INSURANCE CLAIM

Hokitika Guardian, 19 June 1931, Page 5

INSURANCE CLAIM

FOR DAMAGE BY FIRE. FURTHER EVIDENCE. (By Teleyraph —Per Press Association) GISBORNE, June 19. William Drewitt, engineer of the Power Hoard continued his evidence. Ho stated the maxigrapli instrument he secured from • the hre showed by graphs of electrical energy consumed in those, buildings were in such a condition that they were holding their temperatures. f-iis Honour: — If there were a short in the system sufficient to cause a lire, would that be shown? Witness:—lf there’riv.Ys' an arcing sir-vt sufficient to create'lhe danger of. a fire it would be recorded on the graph. W itness continued that there was a normal consumption of current before arid after the quake. There could have been no abnormal ingress of outside atmosphere, otherwise it would have taken longer to obtain the desired temperature,

Cross examined.—The system of wiring had been a poor ono, but- it was improved before the quake, and would Inn e passed the nnUcnvriter Association. liie wires in the cnamber were no tin times, only the entrance wires.

100 iio.o uiooioi.e-.i being a cover oi ruuber ana b.aimiig. mese wires note xin.i.i Uguiiy suetched. It lurHid- siicicneu tuey might diminish in uiitmeier or ureas. j ne recording in* sirumeiHS wouM tell tne ueiects an tue sysLfciu. he had not been in ”.u” sio-re tor tour years, and could not speak positively as to tne condition oi Liie Wiring alter tne quake.

Jj'Urtner cross u.-cammed, D'ruwitt said lie could not suggest any source of lire apart from human intervention, other than electrical installation. His Honour. Rats don’t like freezing works, 1 take it. Rats are getting uiiiasluonablo as far as fires are concerned.

Witness added that fires of electrical origin were most uncommon, and more likely occur in the conduit systems, where the wires were close together and could arc. Cross questioned if Waikaremoann were put out of action, could power have been obtained, witness .said there were duplicate lines and he could, not conceive any contingency made under which consumers on tjiis line could not have been supplied within twelve hours. M James Brownlie, sheep farmer, who had: meat in the works,-deposed that he inspected the works aftei- the quake and came to the conclusion they were quite safe, the damage being slight. John Wilson Kane, Superintendent of Gisborne Fire Brigade, reviewing the sectional plan of the uninsulated walls at Wairoa Works, stated a fire would not be readily extinguished once it had a good hold. If h hole was burnt through the floor anil'the' draught was getting into the building, the fire would obtain a good hold. To fight a fire of that nature a pressure of lOOlbs with four to six leads would be necessary. When a fire was well away, there would he .nothing gained by going on the roof. His Honour:—Assuming the appliances were inadequate? Witness:—That does not affect "the ease, bcause the Insurance Coy took it and fixed the premium on that. .1 am more concerned with the effiiency attributable to the earthquake.