PAST YEAR'S FIRES

New Zealand Herald, Volume LXIX, Issue 21377, 29 December 1932, Page 10

PAST YEAR'S FIRES

• tiARGE NUMBER OF CAIXS POSITION IN AUCKLAND ■o .1 I - FEW SERIOUS OUTBREAKS | MALICIOUS ALARMS INCREASE •|; For those whose duty it is to protect ?* the city from fire the past year has been a somewhat busy one, but with only on© really large fire, A study of tho comparative figures shows that, while during the past few years ..there has been a steady decline, both in the number of actual fires and of'total calls, this year there has been a slight increase in the number of fires and a marked increase in the number of calls.

This latter increase, .unfortunately, is largely, accounted for by the excessive number of false alarms by which the brigade's work has been hampered. In 1931 there were 91, but this year there were, 126, half of which were definitely malicious. So recently as last Tuesday evening fodr malicious false alarms were received., There has also been a great increase iin tho number of grass and rubbish fires, which rose from 74 last year to 162 this year. The total of . 545 calls received by the city brigada this year is made up of 193 actual fires on premises, 162 grass fires, 126 false alarms, 53 chimney fires and 11 calls .from outside the board's jdistrict. The following table shows comparative figures:— 1932 1931 1930 1929 Actual fires »« 193 183 224 254 Total calls . .. 545 404 458 487 Precautions Neglected 'A study of the causes of the fires shows that they originate in a wide variety of ways, but in the great majority of cases from neglecting precautions that long experience ought to have made obvious to everyone. "There were, for instance, m/Dre than 50 fires caused this year by "fires in dirty chimneys, 33 by sparks from engines or fires, 34 by fusing of.wires. .Backfiring ol engines, children playing with matches, candles and curtains in too close combination, carelessness with, cigarettes and with benzine, allowing ' inflammable mixtures to boil over ar/d tossing away lighted matches, all contributed their quota to the total. A serious feature of the list is that while only one case of deliberate incendiarism was noted last year 13 fires were attributed to, that cause this year. It may be worth noting that last, Jannary no fewer than '22 outbreaks were started , through the careless throwing down of-matches, and that in the first three months of the year there were over 40 grass and rubbish fire's. At present there are a considerable number of vacant sections which, on account of the long growth that has been allowed to accumulate on 'them, are a menace to surrounding properties at this dry season of the year.- ■ ' '

During the year the brigade lias added to its equipment three up-to-date first-aid tenders to replace others which had been in use from 18 to 24 years. One ratal Accident

There was only oho fatal fire, the victim being a man in Randolph Street, who was so severely injured by the explosion of an oil burner, on March 9 that he died after being taken to the hospital. The superintendent of the city brigade, Mr. W. L. Wilson, is looking forward Jo the introduction of the new ..Metropolitan Fire /Board system on April 1. The whole city and suburban area will then be ~ divided up into four districts- under a; complete scheme' of , unified control. By far the most difficult . and disastrous fire of the year was tljat which was discovered • early on the morning of July 17 in the three-storey brick store of, Winstone, Limited, in Market place, on the waterfront. Both the. building and the contents, consisting of building material and large stocks of kauri gum, were almost completely destroyed, and the damage was estimated at the time at over £60,000. The outbreak was first seen by a night watchman on a near by steamer, and by the time'the fire engines arrived great, masses of flames had burst .through the roof; - • Owing to tho intense heat and the imminent danger of upper floors collapsing it was found impossible to fight the fire frprn within tho building, and the 30 men engaged had to attack it from outside. 'After about two hours' struggle they gained t?he upper hand, but the long fight to subdue the smouldering 'ruins continued throughout the day. Vessels Towed to. Satety , T When the fire was at its height portions ,jpf both side walls collapsed,'and .the front gable end of the ' building toppled over with -a .tremendous crashTwo trading vessels, owned by-Winstone, Limited, and moored alongside the scene of the fire, would undoubtedly have been destroyed by falling bricks and debris had they not been, towed to a place of safety.in time. _ . Anoth'er memorable fire of the yean that which seriously 'damaged the Epiphany Church, Ponßonby, on the night ■ of tho Karangahapo Road riot, April 15. The apparently broke out m tho choir, vestry beneath the sanctuary, and' quickly spread upward through the organ loft., Tlie organ'was soon a charred mass, and' the sweep of the flames alpng_ the roof badly charred the, roof principals and the adjacent timber lining. most serious fire in a private residence that had occurred for some time was that which destroyed the hojjie of Mr. Ernest Davis at Kohimarama early on the morning of May 31. A conservative estimate placed the damage done at £IO,OOO, but the home contained a great collection of art treasures, many of which "were irreplaceable. Tho residence, was a two-storeyed one of 12 rooms, known as "Langford," and previous owners included Mr. W. D. Holgatc, Mrs. N. 'Alfred Nathan and the late. Mr. Neville Newcomb. Among the valuables destroyed •was an extensive library of books dealing with the early history of New Zealand ;which Mr. Davis had intended ultimately to present to the city. fires in Devonport There were two fairly serious fires gt Devonport, one which involved dangerous Work for the firemen breaking out in the Auckland Gas Company's Devonport plant on December 14. Tho fire, was heralded by a big explosion in the exhauster house, which* quickly became a ■ mass of flames. Portions of the roof collapsed from time to time, but fortunately 3io one was injured, and the brigade succeeded in preventing the spread of the trouble to the boilerhouse. Another serious fire was the one which on March 13 gutted a large photographic studio owned by Mr. G. Vaile and damaged two other business premises in the same block of buildings. A,, spectacular fire destroyed a row of ten kilns used in the curing of tobacco ou/4ho property -of tho New Zealand tobacco Plantations, Limited, in Lincoln Road, at Brigham's Creek, on May 3. Tho E j e i of tll ®' firo CQul d be seen for miles, ® 1,10 nois e of many explosions which occurred as the asbestos sides of tho kilns burst was heard several miles away, tobacco to the value of about £SOO was '^r^ ncc 0a th ® gilding ■jwstreyed was' £1500., - ~ $ ' ' - • • . . ,