FIRE IN BUSINESS QUARTER

Shannon News, 9 October 1928, Page 3

FIRE IN BUSINESS QUARTER

INCE & CO.'S DRAPERY STORE GUTTED.

OFFICE PREMISES, TAILOR'S AND DRESSMAKER'S ALSO BURNT OUT.

(From Monday's Chronicle). After freedom from fires for nearly six months, Levin suffered a severe loss o'n Saturday night when a well-known drapery establishment, that of Messrs J. Ince and Co., was burnt tint, together with the premises upstairs occupied by Mr Q. D. Hamilton, who'had a suite of offices devoted to his accountant's business; Mr V. Henderson, tailor; and Miss Williams, dressmaker. The building was right in the centre of the business portion of the town, being on the western side of Oxford Street. II was practically gutted by the blaze, which was prevented from spreading to the adjoining buildings by three factors—a high brick wall on .each' side, &n absence of wind, and the strenuous efforts of the brigade.- Had there been, a main large enough for fire-fighting purposes in the lane behind the shops, it is practically certain that the damage to the front premises could have been minimised.

The outbreak was first noticed IJV some young men who were talking in the lane, a few doors away, one of whom gave the alarm. The tim6 was 10 o'eloek, and the fire had evidently obtained a good hold before its existence was suspected. A volume of smoke, lit up by the glare of the flames, was #een to issue from the one-storey structure which forms the rear portion of the premises. The brigade in the meantime arrived and connected three leads to the nine-inch main_in Oxford Street. The; engine was then run round to Chamberlain Street, where a connection was made with the four-inch main.. By this time the rear portion of the building was a roaring furnace into which ingress was impossible, and the firemen hau to be content with directing the water through the windows. From Oxford Street two of the hoses were taken through the front doors of the shop, opening on either side of the stairway entrance. The third lead was carried over the top of Leong's shop, adjoining on the south side and was used to pour water through the roof. The firemen 'here had a very strenuous time, the flames leaping up inside driving them from the top of the brick .wall. The water pressure from the Chamberlain street lead was diminished in proportion to the distance over which the hose had to be run out. The pressure generally was good, being about HOlbs. - Almost from the start it could be seen that the building was practically doomed. The exact seat of the fire could not be 'determined, but it burned •most fiercely at the junction of the single! and double-storey portions of the building. Inside, the partitions wer.mostly of thin materials, affording n ■ obstruction to the flames, and the front of the building was all that could be saved from destruction, the island and the other windows remaining as they were before the conflagration. The back structure, which had contained the showroom and a store-room, was gutted and so was most of the shdp. The stock of Messrs Ince and Co. was practically completely lost. Owing to the intense character of the fire, which fill"ed the shop with smoke, attempts at salvage would have been of little use,. The goods in the windows and som-t small lines in cabinets in the front or the shop escaped destruction, but were damaged by smoke and water. Upstairs the blaze caused much havoc, reducing that part of the .structure, to a litter of charred timbers. MiHamilton lost his furniture and oi'tice fittings and a considerable quantity of books an'cHreeords, but the most valuable were secured by the protection of the concrete strongroom, the capae ity of which was only sufficient for this purpose. Both Miss Williams and Mr Henderson are heavy losers, as their stock were not insured.. Mr'Henderson salvaged some of his stock in a damaged condition, but Miss Williams suffered a total- loss.

, ( The building, which belonged to the estate of Stiles and Matheson, Ltd., (in liquidation), was insured for £3OOO in the British Traders' Office. Mr Ince had a policy of £SOOO on his stock in the South British, but he experiences a loss over and above this sum, as he had just received a quantity of new goods for the spring and these were all destroyed. His fittings were insured in the same office for £SOO. MiHamilton's office furniture and fittings were insured for £l2O in the British Traders' office.

No cause can be assigned for the outbreak. iMr luce states that he was the last to leave his shop, at 0.25 p.m., and everything Avas apparently safe at that time. Mr Henderson left the upper storey five minutes later, and it was then unoeCupied. He satisfied himself that the electric iron was switched off before he left, and that the lights were out.

The value of brick walls to confine an outbreak of fire was strikingly demonstrated and but for these, the flames would have extended to the premises on either side. The shop to the south is only a single-storeyed structure and was not in any danger though waves of fire rolled up over the high wall there. On the northern side the two-storeyed building occupied by Mr Billens and the Oxford Tea Rooms .(first floor) and Messrs K. Shaw and Hughes were in danger at one time, huge volume? of flame leaping over the brick wall and threatening an entry through the sky-lights of the tea-rooms. Some of the contents of the upper storey were salvaged but as events turned out this was not necessary. The intensity of the fire is indicated by the fact that the iron tie rods and anchors on the outside of the brick wall were melted by the heat. The Fire Piolice mustered in full Strength, and were able to give much

assistance to the Brigade, whose ranks were also augumented by several former firemen. *To these the Brigade is very grateful; also to the public who rendered assistance, to Mr K. Shaw for a donation of £1 Is, and to Mr A. L. Williams who supplied the firemen with hot coffee. Levin has had an exceptionally- fine record among the towns of the Dominion as regards its comparative freedom from big'fires. Nothing approaching that of Saturday night has been experienced since the Weraroa Hotel was destroyed about twenty' years ago. The nearest to it in magnitude during the ten years that the Fire Board has been in existence was the blaze which gutted the People's Picture Theatre in August of last year.