Traffic Problem At Greymouth Fires: Brigade’s Concern

Greymouth Evening Star, 13 August 1948, Page 4

Traffic Problem At Greymouth Fires: Brigade’s Concern

The habit of many Gr&ymouth residents of rushing to the scene of a fire, as soon as an alarm is sounded, is causing officers of the Greymouth Fire Brigade some concern. En route to the most recent outbreaks, the fire engines were obstructed on several occasions by thoughtless motorists and others, and in <an interview with the Evening Star today the superintendent of the brigade (Mr T. Mclntosh) made an appeal for greater consideration by other road-users when an alarm has been sounded.

Mr Mclntosh pointed out that there was no by-law covering the matter, but it was expected that road-Users would realise that any delays to fire engines on the way to a fire could have serious results. There was no desire on the part of the brigade to cause unnecessary inconvenience, but some people, in their hurry to get to the fire, definitely had been taking traffic risks. Fear of Accident There had been occasions recently, added Mr Mclntosh, when cars and cycles had actually cut in front of the fire engines. Such a practice carried more than the ordinary traffic risk and he was afraid that such practices would lead to a serious accident. It was only commonsense that the fire engine should be given a clear passage as far as was practicable and that could be achieved by other traffic pulling to the correct side of the road and remaining there until the engine got through. At daylight fires, continued Mr McIntosh, similar difficulties had been experienced with children, some of whom took grave risks in running and cycling in front of or just behind the engine. It was realised that they could not be expected to stay away from the fires and all that was asked, as with adults, was that they should keep clear of the roadway until the engines had passed. At the fires, said Mr Mclntosh, the same difficulties were not experienced. The public co-operated fairly well and there were always policemen and traffic officers to assist.if the occasion arose. Difficulties had been experienced, however, through carowners parking their vehicles too close to the scene of the fire, handicapping the brigade in manoeuvring the engines and other equipment. It would be a great help if all vehicles were kept well back from the scene of the fire and the adjacent hydrants. Telephone Congestion It is interesting to note that the same public interest in fires causes difficulty for the telephone exchange at Greymouth. When the fire occurred at the Westland Breweries Ltd store recently, the exchange attendant was called upon within a short period to answer over 800 inquiries as to the location of the fire. Such a deluge of calls places a severe burden on the telephone system and on the staff, especially when fires occur in the early morning, when there .is only a skeleton staff maintained on the switchboards. Post Office officials today stated that it was realised that many of the calls were not made out of curiosity, but were genuine inquiries by businessmen and others who thought they might be directly concerned in the alarm. At the same time, brigade and other emergency calls had to be handled in the few minutes after the sounding of the alarm and the public could assist greatly by refraining from making non-essential calls for the first five or 10 minutes after the alarm was given.