DISASTROUS FIRE AT LYTTELTON.

Timaru Herald, Volume XXVII, Issue 1763, 25 June 1877, Page 5

DISASTROUS FIRE AT LYTTELTON.

I (Lyttelton Times, Monday, June 18.) Lyttelton has again been the scene of a large conflagration, and, although the fire was confined to one building, the loss sustained may be estimated at a rery 1 • rge figure. About two o'clock on Sunday morning Constable Devine, who was on duty m thp lower part of the town, was attracted by a smell of burning on the railway premiies, aud, on proceeding thither, discovered that the wharf office was on fire. He immediately returned and gare the alarm. In a Tory short time a number of people had assembled, and the Lyttelton Fire Brigade, under command of Mr Superintendent Sowden, put m an early appearance with their band engine. The whan office was si< uated at the west end of the export shed on the breastwork, and was almost m contact with it. The building (the old passenger station) was entirely of wood, and m a Tery short time was one mass of flame, which instantly communicated with the end of the shed. The wind at the time was westerly, and the fire at once obtained a firm hold of this building. The shed, which was built of corrugated iron, was full up with potatoes, | wheat, oatt, <fee., and the line running down one side of it was occupied by about a dozen waggons, which had been left there for shelter. The work of getting them ont was at once commenced and lafrly accomplished, nearly the whole of the railway staff being m attendance. The next thing was to secure the books, papers,* &c, m the office of the shed, and by

dint of great exertion on thp part of thoie engage! <>n the work they were all saved, though not a moment too soon. Within 20 minutes from Ihe time of the alarm the flame had spread right along the shed and underneath th« plat'orm, the heat and rmoke at the eastern en.l being almct unenduiab'e. "The fire having obtained such a hold all efforts on the part of lln Brigadft with the apparatus thej had at command were quite useless. However, the meu worked hard and were successful m prerenting the spread of the fire to No. 2 wharf and the turntable at the end. The shed was built partly on the breakwater, and that ha>, of course, been considerably damaged though the piles are believed to be all sound still. The heat from the blazing mass was intense, and the goods shed on the opposite side of the lines wus at one time thought to be m some danger, but, fortunately, the wind blew right along the burning abed to that the danger was averted. The flames spread rapidly, and by about four o'clock the last of the timbers were down.

| In the meantime every effort was made to communicate with Chriatchurch, both from tho railway and Qoiemment Telegraph offices, but without success. A repeated call was kept up for more than an hour, but no reply was received. Messengers were then despatched through tlie tunnel with the news, who informed Messrs Lawson and Dickenson of the catastrophe. The latter at onre proceeded to the engine-shed a 1 d got up steam m one of the locomotives, the naessrnjjer making his way to the Fire Brigade Station. On Mr Superintendent Harris being informed of what had taken place, he gave orders for an alarm to be sounded, and with part of the Christchurch Brigade, it once proceeded to the railway station. There considerable delay was experienced m obtaining the keys of the fire-engine house, but the engine wus finally got out, and arrived m Fort shortly after 7 a.m , when it set to work throwing water over the burning mass of debris. The Lyttelton firemen, together with the railway and harbor oflluule, who were on the spnt during the whole time of the fire, used every effort m their power to prevent its Bpread, iind the utmo.-fc good order prevailed throughout. Until Lyttelton is supplied with some means of efficiently combating with a fire, property there wiil never bo sufe, and it certainly does seem very strange that with the immense amount of produce and valuables store'l m the railway sheds at Ljt'elton, no efficient me&ns of communication with Christchurch m the event of a fire breaking out is afforded. Tho question has, we believe, been considerably ngitated, and perhaps it is not yet too late to hope that a matter of such j>reat importance will not only receive the attention of the luthorities, but that immediate steps will bo taken to prevent the recurrence of what ha* now taken place upon threo different occasions. The people of Lyttelton have been m the hopes of having their water supply completed long era this and every thing is ready m the town — pipes laid, hydrants and fire-plugs supplied, and a well organised Fire Brigade at hand, but there appears to be some little hitch or other on this side of the hill, a* well as with the pipes laid through the tunnel. Perhaps the burning of the goods shed will have Ihe dosired effect of hastening the satisfactory and entire completion of a work which has been so long m hand.

A very large number of people visit ed the scene of the fire yesterday, which presented a yery strange appearance. The intense heat is shown by the way m which the metals, both m the shed nnd on the breast work aro twisted about and fused into different mmses. The p.*. Luna was m rather a warm berth, having made fast to the wharf immediately m front of where the fire broke out, but she was »p»edily hauled awuy from to unenviable a position. Notwithstanding tho number of sparks that, were flying about, no flam»j»e was don^ to any of the Teasels m trie immediate vicinity of the fire. Tlin steam engine wm throwing water on the debris throughout the day yesterday. The origin of the fire is as jet unknown.