THE TOKOMARU'S FIRE

Evening Post, Volume LXXXVII, Issue 103, 2 May 1914, Page 5

THE TOKOMARU'S FIRE

♦ — QUITE EXTINGUISHED FROZEN MEAT NOT DAMAGED. <8T TELBORAPH.— PRESS ASBOCUTIOH.) GISBORNE, Ist May. Questioned by a reporter regarding the fire on the Tokomaru, Captain Bosdet said that the outbreak was in the port coal bunker amidships, which, at .the part affected, contained about 180 tons of coal, this being part of the 1400 tons which the bunker contained. There had been ho appearance of clanger oh the previous day, but, last evening, he had found it advisable to close down all hatches. On removing these this morning it was found that the fire had substantially developed, and this necessitated other measures. The ship's pumps had therefore " been requisitioned, and several leads of hose were directed" into the bunker, whilst a hole was also cut in the deck, through which water was poured. Asked as to' the extent of the damage, the captain said that about 400 bales of wool, stacked near the bridge deck, had been affected by water, and this wool was being unloaded and sent ashore to be dried and rebaled. In response to a further question as to the cause of the outbreak, Captain Bosdet said that, as far as he could tell, it was the heat from the funnel that had penetrated to the coal in the bunker. It had been very difficult to get at the outbreak owing to the quantity of coal in the bunker. Tho steamer is practically a full ship, having loaded at Timaru, Port Chalmers, and Napier. In the course of enquiries, a pressman heard that outbreaks of a minor nature are no uncommon thing on shipboard where large quantities of coal are held in the bunkers, and it appears that there has been a suspicion of lire on the Tokomaru for about ten days. In fact, it was stated on board that the particular pocket of the bunker where the trouble is located had been saturated with water at one of the other ports, and it was thought that the fire had been suppressed. The quantity of water that has been pumped into the vessel has given the ship a decided list, so much so that it was apparently deemed prudent not to attempt to further flood the bunker. Advice was received at 3.40 this afternoon by the local shipping agents that the fire had been extinguished, and that the damage to the cargo was confined to about 400 bales of wool. It is intended to resume loading operations at 4 a.m. to-morrow. The ship's agents advise that the damage is confined entirely to° the bunker and the wool in the adjoining hold, and that the cargo of frozen meat is in no way afl'ected. It is impossible as yet to ascertain to what extgnt the ship . .hei'self IB dama£ed t