GRAND STAND DESTROYED

Otago Daily Times, Issue 22432, 29 November 1934, Page 10

GRAND STAND DESTROYED

GORE RACING CLUB'S LOSS (Special to Daily Times) INVERCARGILL, November 28. About 5 o'clock to-night the chief telegraph engineer in Southland (Mr C. S. Plank) and the Otago engineer (Mr A. H. Campbell) were travelling by car south to Invercargill, and when passing the Gore racecourse they noticed the old wooden grand stand cm fire. The building burned fiercely and was soon wrapped in flames. The Gore Fire Brigade attended the fire, but in the absence of an adequate water supply nothing could be done to save the blazing building, and the brigade directed its energies towards preventing the fii'e from spreading to the looseboxcs nearby. The direction of the wind saved other buildings on the course from being damaged. A tractor owned by Mr F. Wallis, jun.. and housed under the destroyed grand stand, suffered severely as a result of the blazing inferno around it, and was rendered practically useless. No insurance was carried on the vehicle. The grand stand was within a very short time reduced to a heap of embers. The cause )f the fire is not definitely known, but it is thought probable that the extreme heat during the afternoon caused combustion through some of tli" glass on the stand. The building wis the original grand stand on the racecourse and was erected between 30 and 40 years ago. Details of the insurances held on the stand were not available tonight, but they were approximately £3OO, held by the New Zealand Office.