FOREST FIRE

New Zealand Herald, Volume LXXVI, Issue 23277, 21 February 1939, Page 8

FOREST FIRE

STATE PLANTATION . 200 ACRES SWEPT FLAMES CROSS BREAK WORKERS' PROMPT ACTIOS £by telegraph—press association! CHRISTCHTJRCH. Monday A fire in the Balmoral State forest planation was confined to-day to an area of 200 acres by the action of five 1 forestry workers, who extinguished $ fresh outbreak beyond a firebreak. The area partly destroyed was planted in young trees, some of which are ex« pected to revive if there should b$ rain.

The fire was the first to occur iij the Balmoral plantation since it -was opened in 1916, but is the second iis North Canterbury within a week, the first, which was quickly checked break* ing out at Medbury last week. Spectacular Blaze Starting at the north-western en 3 of the 24,000-acre forest about seven miles from Culverden, and fanned by a north-west wind, the fire soon got out of control. The spectacular blaza attracted people from as far away as Hanmer, and at the height of the fire,, which begsn about 2 p.m., 150 people were fighting it with shovels. Thejj scraped away the thick ground cover* ing of needles from the pinus insignia trees. The thick undergrowth of old manuka scrub' made the checking of the-fire difficult.

Disaster to the Balmoral forest wag threatened at one stage. The method of fighting a fire by starting another fire at the break was used near the * junction of the Shortcut road and-the Takoa road, but a spark set the old trees across the road alight. Fresh Outbreak The fresh outbreak wa3 foughf" courageously by five forestry worker! with shovels. Fortunately there was a lull in the wind and the danger of a serious spread of the fire had passed. By 6.15 p.m. the fire was under control, but a watch, superintended by Mr, H. Roche, of the Hanmer Springs "branch of the State forest service was 1 maintained throughout the night orer the charred block through which thd fire had swept. FARMS THREATENED CANTERBURY OUTBEAK : . J TREES AND STOCK BURNED DAMAGE ON CHURCH PROPERTY £BY TELEGItA.rH OWN* CORRESPONDENT} CHRISTCHUBCH, Monday Farmers called out of their horned just before midnight on ' Saturday fought through the early hours of the morning against a grass fire which threatened serious damage at Leeston.' Many hundreds of trees, more than a mile of fencing, a stack of oatshmes, a stack of liay, and two pigs were destroyed. The outbreak was first noticed about 11.15 p.m., by which time the fiamea had secured a good hold. There was a strong north-west wind blowing when' the alarm was given, and men from all the surrounding farms were quickly ori the scene.

An hour later appeals for morg helpers were sent out to the townships of Leeston, Doyleston and Southbridge, and soon there was a large army pf fire-fighters at work. Their efforts were* however, badly hampered by the lack of water, and the flames continued to sweep down the boundary fence in * southerly direction toward the maid Leeston-Soutfibridge road. About two chains from the point where the fire started a pigsty and two pigs o'lvned by the cemetery caretaker were destroyed. Pinus insignis trees adjacent to the fence on the cemetery, property caught fire and the blaze went! on, consuming the fence, grass* and trees, and eventually reaching a width of five or six chains on the cemetery reserve and destroying hundreds oj well-grown pine trees. On reaching the end of the burial ground, the flames travelled along .& fence and eventually into a property! held by Messrs. Free Brothers, where« in spite of the strenuous efforts of tM fire-fighters, a stack of oat sheaves ana one of hay were destroyed.

About three o'clock in the morning the wind changed to the south, 3D® enabled tho fire-fighters to get control*