BIG FIRE IN NAPIER

Hokitika Guardian, 22 February 1928, Page 1

BIG FIRE IN NAPIER

(Ry Telegraph—Per Press Association.) ; NAPIER, Fell. 21. A fire this afternoon completely- destroyed Allen and Harris’ furniture factory. The brigade are now trying ' to save the adjoining timber yard. Thu blaze was started by the upsetting ’ o| a spirit stove. Damage and insur- ' Mice arc not known. FACTORY DESTROYED, j NAPIER. Feb. 21. A fire which claimed the attention ot two brigades this afternoon, completely demolished a two-storev furniture factory in Kennedy Road, besides ' doing considerable damage to valuable timlier stacked nearby, and endangering several adjacent houses, as well as a smaller building. The factory was occupied by Allan and Harris, the well-known furniture manufacturers, and contained a considerahie amount of machinery and furniture in various stages of completion, and commodities used in the trade. Holder Bros, owners of the building used one room, hut they had much timber stacked in the vicinity. The outbreak had its origin in tlie overturning of a, small stove being used by one of the employees in a room stocked with inflammable materials. The flames spread with alarming rapidity. and by the time the brigade arrived had a complete hold on the whole buildings. The. task of subduing the flames was quite a hopeless one so the firemen turned their attention to ensuring the- safety of several houses in the immediate vicinity. This was effected after a hard fight, but not before one or two of the bouses had been scorched considerably, besides suffering damage from cracked windows. Left with a free hand, the flames, aided by a strong breeze, first consumed the interior of the building, and then attacked the outer walls and upper structure. Inflammable materials, such as turpentine and oils of all descriptions, kerosene and polish, supplied excellent fuel for the conflagration, and within an hour nothing was left of the wooden structure beyond a smouldering heap of ruins. The spreading flames enveloped timber stacked round the factory, and almost- completely destroyed it. A rack of timber standing between the ruined factory and a smaller building, used by Holder Bros, suffered some damage, but a considerable portion of it was saved, besides a motor lorry parked close by. The insurances on Allen and Harris’ stock was in the neighbourhood of £2OOO. £I3OO of which was covered in the Sun Office, and £TO'.) for timber in the New Zenand. However, it is estimated that these figures hardly cover the actual damage. The insurances on the building are not ascertainable. Messrs Allen and Harris have been singularly unfortunate in regard to fires as two within the last eighteen months caused damage to a factory attached to the shop in Emerson Street. The Fire Brigade was again called out to-night before ten o’clock to quell an outbreak at a residence Sin Brewster Street. The brigade had control before it became serious, damage being confined to one room, whic-li was gutted. Tts origin is unknown.