THE CHRISTCHURCH FIRE.
After enjoying immunity from lire so long that it became necessary to adopt a system ot false alarms to prevent the Fire Brigade losing its ellicieney, the business portion of the city has again been subject, to the baneful billuence of the devouring clement. Arrangements had been made by his Worship the Mayor to give one of the false alarms yesterday evening, but the intended sham fight was unexpectedly converted into a startling reality, and the members ot the brigade bad one of the sharpest struggles
with their old enemy that wq, have recorded for some years. So far had the arrangements for the alarm proceeded that the gnus were ordered to be fired at a quarter to seven o’clock, and the Mayor was engaging the attention of the superintendent of the brigade in bis shop, with a view to ensure the same unprepareduess on his part as on the part of his men, when a cry of (ire was raised in the streets ; and in a moment afterwards the bells at both stations rang one loud alarm.
The fire, on enquiry, was found to he in the shop of Mr Dunkerley, hatter, High street. When first observed the flames were rising from the floor towards the back of the shop, and, as everything in the building was of an inflammable nature, it will be readily understood that a few' moments sufficed to envelope the whole of the interior in flam' s. The hand engine Dreadnought, from the Lichfield street Station, under Mr Foreman Roberts, was the first to ap: ear on the scene, taking up a position at the tank in front of Matheson’s Agency. The hook and ladder company, under Mr Foreman West, from the Market place station, next came, and rendered valuable assistance in their own particular line. The steamer Extinguisher, under Mr Foreman Wood, from the market place, was third, and halted at the Cathedral square tank, running out two lengths of hose—one to the front and one to the rear of the (ire, at the North end-very quickly. The steamer Deluge, under Mr Foreman Gourlay, from the Uohlield street station, was unfortunately delayed in consequence of the City Council horses being out of the stables, and a pair of ’bus horses having to be fetched from High street. By this time the fire had commenced with Mr M'Callum’s (jeweller) shop on the South, and Mr Brounpkei’s (tobacconist) shop on the North, and had assumed most formidable dimensions ; indeed the light Nor’-oast wind which was blowing at the time, carried an immense body of flame over the street towards the City Hotel, which, being in the muchdreaded Triangle, gave rise to great uneasiness. At the same time that the tire commenced with the shops right and left of the one in which it originated (Mr Dunkerley’s) the premises at the rear, occupied by Mr Hnphael, money office, Mr Middleweek, bootmaker, and Mr Gardener, pianoforte maker, fronting on Hereford street, were also in imminent danger. Mr Dunkerley’s sin p being within a few doors of what, for the purpose of being better understood, may. be termed the point of a triangle formed by the diagonal intersection of High street with Hereford street, the back premises were necessarily close to the back premises of the shops in Hereford street, hence the danger of the fire being communicated from the one to the other was exceedingly great. The great height of the flames, the firm hold they had obtained on the adjacent shops the prowdeff state and qbf age qf the buildings on each side of tbs fire, had given it iuddea a most alarming aspect before the steam engines could be brought to work, and the prospect of extinguishing the conflagration before a considerable number of buildings had been destroyed, was considered very remote indeed. Such, however, was the smoothness and precision with which the members of the Fire Brigade worked, that no sooner were they in action, than a most notable change came o’er the spirit of the dream. A very few moments sufficed to show that the tire king was mastered, and that the damage wqgkl not be half so Wjfch ’H'as expected. They never worked Letter, avid much as they have achieved hitherto, tljey have just reason to be proud of last night’s achievement, for although several shops we e gutted, the only ones really destroyed wore Mr Duukerley’s and Mr M'Callum’f. As one instance of ths magnitude of the tire, it may be stated that whilst placing a lot of valuable jewel ! cry, saved from Mr MVallum’s and hats from Mr Dunkerley’s in the strung room of the old Bunk of New Zealand buildings in jJasqei sprpofc, Mi T. D. tiqucg observed the rqof qf the Bank of Ntny Soutlj Wales on lire, though pome 200 yards away from the conflagration, A few buckets of water were quickly obtained, and it was fortunately extinguished without any great injury, but it shows what had to he contended with As a proof also of the rapidity with which the main tire was got under, we njuy state tjiat a gentleman, who took the tiijjc cagrfuliv, us pVjat. In the short s; iEj.ce o'l hijlf eju hour 'frqhi the time qf giyjhg tlje ajijrm Q.ll dapgej- mpqvpd. In round mpuhej-sj the absolute damage to ptoperty may be computed at upwards of D7,<m
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Evening Star, Issue 3052, 29 November 1872, Page 2
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898THE CHRISTCHURCH FIRE. Evening Star, Issue 3052, 29 November 1872, Page 2
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