SOUTHBRIDGE FIRE

Ellesmere Guardian, Volume XLIII, Issue 2567, 19 April 1922, Page 3

SOUTHBRIDGE FIRE

8-ROOMED HOUSE DESTROYED

On Monday morning aft eight-roomed two storey house, situated in " Broad street, Southbridge, and owned by Mr Walter Silvester, was completely destroyed by fire. Mr Silvester recently bought the property from Mr H. J. Sutton and had lately been engaged cleaning up the section and cutting the fences. On Monday morning he had a small fire, covering about) a square yard of ground, some ten yards distant from the house, and burnt a quantity of thorn fence trimmings. He had finished (:he job and the fire had gone out quits half ;iu hour when he heard a crackling noise and lookng up saw smoke coming from the south east corner-'of the .:ouse.. Mr Silverster called for assistance, but none was forthcoming. He rushed to the back of the house and secured a ladder and dashed several buckets of water on the corner of the house where the fire was located and' tkeu hurried inside and up the stairs with buckets of water, but the fire had too good ;i hold for Mr Silvester to put it out single-handed. Had assistance been forthcoming the property would most likely have been saved. The township

firo fighting plant "arrived when the flames had a good hold, but there was

no water supply near at hand and the engine could not be used. A shed at 'the back of the house was saved. It is surmised that a spark from the small rubbish fire must have settled amongst some rubbish*" in the guttering, of the house, and, fanned by a south-west breeze, caused the timber to catch fire. Mr Silvester was not sure whether the house was insured or not. There was a policy of £300 on the building some two years ago, but whether it was continued by Mr Sutton could not be ascertained yesterday. Mr Silvester is, however, a heavy loser, as the house was in fairly good condition.