TWO CHILDREN BURNT TO DEATH.

Dominion, Volume 4, Issue 1054, 17 February 1911, Page 5

TWO CHILDREN BURNT TO DEATH.

TERRIBLE TRAGEDY AT AUCKLAND;

OTHERS INJURED.

ESCAPING FROM A BURNING HOUSE OVER A REQ-HOTVERAISDAH. ' ' . I.] V-K-;'"' ■ ".... •: (By; Teleiraph-Fres's Association.) Auckland, February 16. , Ponsonby Rood,'- ik the city of Auckland, was this morning the scene of a terrible tragedy!, tho result of a firo which broke out about 2 a.m. in a ehop in Wakefield Terrace, occupied by Mr. Charles Porteous,' manager of tho Oceanic' Fish Company, -aiid' his family/ and also, by his sister-in-law. and' her' htosbind,*llr. and Mrs. Herbert Mountfield. It woiild appear; that the fire was the result of an explosion in the lower part of the building,'atid that the inmates on being awakened .'all rushed .to the front part of tho building,' and endeavoured to escapo by way 6f the verandah roof.' In so doing two little, children lost, their live® and six other persons were more or less seriously injured; .; '/" j ' The Casualty' Lilt- ; > ' The casualty list is-as follows:— CHARLES PORTEOUS, aged S3. Danger- . ' ouslyvbumed.< '<: ■ EDITH PORTEOuS, aged 30.. Severely injured; con^itioa;critical. , . CHARLES, PORTEOUS, aged 8. Slightly burned. . • 1 ■ •, HETTIE PORTEOUS,: aged 7. Burned '' ' to death. ' ARTHUR PORTEOUSi aged 5. Burned to death. .' •' •' . .. PHILIP WA:ND; aged-12., ...Slightly injured. , .. - HERBERT . MOUNTFIELD, - aged 29. : Sfiverely burned., - . - : RUTH'MOUNTFIELD,. aged 26. Burned ' about tiie, hands and feet. t A Loud Explosion. 1 It seems'tluit liri 'Mountfield was awakened by the sound of a loud eiplosion downstairs. Ho'"was occupying' a room above the'shop opening. on to tho verandah roof, and, t|ie three boys, Charles, Arthur, and Philip,, we're in a room adjoining. -Mr. and Mrs., Porteous and tho little girl''Hettio were in a room at tho head of tho.stairs, in'the back.part.of tho building. ' , ; , ' Being awakened, Mr. .Mountfield became oonsciou6 of heat ( and smoke, and telling his wife to arouse Mr.' aiyl Mrs. Porteous, ho riisbed into the boys' rObm, awakening them. He threw -up' tho window, and, barefooted, tho verandah roof, and proceeded to help, tho littlo fellows out. \' . v - f The flames wore by-'this time' belching forth from the shop windows underneath, and leaping' up 'in great tongues of firo beneath th«, ifbij. vera'ndali * roof.* ■ / Natutilly over: 6u6h '(k'furnace the iron was red hot. Mr.";'Mountfield ■ stayed long enough, to hejp.'theVboys out, and then staggered.. acroEft Ito jtho other window. Thro.ugh .'this ;,Mr. PortSoiis ,was helping the othe#.'members of' tho familyl ; " J ' a ' 1 1 :. Mrsl'Porteous (cranjbled on to tho roof, arid ? its heat W iuirlength, and was friglitiully scorched to foot. Porteous and Mdtintfield' maniged to! rescue- hor,. but; in'. l th6 • imeantimo the two_. ; yiungest. childreil, 1 Hettio'and-'Arthur, 1 jumping from the window; and shrieking with'ngbny as tho •white' heat of ; tho iron seared tho flesh of;the littlo bare feet,' fell prostrate'and rolled down;'towards; the 'centre of tho verandah, roof.

Desperate ;Efforts, ; - . They made desperate' efforts to escape, and the girl rolled as far as tho edge of the verandah,'but'thero a high wooden sign, which was a blaze, of v flame, prevented her from falling-into the l street. The'.father and.',uncle made desperate efforts to go to'their, .assistance, and the father, became frantic,-as, with the flesh of his feet" burnt pff.'to tho bone, ho fell exhausted 'within a' feyv yards of "tliej children, who were: slowly, being roasted to death before their parents'eyes. By this time the street, was filled with people, who were horror-strickon spectators of what was .happening. Mrs. Mountfield, lightly clad, and badly burned about the hands and, feet, ? had 'somehow managed to reach .the.street, but tho other inmates of the ! burning; house were grouped togother on an adjoining roof, suffering tieribly from their injuries, and quite unable, to go to,'the rescue. . Tho Brigade Arrives. The city firo .brigade motor, arrived, but by this the piteous cries;of the dying had.ceased. A ladder ■ was run up from tho'street to the verandah as soon as the. firemen arrived, and the two. bodies,-brought to the ground, but this' time' both children were dead. Th"e. father was.'insensible,, and was lowered to. tho ground, and there attended to by doctors who had arrived, and by a nurso who had brought liniments. and bandages from Severn House Privatf Hospital, near by. Mrs. Portcous and the others were also assisted to tho ground. ■ It was at .onco apparent that the unfortunate mother '.was terribly burned, and in a critical condition. Both ,Mr." and. Mrs. Porteous were removed to Severn House, and with them the remaining son, Charles, and a nephew, .Philip Wand. Mr. and Mrs.' Mountfield were carried to an adjoining house, and after receiving medical attention were conveyed to the Public Hos-. pital for further treatment. The bodies of the two children, were conveyed to the morgue. ! , The Building Gutted. '. The building was n mass of flames when the brigade' arrived, c.nd the fire had extended to a i milliner's shon alongJide, occupied by Miss Blomfield in the Tcwer part and Mrs.' and' Miss Sydney in the upper storyi Considerable damage was done, to Misi Blomfield's shop, and Mrs. and Miss Sydney had to hurriedly vacate their tenement," but fortunately this building whs saved. Tho premises occupied' by the Portcous family, however, wero absolutely gutted. Tho shop was used for the fish-retailing business, and the other inmates of tho house, Mr. and Mrs. Mountfield,' had just arrived a week or two ngo from the north, where Mr. Mountfield had occupied the position of- accountant to, the Kifipaka Sawmilling Company. They, had -stored their furniture in Mr. Porteons's house, and this wns totally destroyed. Mr. Mountfield had an insurance of XIOO on his property,' but it is understood that Mr. Porttous's property was not covered by insurance. ■ Condition of the Injured. j This evening. Mrs. Portcous's condition I was still considered .very serious,'while Mr. Porteous was in a state of absolute collapse, and was suffering terriblv from his injuries, his feet being in a frightful oondition as the result-of his frantic endeavours to rescue the children. The two bays, Charles Porteous awl Philio,

Wand, were not teru.usly hurt, though somewhat .severely burnt about the feet. Mr. and Mrs. Mouutfiehl ' aro making good progress, although both have been badly burned, tho former about the feet and tho latter about both hands and feet.

. Mrs. Porteous and Mrs. Mountfield aro sisters, and are daughters of Mr. "Wand, well known in Auckland as musical director for the erstwhile l'ollard Operatic Company, and now filling a similar position with tho riimmcr-Dcnniston Co.

As nn indication of what an inferno tho verandah was, it may bo mentioned that a shilling found 011 tho roof this morning had been practically melted.

An Agonising Experience. t Seen at the public hospital.to-day, Mr. Mountfield told of his experiences. We wero sitting in tho parlour downstairs till after midnight," he said, "and ° n ' y ' )Mn ' n about an hour and a half when my wife and I wero awakened "3 the sound of a loud explosion somewhere 1-elow. I told Mrs. Mountfield to wake Mr. and Mrs. Torteous, and I rnsht ' >o'vs'0 ' vs ' roo ®' To escape by way of stairs was impossible, and at the back there was a 20ft. drop from thi, windows, so I know the .only' way was by the verandah roof at the front. Havitlß got the boys out of bed I jumped through the .window, arid lifted them out". They all oried aloud at the heat of tho iron, and my own feet felt as if the hot Ifon wero scorching the flesh to the bone, but I waited to help my wife, Mr. arid Mrs. Porteous, and their little girl. Mrs. Porteous fell when she got on to the roof, add rolled full length on to the hottest part of the iron. We.got her' away, but then I saw that tho two youngest children, Hettio and Arthur, were unable to stand on the hot verandah roof, and had fallen and were shrieking with pain. Their father and I wont towards them, but my feet absolutely stuck to the ironwork, and the flesh camo away as I lifted them, so that I almost screamed with .tho paiii. ' Mr. Porteous got oTen further towards them, and must have had every ' partlclo of flesh burnt from the soles'of his feet. Then lie staggered back, and foil exhausted; I went to tho assistance of the mother, and tried to prevent her - witnessing .what whs taking place, but mother and 'father both saw their children burned to death before their own eyes. : The one hope then was that the fire brigade would come before it was too late, and it seemed to me nn eternity before" they did arrive. Then all that remained, for them to "do was to lift tho dead bodies down into the street."