatus, and conse- ; quently, .when the brigade 1 arrived, it was. ! called upon to operate-iwith a,, task besot ': >with peculiar difficulties. Tho slate roof arid J the piaster ceilings opposed serious obstacles i in the; way of getting at the seat of the 1 - f if S' '.wEwh.. swept along overhead, , I for the full length of the building., there ' P a rty walls to check its progress.- J Ihe threo chemical engines had done ar. osefu] service before the two steamers (stationed at the . Antigua Street Bridge),-ar'- 'i rived, and assistance was-also obtained ,;from 1 sne Sydenham high pressure supply.; .( A CHAT WITH THE MATRON. ,1 ; Matron Ewart, who directed; the delicato •- ■ operations connected with the removal of the patients with the utmost coolness and skill, 1 m the course of a conversation with, a re- f , ■ porter, stated that shortly; aften: ten o'clock ' smoke was noticed by one of the'nursing : sisters to .be issuing from the. ventilator in> * h ®, ceiluig of the,second;floor;- between the " Children s and Female Surgical AVards. Kimuitaneously flames wore seen -'bursting trom the ventilator, from outside, the'cause 1 most Jikely being an accumulation'of spar-- ■, rows nests, among which a; spark from-one i't of the adjoining, chimneys may have lodged. ' Une ot the men- gave: the alarm,, and: the ; { work of removing the.patients was.immedi- • ately proceeded .with." . - - r • : 5 . "The, doctors and the^^' general; public helped ' }l s the speaker contnnied, "and ;■ there was little or no coiifusion. Jf 'the fire : t-, had occurred,at nighttime; there is 110 sav-' l\ ing wnat might havo happened,' seeing thatJitt'o or'no outside holp would have been at i +1 u u see,- some of the patients had '• t ; ' to-be brought out safely in a little;-over'five 11 :■ minutes. Ihero-wcro elevdn/children, eight-- v 5 een women, ' and twenty-four - men under- : •i 111 % ward at the time.' •: •« f, nji.ive had;->iJiumerous ofFers of - assisti ance. lliej.Edudatio«;'Board••has.«offeredi:-.\ir '? ? - accommodation at the AVest Christchurch' acliool,'. and others. havo been equally kind . feomo of the children are fit to be 'sent to lcn .. . ? mes * Some of those patients who are iairly convalescent:will be able to leave,and the chronic . cases we can' make nro- k vis'on for elsewhere. So, ,011 tho' whole, wo , should bo able to manage-without much diffi- •" culty. Of course,' it. will be -inconvenient for; ■ that^" 6 ' we- shall: have 'to put .Up . with' -Jj : '■ --.'V' 'd THE DAMACE-INSURANCE IN STATE - OFFICE. . 1: Most of thp roof, with tlio exception - of; * portions along the western , side., and the 'h northern end, has been demolished, tlie v beams and ceiling being also destroyed. Otherwise the chief damage lias been 'sus- B tamed in the vicinity of: tlie'staircase.;and q VYffO ■ ' w ' l^l ' 0 tbo . fire raged • tlie fiercest.'- ,•'< ' Ihe ground floor,, with the exception of the +, part near the stairway, is practically 1111- ' touched by fire, but is extensively damaged lv by water. All of the floors, are intact. 'Jhe outer walls enclosing the pai'ts destroyed ap- w pear 10 be uninjured, bui may crack' in the « process of cooling. Very little, furniture was dcstroyedi' jlucli "" of it, of course, , is damaged) but most of it' ~ T'-Ln 01 ! 10 ,"I' 1" I'udding was insured for tJoOOO in the State oflice, and it is antici- r ' pa ted roughly that tlie work of restoration '' Will involve an expenditure of between £2000 A ' and £3000. The furnishings and, appliances di were uninsured, but - tho loss under that P l bead nil not bo very'.grcat., Tho fire was ■ completely subdued by one o'clock, and 110- se thing rtinained but to extinguish tho m sniouldering embers. 18'J"° lnan IU ' (S a I'd was opened in pi

iv; DESCRIPTION OF THE BUILDIHC. I. -; _ The Christchurch Hospital is beautifully j situated, with green lawns .sloping down to tho Kiver Avon, where it is most used for boating. From tho point of view of the t, building, it is unfortunate -that' tho fire i • should lirive broken out in the new brick t/ , portion rather than in tho old wooden strucwhich, in parts, is almost-crumbling with ago. This part-of the building is constructed on a high concrete - baso, tho walls being of wood, covered extcrnallv with iron and plastered within. It will-probably bb necessary beforo ■ many - years have passed to rebuild this portion in brick.' ; - ' -r. lllO opo'ftnig theatre adjoins the -fyinan .Marks section, which was the parf _ allccted by the. lire. Separate from tho -hospital proper is tho ■"nurses' department a brick building, to which a- large addition has ,|iist been made. Christchurch has also ; " an infectious "diseases hospital at- Bottle V' .Lake, a few miles from the city, with" lar"e > surrounding.grounds, on which' tent acconi'--I modalion, has often been provided in tho past for patients suffering from infectious complaints.,