CHRISTCHURCH HOSPITAL FIRE.

Dominion, Volume 1, Issue 103, 24 January 1908, Page 8

CHRISTCHURCH HOSPITAL FIRE.

';1 ' » ; HOW THE PATIENTS WERE SAVED. STATEMENT BY THE MATRON. '. A LADY PATIENT'S ACCOUNT. * |BY TELEGRArn—SrECIAI. COURESPONDENT.) Christchurch, January 23. The following accounts by. the matron and a lady, patient of the hospital, .taken from the "Star's" report of tho fire yesterday, aro of, interest A la'dv patient said that as she was not in a bail stato she was nearly tho last to leave , the ward. "The fire,brigade.was there very quickly," she said. "I was in a small room, and 1 hardly saw the smoko before tho men came along. Thero .was a groat rush to get the patients out, . because there were so many to "come d'ojvii. There- were sixteen women in tho surgical'"ward, and some children. They went down first; wlnleled out in their cots, as fast is''they could be. ■ • "Of course, ive who wore : able to look after ourselves; had to- wait and .walk down tho stairs, and it wasn't very nice. Tho fire got through'the ceiling'of the landing while sonic of the patients' were lying there waiting for the lift, and it looked very nasty to them. Some ■of theni got a bit hysterical, and no wonder.' "When I went out tho fire seemed. just over my head. -There was 1 ono woman who was operated on about seven o'clock last night, and she got out first, becauso of the rist.of- leaving lior in the smoke. THE' NURSES WORK SPLENDIDLY. ' "The. nurses, worked splendidly. They got all -dirty, ; .and torn, _ and wet, but they went at it like Britons. They are splendid women. They had to work hard from the start, first of all helping the men to carry tho patients, and then working with them with* the furniture." ' * Thp matron of the hospital, when interviewed, admitted freely that she had been " run nearly off,, her legs by reporters and such people.'' She told the "Star'' representative that an alarm was given by'the sister of the' women's ward, and work was at onco commenced in bringing out the patients. First' the children, then the women, and then' tho men from thc ( ward below wore • brought out. Those who could not leave their-beds were carried, in them, and brought'down in the lift. "I cannot say how grateful I am for all tho help we received," the matron said. "The public came ; in and helped splendidly. Anyone that knew anything at all of hospital work came, and ,did .all they could. ■ WHAT MIGHT HAVE HAPPENED. •' "I am afraid to think of what' would have happene'd if . tho fire had taken place at night; Thero wouldn't have been enough help availably to get all the patients out, and ■ someone ' would have suffered. , As it was, wc saved all the furniture of the men's ward, and; a/great deal from upstairs, though a lot) of bedding and lockers; were destroyed. ' The,! nurses all worked very well indeed. It was a very good thing, too, that the patients' behaved so well. One or ■two women wero upset by the fright, but we had very little trouble with them. ,".The.children .were very good, and though some of them were frightone'd at first, especially; by the smoke, they calmed down when we told 'them they were safe. Thero were 18 women in No. 8, 11 children in the children's ward,'- and about 28 men in the a'ccidenti ward. ' "■The'-difficulty of accommodating all tho patients was not/ insuperable ,because some of tho convalescents and a few'chronic cases that could wait had'been discharged by Dr. 'Fleming to/mako room. ' "The Charitable Aid Board, Nurse. Maude, and St; Mary's Home Trustees had all offered the use of their institutions, so that there would bq sufficient accommodation in any case. . ." The. ordinary work of the hospital had to ,gp on throughout the fire. The wards, except for the disturbance caused by moving the . patients,- seemed, much "'the same as ever, and . the '.casos,.were attended to just as if nothing was happening;" ■ There are some things that attend no mail's bidding, 'and the officers of life and death have to proceed regardless of siich turmoils as do not intrude directly upon them. ' A pathetic incident of the routine, in the shape of'a funeral leaving the hospital morgue, marked one stage in the progress of the fire. THE ELECTRIC INSTALLATION. ,(«V TELKGRAVII —9PECIAI, t'OUHKSPONDKNT.) * - Christchurch, January 23. There appears good ground for the belief that the lire.at the Hospital was not' caused by the'fusing of 'tho eloetric light wires, as was suspected at first. The electric installation was at one time, however, not entirely satisfactory, and it remains to be proved whether even now it is as perfect as it should be. . The statement m'ado at yesterday's meeting of the Hospital Board by the local manager of the State Fire Insurance Department to the effect that he had suggested to his head office that an examination of tho installation by ail expert should be made, and that the head, office had agreed to the suggestion provided the Hospital Board had no objections, seems to support tho idea that doubt existed as to tho efficiency of the installa-

tion. It may bo mentioned that early last month a firo occurred in the engine-room at the Hospital due to the fusing of an electric wire, some of the-lining above the engine room having caught. The firo was quickly put out. The Secretary of the Hospital Board (Mr. W. M. Millar), whim asked to-day by a Press reporter as to the condition of the electrical insulation, said: " "We expcctcd that the installation would be, blamed for the out- ' break, especially when there is : gas to lie sold. There never have been any defects in thri installation, at least wo have never been aware of them, and there has been no occasion to have the installation specially inspected. ' When it was put in about ten years ago the then inspector for the Underwriters Association said that it was the finest installation that he had ever seen. In December last a new double pole switchboard was put in, and other improvements effected. These alterations made it possible for the electricity being absolutely cut off from any part of the institution. I am perfectly satisfied that the installation is safe and efficient."