FIGHTING FLAMES

New Zealand Herald, Volume LXXIV, Issue 22900, 1 December 1937, Page 12

FIGHTING FLAMES

80 MEN ENGAGED PLANTATION SAVED PROPERTY OF PAPER MILL [by telegraph—own correspondent] WHAKATANE, Tuesday For over four hours this afternoon 80 men fought and finally subdued a serious scrub fire which threatened to spread to the Whakatane Paper Mill's rimu and pinus insignis plantation at Matahina. Before the fire had been brought under control about 1000 acres of fern and scrub and a patch of tawa bush had been destroyed. Workmen engaged on the construction of a new sawmill fired some scrub to clear ground for the erection of cottages, and the fire, fanned by a strong south-westerly Avind, swept through the tawa bush and spread to the scrub country in the vicinity of the plantations. At about 12.45 p.m. the paper mill's office at Whakatane was notified, and all available men, including the male members of the office staff, were rushed to the scene of the outbreak. By the time they reached Matahina the fire was burning on a wide; front in the direction of the most recently planted area. A start was immediately made with the construction of firebreaks, a tractor being used The wind was so strong that several times the fire threatened to cross the firebreaks, and the men had a strenuous time in the full heat of the day beating out the flames with sacks and shovels. Just before o p.m. the wind lulled, and the fire was at last isolated, within a quarter of a mile of the plantations. The main party returned to Whakatane late in the evening after leaving men to watch the burned area and prevent any recurrence of the outbreak. WAIRAKEI OUTBREAK ADVANCE OF FLAMES STEMMED The scrub fire which swept through the Geyser Valley at Wairakei on Monday was extinguished in the vicinity of the township and the Wairakei Hotel yesterday, volunteers and employees from the forestry reserves being engaged all day yesterday in completing the work of stemming the advance of the flames. The flames last evening were spreading toward the top of the hill remote froln the township, but the direction of the breeze indicated that the fire would burn out before morning.