Narrow Escape of the 'Government Buildings

Feilding Star, Volume VII, Issue 147, 22 May 1886, Page 2

Narrow Escape of the 'Government Buildings

[PEE UNITED PRESS ASSOCIATION.] Wellington, May 20. Information has just leaked out that the Parliamentary buildings had • a narrow escape from destruction by i fire on Saturday night. A few mm- I utes before seven that evening a mes- ' senger on duty at the Speakers private apartments had occasion to enter Sir Maurice O'Rorke's sitting room, when he discovered the mantlepiece to be on fire. He immediately called for assistance, and had one of the hose reels kept on the premises run out. The fire was extinguished before any serious damage was done. Had not the fire been been discovered at the mement it was, the probability is that the whole building would have been destroyed, including the valuable library, as within five minutes after that time it is usual on Saturday nights for Speaker's apartments to be locked np. Considering the severity i of the gale that was blowing, the terrible results that would have fol- ; lowed are apparent had the fire not been discovered in its incipient stage, as the flames could easily have passed up the adjoining staircase and spread through the whole building. An examination has since been made, and shows that the fire originated through defective workmanship, as there is only half an inch of plaster dividing the woodwork from the flame passing up the chimney. The boarding that the flames had not touched showed signs of having been charred by fire on previous occasions.