BRIGADE PREVENTS A BIG OUTBREAK OF FIRE IN CITY.

Star (Christchurch), Issue 18187, 21 June 1927, Page 13

BRIGADE PREVENTS A BIG OUTBREAK OF FIRE IN CITY.

The Fire Brigade 'by its promptness last evening prevented a large, and, probably, disastrous fire. It received a call from the alarm-box at the corner of Gloucester Street and Colombo Street about 6.10 o’clock, to a fire in Carey’s Buildings. Smoke and flames were coming through the roof near the Gloucester Street frontage, and there was every appearance of a conflagration. In about five minutes after arrival, the brigade* in charge of Deputy-Super-intendent Blake, had the fire completely in hand. It was then found that the brigade arrived just in time to prevent heavy damage. The fire started in a lavatory on the northern side of a passage on the first floor, with an entrance by a stairway leading into Gloucester Street. There was a rubbislvbin in the lavatory, and it is believed that the source of the fire was in the bin.

Although the fire had mounted to the ceiling and the flames had shot through some of the skylights, most of the damage done by it was restricted to the matchlined walls of the passage and to the ceiling. The greatest individual sufferer is Dr J. W. Crawshaw, who has rooms on the southern side of the passage, overlooking Gloucester Street. 11 is rooms were damaged by fire and water, but not to the extent that might have been expected. Next to his rooms, on the east, are the rooms of the Ante-Natal Clinic Department and the offices of the Plunket Nurses, both of which escaped damage. On the other side of Dr Crawshaw’s rooms, the rooms of Messrs Da we and Willis, architects, were damaged very slightly. Messrs Dunstan and Dyer's rooms, near the eastern end of the passage, were hardly damaged at all. A lolly shop, a cafe and a fruit shop, on the ground floor, suffered practically no damage except by water dripp-ng from above.

The building belongs to Mr A. F. Tarey. He has leased it to Messrs W. 11. Seed and Co., who sub-lease the rooms to the tenants.. The building is insured in the London and Lancashire Office for £12,000.