LOSS BY FIRE.

Manawatu Standard, Volume LVIII, Issue 54, 1 February 1938, Page 9

LOSS BY FIRE.

BLAZE AT COLLINGWOOD. Per Press Association. NELSON, Jan. 31. The Collingwood Public Hall and Mr N. A. Allan’s general store and dwelling combined were totally destroyed by fire at 4 o’clock on Sunday morning. The hall, which was equipped with a talkie plant, was in use on Saturday evening. When the fire was first noticed it had a strong hold in the hall. There is a limited water suoply at Collingwood from a dam near the school, but it appears that the water was turned off at the time and it was not until the store, which was separated from the'hall by 'a 30ft right-of-way, was well on fire that the water became available for use by the fire-fighting equipment. There was no hope of saving the store or its contents and the water was used to save the nearby buildings, including the premises of McNabb’s Motoi-6, across the street. So intense was the heat that one side of the Post Office Hotel was considerably damaged, and it was only the fine efforts of ninny willing helpers which saved the hotel, which was separated from the ha.ll by vacant sections. As it was, all the windows on the eastern side of the hotel were broken, and sashes and furniture in the rooms ctaught fire and the wall was charred in many places. The opinion was expressed by a Collingwood resident to-day that if the water ha.d not become available when it did the whole of the business premises in the township would have been wiped out. A telegraph pole on the opposite side of the road from the hail was destroyed. It was fully two hours before the neighbouring buildings were out of danger.