TRAPPED BY FIRE.

Poverty Bay Herald, Volume L, Issue 16499, 4 August 1924, Page 8

TRAPPED BY FIRE.

MAN ’S TEliillßLE LATE,

ATTEMPTING TO SAVE ROUGES,

SYDNEY, July 24. —Encircled by flames while Eying to save horses from the burning stables of Mr. W. E. Budd. a carrier, James Sullivan, was burned to death. Twelve horses perished with him, but 52 had been released before he was trapped in a corner.

Mr. Budd had 20 lorries and 04 horses in the stalls at six o’clock last evening, when Sullivan, who. .-ras his nightwatchmaa, came on duty. Three-quarters of an hour later Arthur Jones, a stableman at Budd’s, recejvpd news that the stables were on fire. He raced down to the stables, and by that time all the stalls, which cover almost three sides of the yard, were alight, while flames were shooting from the feed loft and the harness room.

When Jones entered the main gate several of the horses had be released by Sullivan and an employee from a neighbouring stable. The animals were careering round, maddened by the flames, and ns fast as they were released from one stall, would run back to another.

(Sullivan and (lie other man were performing some wonderful work in releasing them, for the flames enveloped them as they worked, and the frightened horses became almost a worse danger than the fire. People living nearby were on the scene in the space of a few minutes, and they assisted in the work of running the released animals into a paddock, 52 being saved in tliis manner, though the task was no sinecure. “I MUST SAVE THEM.” According to Jones, Sullivan persisted in attempting to reach the animals in the stalls at the north-east corner of the yard, though he was warned that they were gone beyond hope. “I must save them,” Sullivan said, as he ipade his last journey into the flames. The passage-way through which he had to make his fatal journey was pitch (lark, the electric light having failed soon after the lire broke out.. He was braving the danger of being trampled to death by the animals still loose in the angle of the passage, and literally throwing his life away by venturing into the inferno. The squeals of the horses in danger were piercing, and the last seen of Sullivan was when de dodged a blazing beam which fell from overhead, and disappeared into the wall of flame. Five minutes later the-crowd which had gathered in the street, was horrified'to see Sullivan’s face show at a small foot-square opening in the fen.ee overlooking the street. On that side of the premises the land is built up by a brick wall 15ft. high, and the opening through which his face showed is another 10ft, higher. It is the fifth horse-stall from the north-east end of the building. Sut'jivan called for help—a last frantic pry when }ic realised he could do nothing for the hprses. Yet he was trapped in the corner. , SULLIVAN’S LAST WORDS.

Men rushed about in the street and eventually procured a Ipug pole, which they ran through the opening. It was no use, unfortunately, for Sullivan could not get through the small opening, and though he caught the end of the pole, he had not sufficient strength to tear n hole in the galvanised iron fence. ‘‘lt’s no good,” he cried, despairingly, ‘‘l’m burning from below, Pm done.” They were his last words ahd the men below realised that he hail fallen back into the flames when die pole was released and fell through the opening. Thev pushed it back and called to Jiim again and again. Thole was no answer.

Members of the police force put a ladder. through the opening through which Sullivan had shown his face, and one officer battled his way through the flames in the yard and stables. They reached the fifth, stall at the same moment, and discovered Sullivan ’s charred body lying by that of a halfhroasted horse, which had evidently been attempting to break through the side of the stall when Sullivan climbed to,thp opetuug. The nigbtwatchipan’s body was almost unrecognisable, so badly was it charred, and all around him, in the'stalls and passageways, »erp the 12 carcases of the horses he tried so bravely to rescue.