MILLERTON MINE SEALED UP.

Star (Christchurch), Issue 17879, 22 June 1926, Page 13

MILLERTON MINE SEALED UP.

MILLION TONS OF COAL lost Through fire. Per Press Association. WESTPORT, June 21. The section of the Millerton min© ; affected by the fire has been successfulj ly sealed off by the erection of brick j and concrete stopping's, and the entire I area now compassed by these stop- ' pings is about 18 ac.es- .The loss is estimated at about 1,000,000 tons of coal. Thus writes the Millerton correspondent of the “ Westport News, *' concerning the fire at the Westport Coal Company's Millerton mine. Accompanied by large volumes of black, curling smoke, tongues of flame were seen issuing from the ground in the direction of the western side of the Millerton mine. The sky at times was illuminated, and it was thought to be a bush fire, but the worst fears were realised when it was seen that the mouth of the tunnel at the “ Daylight ” section was belching forth flames which at times reached a height of a hundred feet. The lire quickly assumed menacing proportions, and it was seen that the whole mine was threatened, and as the western side of the mine is practically the business side, the outbreak caused a good deal of alarm, and gave much anxiety to those who had practically their whole life’s savings in house property. On the situation being realised to be serious, it was wonderful how promptly the mine manager had all the sources of help organised with the object of erecting temporary stoppings, cutting off the supply of air, and confining the conflagration to the dip sections. Brattice cloth and timber stoppings were speedily erected in an effort to stay the progress of the flames, but these were burned as fast as they were put up, and the rapidity with which the fire grew can be judged from the fact that the fixe fighters were driven back two chains in four hours. At this stage it was feared that the fixe must end in the total destruction of the mine, but due to the resourcefulness of Mr J. Hopkinson and his willing helpers, who T-ied with one another in efforts to save the pit, a stopping of wood and clay was erected. The readiness and adaptability with which this work was accomplished may be gained from the fact that the men were hampered by the presence of thick smoke* and accepted the risks attendant to such outbreaks. Encouraged by success in checking the steady progress of the flames, another stopping of wood, which measured 18 feet by 12 feet, was placed in position a considerable distance behind as a precautionary measure. The work of erecting more substantial stoppings was then proceeded with, and the top side of Nos. 1 and 2 dip sections, five brick stoppings have been •built, under the supervision of Mr Jack Keating. The completion of the undertaking shut off ali air from the fire area. The erection of concrete stoppings is now in progress, as a further precaution. Each stopping is provided with a door of small dimensions, which will be utilised when it is decided that an effort should be made to reclaim some of the affected area. On the lower side of the dip sections six brick stoppings have been built, the eleven stoppings completely encircling the burning coal. An idea of the cost oi the erection of the stoppings may be gauged from the fact that on the lower side it measures 20 feet by 20 feet, and contains about 3000 bricks. The work of getting material on the job was hampered by the absence of roads, and a lot had to be carried, when fallen. debris and other obstacles had to be negotiated.

Only one stopping is heating, and on that particular one the temperature has dropped from 100 degrees to 88 degrees, which shows that the effort to combat; the fire is meeting with success. The transit of the large quantity of bricks, cement, sand, etc., was facilitated by 'the unanimous response of the Miners' Union to work on pay Saturday last. The pipes which usually convey compressed air to the winches were speedib l - converted into water pipes by Mr T. Porter and his able assistants, and as a result, of this change, a constant stream of water was maintained at each stopping for cooling purposes. _ Everybody worked like Trojans and. indeed, not the smallest portion of tile great task fell on Mr J. Hopkinson and his staff.

The effective work of the very necessary safeguards was very apparent. The fire at the mouth of the Daylight section presents the appearance of a large furnace, and has attracted many visitors from Miller ton.