EARLY MORNING BLAZE

Timaru Herald, Volume CXLIII, Issue 20894, 25 November 1937, Page 4

EARLY MORNING BLAZE

DAMAGE EXCEEDS £40,000 TRUCKS AND SERVICE CARS DESTROYED By Tel'£raph—Press Association AUCKLAND. November 24. More tnan £40,000 worth of damage was doye by fire which broke out in the motor body building works of Cavanagh and Company, Limited, importers and manufacturers of truck spare parts. St. Martin’s Lane, at 3 o’clock this morning. Insurances are held by the company and by the owners of trucks and service cars that were destroyed to the value of about £20,000, and the net loss to the company is estimated by the managing director, Mr Charles Cavanagh to be more than £20.000. The building was completely destroyed. Sixteen trucks, service cars and chassis were lost, and 60 kits of workmen’s tools valued at £2OOO w’ere lost. Neighbouring buildings had several windows melted or broken and walls slightly scorched, and had it not been for the determined efforts of 40 firemen the main building of the company fronting Symonds Street and connected with the destroyed factory by a wooden staircase would probably have caught alight. As it was the rear portion was scorched and all windows were broken.

Mr Cavanagh said his company held insurances of about £ll,OOO. Of this about £3OOO was for the building and the remainder for work in progress, plant machinery and materials. Several Insurances held by customers on their trucks and cars would come to about £9OOO. The alarm was received at 3 o’clock and two engines were immediately dispatched. A few minutes later two more engines, one from Parnell and one from the Western Districts arrived, and for 15 minutes with five leads m play the firemen had an anxious time trying to control the tremendous flames. Because of the extent of the fire it could not be definitely ascertained what caused the outbreak, but an explosion soon after the start caused the flames to fan out and start to run right through the building. This and subsequent explosions from petrol tanks, oil drums and oxy-acetylene cylinders wakened many persons in nearby houses from their sleep, and could even be heard up to half a mile away. Streams of spectators continued to come from all directions to watch the fire until well after daylight, and policemen had to be stationed on Symonds Street to prevent motor cars from running across the hoses.

So intense was the heat and so high were the flames that the glow and huge pall of oil laden smoke could be seen from the waterfront in one direction, and from beyond Newmarket in the other. Even after the 40 firemen had gained control over the flames after 15 minutes, explosions continued to occur and the sky was bright red for two hours later. The outbreak was definitely under control about 3.20. but no efforts could prevent the building, which was ablaze from end to end when the first engines arrived, from being destroyed and small “spot” fires still had to be watched to-day. Two trucks which had been brought out of the building by neighbours caught fire as they stood on the other side of St. Marint’s Lane, and in the building were to be seen the bodies of other trucks and cars burning fiercely. The walls of the building quickly burned out and collapsed, followed by the roof, so that the interior was revealed a mass of sweeping flame and smoke with red hot chassis of burning cars and trucks glowing like

embers inside. Mr Cavanagh said that he could not state defienitely what had caused the outbreak, but he thought it may have been commenced by a short circuit in the electrical equipment. The fire would not stop the firm from carrying on its business, and he was indebted to a number of other coachbuilding firms for offers made to allow him the use of their premises.