DOUBLE AUCKLAND BLAZE

Hawera Star, Volume L, 17 February 1931, Page 5

DOUBLE AUCKLAND BLAZE

BUSINESS BLOCK GUTTED

OLD WINDMILL DESTROYED

,By T'e l.-grupli —Prefer Asaociutdoii. j AUCKLAND Feb. 16, The largest fire in AuctkJiand for many years occurred to-night, sweeping a block of four buildings running from Federal Street to Hobson Street. The buildings destroyed are: Modern Shoes, Ltd., incorporating Northern Boot and Shoe Manufacturing Co.. Ltd., Manufacturers and Importers. • Lichenistein, Arnoldson and Co., gum merchants. Warren Engineering Go., Ltd., mechanical and General Engineers. Cairns and Woodward, tent and sail in Hikers The fire burned for several hours, providing a most spectacular sight. Ihe flames shot to a great height At the same time as this blaze was burning a big fire broke out at Partington’s flour mill in Symonds Street. The two outbreaks- raged together, taxing the resource of the fire brigade. The suburban brigades were called in to assist. At first it seemed that the bigger fire would be confined to the premises of Modern Shoes, Ltd., which was a seething inferno. Then suddenly the flames burst into the buildings fronting Hobson Street and soon the fourstoreyed premises of Liohenstein’s were ablaze. The fire spread with amazing rapidity. Warren’s and Wairn’s were soon enveloped by huge flames which were now burning fiercely over a wide area. It soon became evident that the four buildings were doomed. For isome time sheets of fire rose from the doomed buildings, the walls of which began to fall. The roar ot explosions, the flash of fire leaping upwards, and the crash of the falling debris made the scene terrifying. Gradually the upper hand was gamed and the. spread of the flames were checked but not before the fire had been burning for two hours. It is impossible to estimate the damacre. Meanwrile the historic Auckland landmark known as the Old Windmill, situated off Symonds Street, had become a blazing inferno, flames having spread to it from an adjoining wooden garage. The flames soon attacked the interior of the mill, which is a brick structure, the lower portion pf which has been standing almost since the birth of Auckland ninety years ago.. Soon after the city brigade attacked the fire its forces had to he divided owing to the serious fire in the heart of the city. For over two hours leads of water were trained on the interior of the mill, where stores and a vast quantity of wheat were stored. Leads wore played on to the roof, to which the flames rapidly spread. The water had small effect and the firemen were hampered in getting at the root of the blaze owing to the fact that they could only direct the water through apertures in the wall mostly at a considerable height from the ground. The mill originally had four sets of sail, but only two were in existence at tlie time of the outbreak. The fire, which was highly spectacular, spread to the sails, but did not completely destroy them. T.he owner of the mill is Mr. J. Partington, who will probably be a heavy loser as the stocks within were uninsured. He believes the insurance on the mill is only £2OO to £3OO. It w T as impossible to inspect the interior late to-night, hut it is feared that the machinery for operating the. mill, which did not rely solely on sails, had been 1 irreparably damaged.