FIRE ON TUG-BOAT

Gisborne Herald, Volume LXVII, Issue 20142, 11 January 1940, Page 6

FIRE ON TUG-BOAT

DAMAGE TO KARORO BLAZE IN ENGINE-ROOM IGNITION OF PETROL A fierce blaze in the engine-room of the motor ship Karoro, 88 tons gross register, broke out at 9 o’clock last night, while the vessel was working in the Bay, and was not brought under control until half-an hour later. The steel-lined engine-room did not suffer materially from fire damage, but much of the paintwork was ruined. The vessel is a wooden tug-boat owned by the Gisborne Stevedoring Lightering Company, Limited, and the cargo space was filled with frozen meat at the time of the fire. The outbreak was caused by the contents of a four-gallon tin of petrol spilling and becoming ignited by contact with the dynamo. The alarm was given promptly by the chief engineer. Mr. N. Brown, who took speedy measures to quell the flames. As with all petrol fires, the spread of the flames was immediate and soon the greater part of the engine-room was alight and being fed by waste oil. | Anxious Time The engineer was forced back immediately and he and the master of the vessel. Captain A. Thomson, fought the blaze from the top of the engineroom’s steel ladder. The two men had an anxious time because of the nature of the cargo and their difficulty in reaching the seat of the wide-spread fire with the available fire entinguishers. It was not long before the plight of the ship was noticed and a lead of hose was sent aboard from another vessel in the Bay, and a fresh supply of extinguishers was made available. The petrol fire was not long in burning itself out, but numerous other small outbreaks had to be subdued. It was not necessary to use the hose. Mr. Brown was considered to have had a fortunate escape from serious burning. He and Captain Thomson were not even scorched, and received the congratulations of several of the waterside workers on the tug on the efficient manner in which they had tackled their task. The vessel was able to complete her operations in the Bay without further interruption. The manager of the company, Mr. I. J. Quigley, said to-day that the main damage had been to the paint work in the engine-room. It was not known if the dynamo had suffered to any serious extent.