DESTRUCTION OF A TOWNSHIP BY FIRE.

Temuka Leader, Issue 1713, 20 March 1888, Page 3

DESTRUCTION OF A TOWNSHIP BY FIRE.

Nawhb, March 18.

On Friday afternoon a fire broke out at Norsewood, and burned all day and far into the night destroying nearly the whole of the township. Owing to the wires being down full information has only just been received. About 10 o'clock, a furious gale rose and brought sparks from a clearing some distance away. The winds prevailing during the previous days had dried everything to tinder, and the sparks set the grass and logs on fire, find soon spreading, the fire was raging over the country towards Norsewood village. fortunately there were very few men at home, the majority being away at work, many of them at considerable distances. The women nnd the few men in the settlement were powerless to cheok the spread of the fire, and it is doubtful if all had been at home .whether they could have been more successful as the iparks were flying before the gale ns thick as hail. By dint of superhuman offorts a few places were saved by droping them with blankets kept continually wet, This was an arduous task. The smoke wai suffocating and the heat intolerable, aggravated by the terrific force of the wind which had now become a hurricane. lb was soon seen that to stay in the village was impossible, and the women and children began to hurry away by the road still left open, Of coarse the people oonld take nothing with them, and the fire was left to work its will. The children were as usual at Bohnol in the afternoon, and news coming of the diiaster, the sohool was dismissed; but as some of the children essayed the task of returning home and were driven back by the smoke and flameß, the schoolmaster with commendable discretion re-assembled them and marched them to Te Whiti clearing a mile away from the school towards iCopua. Here these and several families remained till the rain came on in the night, when they sought for shelter with the settlers round about or returned to Norsewood and obtained shelter in the hotol buildings, whioh were crowded with women and children now without house or homa or raiment, It it impossible to detail the progress of the fire, for it seemed to break out simultaneously in all parts oi the township, and many places were burned after the people left. The following places are known to have been totally destroyed:—Publio buildings, Lutheran church (a fine building), Wesleyan churoh, public school and master's residence, the club arid Scandinavian library and temperanoe hall, Hern's bakery, Paterson's blaok«mith's shop, Regies' store, Thomassen's saddlery, Waslake's store ; the dwellings ooenpied by J. B. Dunn, Sandori, Olaen, Bowerman, Magmissen, Martinsen'saooommadation house, the Revs. Bees' Ohristoffersen'B and Neilsen's housss, and also those of O. Christoffersen/ Karli Johanasen, Niools, Hansen, Tauketsen, Inglebredsn, P. Borrensen, Joseph Moran, Mrs Ingwoldsen, Olsten, and Woolsten Holme. Besides these, many barns, outhouses, stacks, and miles of fenoes were destroyed, and it is feared that news of further disaster from surrounding qlearings will yet be received. Ormondville was next threatened, and an important county bridge was destroyed. The ohurch at Ormondville seemed to be doomed, but a heavy downpour of rain set in. At Mangaionoa the fire reaohed to the railway line, and a strong party of men were set to watoh the big trestle bridge, which was in some danger, The new county bridge at Papatuwaß threatened and was also anxiously watohed. The bush on both sides at Kopua was all ablaze, and furnished a grand sight to the passengers by the late trains. At Ashley-Clinton the settlers were threatened with a devastating fire, and two dwellings were destroyed, those of William Oook, (insured) and Christian Jensen. A stack of hay was blown completely over during the gale and wan afterwards destroyed by the rain. The thunderstorm at this point was truly awful, and the residents of the Ashley-Clinton district had bnt little sleep through the long wild night. Great as the disaster was it owtainly would have been greatly magnified, but for the providential occurrence of one of the most terrific thunderstorms ever experl enoed in the district. The rain literally poured down in torrents. The whole country was almost incessantly lit up with .vivid lightning flashes, while the thunder crashed immediately overhead, with an awe-inspiring violence. All night long the storm raged in fury, and the rain obliterated the last smouldering embers of the fire. A large number of families and dozens of poor settlers have been made homeless or have suffered severely, and publio subscriptions are already boin, raised to all mate the distress. The insurances are not yet known, but are not very large consideringithe magnitude of the fire.