FIRE HAZARD.

Auckland Star, Volume LXXI, Issue 226, 23 September 1940, Page 9

FIRE HAZARD.

« SHOCKINGLY BAD." DEFECTIVE WORKMANSHIP. WELLINGTON, thie day. Examples of defective hearths' and chimneys contained in a report on the subject presented to the meeting of the Fire Board included a fireplace without a chimney and a chimney which penetrated the, ceiling of a house but not the iron roof. "When I called for this report," said the chairman (Mr. S. S. Dean), "I knew the position was bad, but I did not think it was so shockingly bad as this." In a letter which accompanied the report the brigade superintendent (Mi - . C. A. Woolley) said that the report was in no way critical of the inspection work of the City Council's building department, but was brought before the board with a view to drawing public attention to the danger arising from the improvisation of fireplaces by unqualified individuals without the supervision of the local authority. After quoting statistics of fires caused by defective hearths and chimneys, Mr. A. McJennett, the officer who prepared the report, said in it that such fires were, principally confined to the colder months of the year. It was only when thy brigade was called that such defects were, found. "Most defects,"' said the report, "are found to be due to bad or amateur workmanship." Giving examples of faulty work, the report said that in a house in Adelaide Road an open fireplace was built into a room some years after the house was completed. There was no chimney, only a dummy wooden projection into the room. Unaware of this, new tenants lit a fire, and within an hour the premises were, involved in a fire requiring the use of a hose line to extinguish it. In a house in Hopper Street, continued the report, the chimney penetrated the ceiling but not the. iron roof, so that the smoke from the fire was discharged into the space between ceiling and roof. Other examples given included cases gas flues being used as chimneys and of hearths being set on wooden floors. The report stated that City Council building by-laws did not permit installations of that nature, but there appeared to be no way of dealing with such matters. "When plans for buildings are submitted such details are gone into by the inspectors and any matters requiring attention are brought to the notice of the architect and builder. The premises are inspected and passed. Subse. quent alterations are made without application to the council, and perhaps go on for years without detection or accident. When such conditions are brought to notice fire, is the usual medium. The brigade notifies the council and they inspect and keep the matter under view until such hazard is removed or rectified to their satisfaction. The. City Cot'ncil records show what action they have taken in the individual cases reported." On the suggestion of Mr. V. Edgar, it was decided to send copies of the report to the. City Council and the Underwriters' Association.