THE SCENE FROM GREY STREET

Dominion, Volume 1, Issue 205, 23 May 1908, Page 5

THE SCENE FROM GREY STREET

THE PARCELS OFFICE. ■ The scene 1 from Grey Street, though not' so luridly spectacular as that, from PanamaStreet, was still a striking one.' Between" tho wooden building which accommodates the Parcels Branch, and another wooden building formerly occupied by Mr. L. L. B. Wilson and tho - Inspector of Weights and Measures, a broad entrance way leads to two-storied wooden premises, containing tho ■ Public Works Department's storeroom, a room ifor. registered letters, and other quar- : tors of the Postal . Department.. In this building was formerly situated part of the mechanicians' branch of the Telegraph Do* partment, but their valuable equipment- had fortunately been removed to otlior quarters. ' Over this ancient wooden building, on the Panama Street side,, hung hugOj billowing masses of smoke, while flaming pieces of paper and sparks .innumerable wero whirled about by tho violent northerly wind. 1 A - largo door into the lower promises from Grey Street was' opened to assist salvage -, operations, and to admit of lines of- hoso ' being carried into the building and,up tho narrow-stairs. This caused a passage to ho opened up right through to Panama Street, through which a strong draught raged, aiding the. progress of the flames. Tho right- ■ of-way was flooded with water, and hot water came through tho floor above from' the bum- ■■ ing premises. From tho main Post Offico building, overlooking this structure, one of tho brigade's lines of hose, and several internal hoses belonging to tho Postal Depart- ' ment, poured their constant streams upon ; the flames. At, one time there, were seven firomcn working from this'coign of advan. tage. . ■

SALVAGE OPERATIONS." In the Parcels Office, an old wooden building facing G roy Street, willing hands were busy from tho commencement' of tho fire v: piling , parcels into hampers for ' removal i..'" either to Nathan's buildings, across the. road, or into; the adjacent mailroom, which forms part of, the mam building,: whence they could be removed ; at a 'moment's notice 5 should : necessity arise.' All the parcels were got out, except a small quantity which arrived by tho Athcnic, addressed to business men in-the'city.. These ; being upstairs, had to bo 'abandoned to their fate; "and bettfeen the ! tw6< perils of firo and'-w ? ater thev, aro nob '■, ■ likely to have; come off. very well-; Fortunately the mail stock on' hand was very small; no English mail having been received for several , days. A quantity of insured goods, in an upstairs room, was safely removed to Messrs. Nathan and Co.'s buildings across the "road: Tho Dead Letter Office,' ; being in the same building as the Parcols Department, was also in- tlio direct lino of tho flames. A largo basketful of 'letters was saved, but most of-the dead-letter par- ' cols woro destroyed. Some of tho records were : rescued, . but most of: these were also lost. Somo members of tho Post, and Tele- 1 • graph Rifles did goodservico in connection with tho salvago operations. .. ': , "'■'•■ si UNDER CONTROL. - < Soon'after, ,10 o'clock 'it was announced ' ! that the brigade had the control, and that there was no .danger of its reaching tho main building, i The news "was very ! welcome to the. anxious "workers,; many of whom, . 1 with faces bandaged to ■ keep tho. smoko from their eyes, had spent a trying : time shifting parcels'! and mails from tho fire- ■. threatened promises. . . , V ■' In tho State Firo Insurance Office, on tho south-west corner of. the block, a clearago of conteiits was made when the lire first broke out. Tho flames, however, never found their way in this direction. The employment agency .■ : of the Labour Department'hid'vacated an-... ■• other old building of the block, facing. ' Fcathorston Street, ■ only 1 a fow days beforo.

AN ELEVATED VIEW.

DESPERATE FIGHT ACAINST THE FLAMES. ' V:j ■'* A' representative of ■ The Dominion wat, ;;:'i\ beating 'his uncomfortable .way amidst the suffocating smoke and sparks ooi the southern :. - : :.■>! side,of tho, blazing pile, and sought shelter,. • ; in the doorway of Nathan's buildmg, ; whors ho was invited to view tho blazo from the top, ■. ■■■ ( of tho warohouse. The climb was'repaid by J an excellent view of the'fire : . ' On tho way up , 1 to the top of tho building it-was noticod that , . 1 tho. whole.,6f tho fire apparatus in tho big:-"' Trarehouso was 1 ready;, in : caso'it should bo . n needed.' The flames' spread, from Fay and Company's building, on tho corner of Psnama Street, to tho Central Chambers, Feather- V . ston-Street, with grest-rapidity, and thon bo-. . gari to.'-cat their way along the. Panama' Street frontage until stopped by the-brick 7 wall of tho Post Office.' At about 9.50, tho w\;o!o of tho block, from the corner down to . i the back of'tho Post Office and over a third of the way through to Grey Street, was a - mass ! of, flame, which,- fanned by tho gale, ! appeared to be almost beyond control.: Tho roofs of tho burning buildings began to crash ,y. in, and clouds of sparks and smoko woro whirled, iitto" the air by the gale, to the dan- ,: . , ger of the adjoining property. Firemen woro . fighting the flames from every 'vantago point, ■; - leads' Ming'brought into play '"off, tho top of : tho Parcels Branch of tho Post Office, and • from the nortl)-westom oornor, of tho. roof of. . : the Post OfEco propar; Sheets of corrugated iron woro lifted bodily by tho wind' and car- • ried for yards, to the danger of the firemon who wore battling strenuously' against heavy odds. Tho firemen began to gain at length, and moved nearer and nearer to the roaring furnaco, until it was apparent that thoy had got tho upper hand,in tho fight. Blinding squalls of black smoko would bn followed by showors of sparks, which illumined tho wholo vicinity, as tho wind got into ! tho burning .; buildings, and the firemon would bo driven back for, the time, only to advance again and redouble their, energies. .