DISASTROUS FIRE IN MELBOURNE.

Feilding Star, Volume XIX, Issue 122, 22 November 1897, Page 2

DISASTROUS FIRE IN MELBOURNE.

A BLOCK of GREAT WAREHOUSES

DESTROYED.

DAMAGES: £1,300,000.

Telegraph. Press Association. Copyright

Melbourne This Day.

Yesterday was the scene of an appall • ing fire, doin? dainaue amounting to a million and a half. The fire originated at an early hour in the huge premises of Craig, Williamson and Thomas, Eliza beth Street, between Flinders Street and Flinders Lane, and the flames obtained such a bold and the conditions so pecnliarly favorable to their spread that the fire was net got ander control until three-fourths «f the buildings on tbe block bounded by Elizabeth Street, Flinders Street, Swannon Street, and Flinders Lane, comprising tbe great warehouses of Victoria, had been gutted and reduced to a mans of tottering mini.

Colosial though the disaster was it came within an ace of more than doubling its magnitude, for bad the wind which chopped about from north«west to south-west veered round to west, only a miracle could have saved a mass of 4i warehouses acd other buildings extending from the north side of Flinders Lane to Collins Street. As it wan, the buildings fronting the north tide bear in their blackened, fire scorched, and window broken appearance, ample cvi dence of the narrowness of their escape

Messrs Craig, Williamson and Thomas in whose establishment the tire origin ated, carried on business as warehouse men, importers, and manufacturers in a seven storied building. When this huge building was well alight, the heat was ho intense that the tire brigade were driven out of the threatened area again and again.

The flames leaped from building to building eastward with amazing rapidity. Wise's auction rooms and Detmold's premises wore soon enveloped. The former, which was stored with furniture, burned like matchwood, sending « solid body of flame into Frisk's building, while at the rear of Craig, Williamson's and Thomas' the flames extending beyond Detmold's warehouse seized upon the roomy seven - floored building facing Flinders Lane, occupied by a number of firms, including Warren and Strange, Sydney Brooks, McGlashan and Haig, importers; Grove and Steel, shirt manufacturers ; Rochussen Bros., merchants ; Herbert Carter, wholesale fancy and leather good?! and elastic b*ace manufacturers ; Renfrew and Co., furnishing warehousemen ; Mclieth, Macower and Co. ; J. Des&xe, umbrella manufacturer, and others. Torrents of water were ponred on the advancing fiames, but failed even to check their progress, and with the rapid increase of the area of the burning mass the concentration of the efforts of the firtuien was out ot the question ; moreover, an additional element of danger was introduced by the partial collapse of the lofty walls of the establishment of Craig, Williamson and Thomas. One section of the wall fell upon the rear of a portion of the Duke e-f Rotbsay Hotel, completely wrecking it. Another section fell on Wise's auction rooms, while the front wall appeared to threaten sneb danger that the firemen had to be withdrawn. From the western vantage point a gallant effort was made to save Fink's building. The changing wind again set their efforts at nought and the flames gained a fresh foothold soon. From each of the eight tiers of wiodows in Fink's Buildings the flames poured in uncontrolled masttry, and these were followed by ominouH sounds as the floors and roof fell in and the expansion of the iron girders caused the walls to creak and crack to aci alarming extent.

Later.

A solid wall of advancing fire extending from Flinders Lane to Flinders street swept over a row of small buildings without doing much damage to them.

The Mutual store, a fine 6 floored structure, over which special care had been taken to make it fire proof, resisted the attack, though much damaged by water.

Having arrested the fire on the Flinders street side efforts were concentrated on Flinders Lane. The flames had crossed from Brookes' and McGlashan's to Stevenson and Son's five-storied warehouse filled with valuable goods, with wonderful rapidity. The flames ran from floor to floor licking up the contents as though tinder ; pouring out of the windows it ran up the walls and attacked the roof. Within an hour only the external walls were left standing. From Stevenson's to Sargood, Bunter, Nichol and Ewen's was the work of an instant. Sargood 's warehouse was one of the largest in Melbourne, extending from Flinders street on the one side to Flinders Lane on the other. The flames attacked the huge structure on the Flinders Lane side, and the building was soon beyond all hope of rescue. The highly inbammable nature of its contents acted as oil to the flames which darted hither and thither throughout the length and breadth of the building and speedily mounting to the roof furnished a fitting climax to the spectacle as grand and impressive as it was calamitous.

The wind now had fallen somewhat and the Fire Brigade again concentrated their efforts to prevent the farther spread of tbe flames.

Monaghan's building, a six-storied Btructure at the corner of Swanson Street and Flinders Lane, was saved, but tbe adjoining premises, occupied by Metcalfe and Barnard and by Egerton Moore, printers, ware gutted and reduced to ruin*. On the Flinders Street side tbe collapse of tbe eastern wall oi Sargood '« place caused tbe rain of Lincoln Stuart and Company's outfitting establishment, and damaged tbe rear portion of the Port Phillip Club Hotel and premises extending from the Port Phillip Club Hotel to Swanson Street, viz., those of Thomas Whitelaw 4nd Company, Oilmen, Davidson's furniture shop, and Young and Jackson's Hotel escaped. When the flames were assailing the Mutual store at a dozen points a party of heroic firuruen found a way to the roof dragging the hose* with them. Round about them ashes fell in a red hot, blinding, suffocating mass, covering the roof which fortunately was fire proof, to a depth of several inches. Despite the awful risk of being cut off in their isolated position not a man moved from his post till the building was secure.

The sight from the roof where one could view the scene with safety was impressive in its awfulness. No such sight has ever been seen in Australia. So thoroughly gutted was every building round about that the gaunt tottering walls looked like the shells of active volcanoes, each sending forth clouds of smoke and steam and cr adding f rag-

ments

Stevenson's stock was valued at £100,000, insurance £90,000 ; Lincoln Stuart's stock and building insured fcr .£30,000: Sargood's stock was roughly valued at £150,000, building £50,000 covered by insurance.

Mr Craig, bead of the firm where the the fire originated, blames the brigade, believing that bad they got the water on immediately, they could have confined the lire to the ground floor. He estimates his damege at £100,000, but is covered by insurance.

The Superintendant of of the brigade states when he arrired within three minutes of the call the fire bad saoh a bold it was impossible to do more tnan try and save the adjoroining buildiogs.

Tbe flames were the fiercest he bad seen in his life. He believed fifteen minutes snfficed to lick up Sargood's, and thinks tbe fire must have been burning in Laing's all Saturday afternoon and night.

The chairman of the Underwriter! expects the loss by the insurance com - panics will be folly £600,000, three* fourths of which fall ou British and foreign companies