FIRE BOARD

Southland Times, Issue 19966, 4 September 1926, Page 4

FIRE BOARD

MONTHLY MEETING

SUPERINTENDENTS REPORT.

The monthly meeting of the Invercargill Fire Board was held yesterday morning. Present, Mr C. J. Broad (in the chair) and Messrs A. Bain, R. R. Binney, R. N. Todd, W. A. Ott and J. Miller. An apology for absence was received from Mr E. B. Pilcher. SUPERINTENDENT’S REPORT. The Superintendent, Mr F. Simpson, submitted his monthly report as follows: — “I beg to report that since my report dated 5/8/26 your brigade has received seven calls as follows: shop, bookseller and stationery, garage, dwelling, school (incipient outbreak), hedge (endangering dwelling), chimney and out of district (Eden dale).

“The out of district call referred to was received at 1.25 a.m. on August 21, but was not attended by your brigade, according to instructions.

“Further, to the matter of out of district calls: Something definite should now be done in the case of Hospital Board property at Lome or Kew. As my instructions now stand, I am authorised to send a responsible officer and a squad of men, but no fire-motor must be used for this purpose.

“The above call to Edendale might just as easily have been to either one or the other of the Hospital institutions, but it would be a most difficult matter to provide either a car or lorry at a moment’s notice at that hour of the morning. If I remember correctly, the instruction mentioned above was given me when the No. 1 motor only was available, but I would now respectfully suggest that this matter should again be given your earnest consideration with a view to entering into some arrangement with the Hospital Board in the shape of a retaining fee for our services.

“The possibility that two calls should be received almost simultaneously by your brigade is a fact which occurred during the past month and has borne out my contention that such an eventuality is not only possible but probable. “The only other call of note was to a p.’Lwge premises in Dee street, occupied by Wilson, Fraser and Tapper, when the first fire-call through the newly installed Duplex Street Fire Alarm System was received, and proved its undoubted efficiency. It is a coincidence that the first call should be from the first box installed in the system.”

A discussion arose on the section of the Superintendent’s report bearing on the matter of the brigade attending an outbreak at Lome or Kew, and it was decided that the Hospital Board be written to suggesting that Mr Simpson be invited to go out and make a report on the fire-fighting material available at these institutions. On the motion of Mr Todd, seconded by Mr Ott, it was decided that Sir Joseph Ward be written to thanking him for his services in connection with the suggested amendment to the Fire Brigades’ Act. In the course of his report the Superintendent mentioned that a donation of five guineas had been received from Messrs Wilson, Fraser and Tapper in recognition of the services rendered by the brigade in respect to the fire in their Dee street premises. The superintendent reported that a thorough inspection of the fire-plugs throughout the borough had been made, and all the plugs and indicators had been attended to, and were now in a satisfactory condition. In all, 270 new indicators had been placed in position and all plugs verified.