BURNING OF THE SHIP CITY OF AUCKLAND.

Grey River Argus, Volume X, Issue 793, 10 February 1871, Page 2

BURNING OF THE SHIP CITY OF AUCKLAND.

[-OCTITERN CROSS, JANUARY 2-5.] It was about one o'clock yesterday morning that the City of Auckland was.discovere<l to be on fire forward. A man named Kell is said to have riven the first alarm from the shore, and in a few minutes a number of people were on board. The officers and men of the Hero, ■ nd Santiago, under tbe direction of' Captain Logan, rii<! their best to ex-; tinguish tbe fire. At about five o'clock the* vessel was moved out into the stream, having an engine on botrd ; but there was a fatal delay owing to a blundering piece of stupidity, the only hose in use having been taken on shore when the vessel cast off However, this was remedied : a hole was then made on the starboard side, and three or four bales of burning flax were got out and thrown overboard. At seven o'clock it became evident that the only hope of caving the ship. from utter destruction lay in. scuttling her ; and, after a consultation between Captain Ellis, Harbor-Master ; Mr Miller, H.M.C.; Captain Clayton, Nautical Assessor; Captain Anderson, Captain Williams, H.M.C. ; and Mr D. Crnickshank, the agent, it was agreed that this should be done. For this purpose the vessel was moved into aliont four fathoms of water at half-tide. Mr Eeddoes soon made a hole two feet square forward on the starboard side, and h , secondhole one foot square amidships on the came side. As the water poured into the

vessel through the holes, and by the aid of the vigorotisly-worked pumps, tho vessel gradually heeled over to port, and at about a quarter to twelve o'clock it is believed she rested on the bottom, By this time the deck on the port side was slightly submerged, and men were employed baling water down the main-hatch with all their might. The fire obstinately burned forward, but very shortly more holes were cut into the deck, and gradually the vessel righted, < the whole of the deck except a small portion forward being covered with water. The last point where the fire held out was immediately below the forecastle, the bows being so muoh raised out of the water as to leave a considerable portion on the top of the 'tweendeck untouched. Ultimately, however, the fire was completely extinguished. This, however, was not accomplished without great pluck and perseverance on the part of several men who worked in the thick of the smoke issuing from the fore-hatch. The progress of the fire was observed by thousands of spectators from the wharf, the shipping in harbor, the breakwater, and other points from which a good view was obtained. . . . The principal losses will fall upon the insurance companies. We believe the damage 1 to the cargo has been roughly estimated at L 25.000. The injuries to the ship are principally confined to the deck, which is much charred underneath in the fore-part, the after-part, however, being uninjured. The principal damage is caused by the holes cut at different parts of the deck, to enable the hose to be directed into the hold. Some six or seven small holes were cut in the main deck, and several of the deadlights were broken in. The ship's stores suffered very little except in the course of removal to the quarteF-deck, where they remained high and dry after the ship had settled down. The saloon escaped injury, the water not having reached it. Forty passengers had been attracted by the superior accommodation of the vessel to take passage by her, and, if there is one consolatory consideration in the midst of this disaster, it is that they were spared the horrors of a fire at sea. No sooner had the fire been extinguished than energetic preparations were on foot to hav<a the vessel raised. Tenders were at once invited for raising, pumping dry, and mooring the ship alongside the wh:<rf ; and that of Messrs Nicol and Son was accepted, the amonnt being L 94. The tenders ranged as high as L 450. [Messrs Nicol and Son .commenced work at once, and the vessel :s now alongside the jetty at Auckland, and the necessary repairs to her will be proceeded with at once. ]