FIRES.

Lyttelton Times, Volume CVI, Issue 12585, 21 August 1901, Page 5

FIRES.

[Peb Press Association.] WELLINGTON, August 20,

A fire broke out at four o'clock this morning on the top floor of Jacob Joseph's five-storey warehouse on, Lambton Quay. The ground floor of the building is occupied by the Waii-arapa, Farmers' Co-operat-ive Association,'tie two next floors by the Government Labour Department, tion and. Census Offices, and Official Assignee, and the Conciliation Board's rooms, and the top floors by the Wahwapa. Farmers' Co-operative Association, for merchandise,, chiefly chaff. The two top fiats were gutted, but the'damage in lower portions of the building was confined to that done by water.

The building was insured in .the Commercial Un-loii Office for £BOOO, and the fittings and fixtures in the same Office for £IOOO. Of the total amount, £SOOO was reinsured, as follows : —New Zealand. Office, £ISOO ; Roval Office, £IOOO ; Liverpool, London, and Globe Office, £1000; Standard Royal and Victoria Offices, £SOO each. Tiie Waira.ra.pa Fawners' Association's stock was insured in the Phoenix Office for £5300, which amount .has been reduced' by reinsurance to £2300.. The fire entails a serious loss to two public Departments. The Census Department had fifty-two clerks employed on details of its work, and'JiM the information used by them, that would, be of value to.tin© Old Age Pension Office and Insurance Department, besides the data-, ar,e, irreplajceably destroyed. The Valuation' Department had: from twenty to forty men engaged on work connected nvitih the valuation of Numbers 2 and 3 dastricts,' extending from New Plymouth on the one side and East Cape on the other, right down to Marlborough and the end of the West Coast gold fields. A largo part of their, papers, which were set out in the offices, are reduced to pulp, and other parts will have to be re-written at great expense. Considerable loss.has wis© been suffered in the Official Assignee's Office. The Fire Brigade worked admirably in checking the fire.