The Timaru Herald. MONDAY, DECEMBER 12, 1898.

Timaru Herald, Volume LXII, Issue 2887, 12 December 1898, Page 2

The Timaru Herald. MONDAY, DECEMBER 12, 1898.

It is not often that the New Zealand newspapers have to chronicle such a fire as that which took place m Wellington during the small hours of Saturday morning. A large hotel covering about half an acre oi ground, and running up m one considerable portion to three stories, was completely destroyed, as far as the interior is concerned, between the hours of 1 a.m. and 3.30 a.m., or perhaps 4 o'clock. The most lamentable feature of the occurrence is that two of the inmates oi the hotel lost their lives m the conflagration — were either burnt to death or were suffocated before the flames reached them. Let us hope that the end came m the latter way and not the former. The inquest on the bodies of the victims was commenced on Saturday afternoon, but the only evidence taken was that oi witnesses to identify the bodies, and medical testimony as to the cause of death. The proceedings were then adjourned till next Wednesday, when, so the Coroner stated, " the inquest would practically resolve itself into an exhaustive inquiry into all the circumstances surrounding the fire." In other words, the Coroner's Inquest on the bodies of the two victims will be made to do duty as the official inquiry which would have be9n held if there had been nc loss of life. 1 So far as we can see, there is no objection to sucb an arrangement, which certainly has the merit of economising time. We thoroughly believe m the necessity for holding an exhaustive inquiry into the circumstances oi every serious fire ; and m the case m question the reasons for investigation are more than usually strong, apart altogether from the fact that two lives were lost. The particulars given m the telegrams show that many other lives were gravely imperilled. Some of those stopping m the house had to choose between jumping from the third story windows or being burned to death. One man who so jumped broke his ankle. The two men who lost their lives had also an opportunity of jumping, but did not do so. Probably their nerve failed them at first, and when the supreme moment came it was too late and they were enveloped m the dense smoke and suffocated. All the inmates had to hurry out as speedily as possible. It seems that they saved nothing or next to nothing. Most of them were roused from their beds, and some of them escaped m very scanty clothing. One of the telegrams says :— " All accounts agree that the flames spread with extraordinary rapidity, and the inmates were satisfied to escape with their lives without troubling about any of their personal effects. The licensee and owner of the house, Mr S. Gilmer, and his family suffered m the same way. They saved none of their personal belongings. The whole of the furniture and fittings worth some thousands of pounds were burned. Practically nothing whatever was saved from the hotel." Of course we have a reason for alluding to these particulars m this part of the paper. There has rarely been sucb

a complete destruction m so short a time, and what makes the matter ' so serious is that the scene of the lire was m a large and. expensively built hotel doing a legitimate trade m boarding and lodging visitors, between forty and fifty of whom were m the house at the time. There are a number of points which will have to be investigated at the inquest. Were the fire brigade on the ground promptly., and were their labours energetic and skilfully directed? One cannot tell with certainty till the investigation takes place; but meanwhile, according to the telegrams, the brigade complain that though there was a good pressure of water, " the appliances were defective and deficient," — not enough of them and m bad condition. If that was really so, it is a disgrace to ( the city of Wellington. Another part of the same message says : — "The captain of the brigade believes th at if the hotel had been fitted with Danks' automatic fire alarm the building might have been saved or the destruction restricted ; also that if the brigade had got the alarm a few minutes earlier and could have applied three times as many hoses, the greater part of the hotel could have been preserved." Again we say that if they have not got enough hose m a place like Wellington it is a disgrace to all concerned. Then as to the means of escape. It appears from the report of the commencement of the ihquest that the hotel clerk gcive evidence that there was an iron fir& escape leading to the ground from each story m the building, and that every boarder «vas specially informed of the fact. We do not consider that such a provision is sufficient m a three-storied hotel. There should be a rope or ropeladder escape m every bedroom, and some hotels are so provided. Finally as to the character of the building. The Royal Oak Hotel was called a brick building, but it was so only as regards the outer walls and one partition m the interior, the wall separating the new wing from the rest of the house. The telegram says : — " The extraordinary rapidity with which the fire spread is due to the fact that there was only one brick partition m the whole building, that between the old and the new wing ; all the rest were of wood." Surely m the thickly populated part of a large town the authorities should insist not merely on an outer shell of brick or stone, but on the partitions being either of the same material or of lath and plaster of substantial thickness. Partitions of the latter material, though they will eventually be consumed, nevertheless delay the work of destruction, give more time for the inmates to escape, and increase the chances of the fire brigade being able to confine the conflagration within narrower limits. There should be special building regulations to ensure the safety of hotels, and we do not believe that half enough is done m that direction. There should also be special inspection of hotels m course of erection. In the case of the Royal Oak, the fire is said to have been caused by some defect m the casing of the kitchen chimney. That would probably have been avoided if there had been thorough official inspection whilst the building was being erected. This disastrous fire may have beneficial results if it leads to greater precautions m the building of hotels m the future.