PROGRESS AT HASTINGS

Taranaki Daily News, 17 February 1931, Page 9

PROGRESS AT HASTINGS

NEWSPAPER PUBLISHING

FIRE CAUSES SOME ANXIETY.

BRIGADE'S PROTECTION AMPLE.

By Telegraph.—Press Association.

Hastings, Last Night.

It has been agreed that refugees desiring to return to Hastings must apply for permits to the registration officer, Hastings, who will issue a permit, which o.i production at a railway station will be exchanged for a free railway ticket. No liability will be accepted by ’ the authorities for anyone making private arrangements for return by any other means.

The Hawke’s Bay Tribune, which since the first day after the earthquake till Saturday last carried on a free news service by the publication of a daily news sheet, began re-publication this afternoon at its former premises, which have been temporarily reconditioned. Though the building was badly damaged, the machinery escaped comparatively lightly. To obviate the .duplication of expensive machinery and for general convenience and economy in working and buildings the two newspaper companies known as the Tribune, Limited, Hastings, and Dinwiddie, Walker and Co., Ltd., Napier (Hawke’s Bay Herald), have agreed to merge and operate as one company. Each paper will retain its own, individuality and liberty and their policies will be under the same editorial direction as formerly, with Mr. W. Dinwiddie controller of the morning paper, the Hawke’s Bay Herald, and Mr. W. C. Whitlock' of the evening paper, the Hawke’s Bay Tribune.

The Prime Minister, Mr. G. W. Forbes, in a message of good wishes and congratulations says: “The Government is indeed grateful to all those who played such a substantial part in meeting the position under such stressful conditions. Now that special committees representative of various local interests have been set Up, the great work of bringing th?'district back to'a normal state will be resolutely tackled. This work will be greatly assisted by the inhabitants, whose. natural pride hi tlieir town will ensure their fullest support and co-op-eration.”

There were ho 'further earthquakes in the Hastings district to-day or last night, excepting one Or two extremely light tremors. The weather is fine and cool.

EMPTY HOUSE DESTROYED. Considerable alarm was caused among people in a section of the residential part of Hastings when it was discovered a' 4 o’clock on Sunday morning that an empty house, belonging to Mr. Brinson, was on fire. The smoke was smelt by the occupants of. a neighbouring house, who'immediately woke the people in the streets. As no phones arc working and the automatic fire alarm is out of order it was feared that before the brigade could be summoned the whole street might catch. The brigade was notified by a man who (drove into town in a ear, and on arriving it promptly set the residents’ fears at rest by doing rapid work in extinguishing the blaze, which completely gutted tfie dwelling. It is thought that the fire might have been caused by fused wires, as the power was switched on in the neighbourhood yesterday'. 1 Captain Hugo, inspector of fire brigades, who arrived in Hastings a few hours after the first of the two quakes on February 3, referring to the work carried out by the local brigade in 36 hours of ceaseless duty, says in a congratulatory message to Superintendent S. Henderson: “As ah eye-witness of some parts of the operations of the Hastings Fire Brigade during the progress of the late disastrous fire, I wish to congratulate yourself and all the other members of the brigade on the courage displayed and upon the prac? tical and efficient manner in which the work of subduing many of the outbreaks was carried out. I hope that all the personnel of your brigade arc now completely recovered after the effects of their dangerous and severely trying duties so well performed.”