DISASTROUS FIRE

Marlborough Express, Volume XLVIII, Issue 69, 23 March 1914, Page 5

DISASTROUS FIRE

BIG PRODUCE STORE IN FLAMES.

LARGE STOCKS OF BARLEY AND PEAS DESTROYED.

MESSRS CORRY AND CO 3S ! VALUABLE COLLECTION.

SEVERAL FARMERS CONCERNED.

In the course of one sensational hour or so on Saturday afternoon a material portion of the Maryborough; harvest of 1913-14 was transformed from an influential marketable commodity into a mass of comparatively worthless debris, counting for nothing : m the mercantile circles where it was! a factor of much, consequence j Messrs J. J. Cony and Co.'a iron I building on die river side.of the Blenheim railway station was the most capacious grain store in the district i and, being fully stocked at the time' contained-over 22,000 sacks of malt^ ing barley, about 2400 sacks of seed peaa, and quantities of binder twine > and general merchandise. The col- j loction of barley, it is believed, was I the largest held under one roof in' ftew Zealand. It represented some ! <« per cent, of the last season's barioy output in Marlborough. The I "carry-over" from the previous season was a small one. '■Wei firebells rang out at about two! oclock and imposing volumes of black! smoke, scintillating with sparks^ were j seen to belch up, and, impelled by a fair wind from the south-east roll i over Grove Road and obscure the' Borthern sky; j The grain-dressing machinery in' the building had been operating con-i tinuously for six weeks, being worked! on shifts at high pressure, in order that the urgent requirements of Messrs Corry and Co.'s clients might lie satisfied. Eight men were employed in the store throughout the morning, and six of the staff left for luncheon at one o'clock, Messrs Barrett and Roberts remaining in charge. A number of the men returned at about 1.45, and. . shortly .afterwards it was nptioed that flames;' with^their seat apparentlyvender' or in Ijhie flooring, were- v biarstiing- i out j near ■ tEe 14 ■h. p. '■ gas engine^ driving the Machinery.' The* staff tackled1 the -outbreak promptly, but the nre^ catching the fluff on the bags of grain j filling up all available space, ran j along with lightning rapidity, and,' it is said, attained a fury beyond all' hope of resistance when the gas recep- ! tacleof the gas engine exploded, j "Within a few moments, in fact, the building had to be hurriedly deserted, and one of the staff, Mr Martella, barely escaped. with his life, having to fight 'his way through dense smoke and advancing flames. The cause of the outbreak is wholly speculative.

There • was an unusually large number of people in town!, and the alarm was followed by an exciting rush through the main streets and across the railway line. The whirling traffic and the moving trains constituted not a small source of danger, but the crowds that watched the conflagration assembled and dispersed without accident.

The Fire Brigade responded to the call prompih^ and under the comnisma of Lieutenant A. Jellyman, with Engineer W. Ga'rr / supervising the working of the admirable little j "ifire Queen" uear the Nelson Street bridge, and Engineer G-. Patchett in charge of the "Fire King" at the station, displayed a. high standard of | efficiency. About 3000 feet of hose, —which is said to.be a record length] for a single occasion—was brought i into use, practically all the forces of I the Brigade being employed. The first order was to take a lead of hose across the railway lines, but this was at the outset nullified through the prohibition set up, by the railway officials and' the' necessity of communicating ' witE the- ■stationmaster to obtain his direct permission. Otherwise the water would have been poiircd on to the flames ait a considerably earlier stage. However, it is quite improbable that, under any eircnmstances, it would have been possible to definitely arrest the course of the fine, and prevent the total destruction that ensued. The Brigade stuck to its post until about : six o'clock, when the store and its contents were a heap of ruins, still burning and sn;oiildermg-7-a§j in isM% y Ji_ i 3 to-dayr ;.-■-•■"*-...^..^....... ..,-.,. ..-.-,- - Good service was done by # the Brigade in reducing the intensity of the fire i and lessening the risks to which property in (the neighborhood was subjected. As it was, the menace ■of the thickly flying sparks that trailed over the country in a northwesterly direction, keeping many property-owners and householders on the gui vive, did actually materialise in some instances. A paddock of milled flax abou;t a mile away, belonging to Mr A. Maule, became ignited, some two tons of fibre, valued at £40j ' being destroyed. Mr A. Maule was not protected by insurance. A truck load of chaff at the railway station caught alight, but was not much damaged; and some shavings and loose timber in Wemyss Bros.' yards in Grove Road also required * several buckets of water and1 a good deal of haste. A line of six railway trucks, laden with barley, was standing on tlie sid- j ing extending into Messrs Corry and \ Co.'s store when the .fire broke out, I and before an engine could be brought! into requisition the contents of the two end trucks were in flames. The engine was shunted into position at the nick of time; a man rushed into the smoke to make the coupling; and the trucks were dragged' out of] danger, one of them, having become, derailed, bumping and rattling as < though it would tear up the siding, and showers of golden grain pouring to the ground from the burning sacks. The bulk of the barley and peas was stored by Messrs Corry and Co. in be- i half of clients, whose names, with the j individual holdings, (detailed approxi- j mately) are as follows:—Barley: R. Marfell, 5000 sacks; J. Maher, 1600; D. Bishell, senr., 900; D. Bishell, junr., 800; R. W. Boyce, 800; M. ' Casey, 1000; J. McConway, 1200:' Pike and Son, 1400; J. Gane, 300; F. i Gane, 400; Dodson and Sons, 500: F.j Parker, 800; T. Morrin, 400 ; P.' ■ Meehan; 700; Angus Cameron, 1100; G. Armstrong, 500; Newman 8r05.,! 376; Mr Bennett (Flaxbourne), 600; garter's Estate, 500; J. S. Lucas 100; TL McArtney, 100; James Moiv J??' f°J iL^™* .10Q; M- A"sop (Omalea), 200; ex Levin and Co., 400-

Peas:. W. J Costco, 450 teckff? McLean Brothers, 940; D. Bishell* '& ?; chfr*on, 130; Mr Allt sop 40; Mr Moyle (Flaxbourne), 120* 60; O. W. Parker and Co., SSO oJfe addition the store contained oUw sacJts of dressed barley o'BT^id bvr Messrs Corry and Go. The insurance on the stock (baxleyj and peas) amounts to £16,000, in one> policy held by the Oommercisil Union-j The building, which was erected in! 1908, was insured for £1750 and the machinery for £250, both amounts being in the Commercial Union. The aggregate loe» over and above the insurance will be a heavy ono. It is understood that it will ■ run mix* several thousands of pounds. Messrs)Corry and Co's individual-loss on' theirtown barley, the building, machiiiery] and merchandise will be substantial., It is estimated that it would not be possible to replace the building under*, a sum £1000 greater than the amountl for which it was covered, and jbhei machinery represented a value much: greater than the insurance piaoed art it. ; . . ■ ■"- '■'•

■ It is understood that whatever .sal* vage there may be will be of little bitno marketable account. The barley] and peas appear to have been burjied, smoked, or drenched with water' to. sxioh; an extent as to have beenal-i most wholly deprived.©! any value for? secondary feeding purposes. Speculation has been indulged in as to whether the barley market so far,' as prices aire concerned will be affect- ) ed in£. favor of the producers, but on! this point no authoritative pronouncement can be elicited. . , : :