TRAGEDY IN AUCKLAND

Wairarapa Age, Volume XXXI, Issue 10713, 3 January 1913, Page 6

TRAGEDY IN AUCKLAND

MASTER MARINER BUENED TO DEATH. \ (By Telcyraph — Press Association.) ' A UCKLAND, Wednesday. ►Serious da-mage and loss of life were canned by a fire at Birkenhead early this morning, originating at a small cottage near the ferry wharf. The' fire, completely destroyed this building, and two stables and other structures com prising part of Messrs C. Y'erra.n a.nd Son's hostelry yard. I Within an hour the*N<> buildings were consumed, and then the charred remains oi* Thomas McLean, retired master mariner, seventy years of age, who had occupied the cottage, were. found among the embers. The fire was first seen by Captain Benjamin Poole, who had just returned from his duties on the ferry boat. He immediately woke Mr J. Yerrau, who wa.s sleeping close by. The flameg were now bursting out of the windows, and althotigh. the presence of McLean in the cottage, was •surmised, all attempts to approach it were rendered futile by the intense .heat. The . buildings destroyed covered about three-quarters of an acre. The only available water supply was in tanks on the sea-ward side of the building, and therefore unattainable. Nothing could be dono to pull down all buildings connected with the neighbouring premises. Some half a doz-

en neighbours were aroused, and lent assistance, but- without appliances they were unable to combat, the flames, which helped by 'a stiff easterly breeze, made a clean sweep of everything. Unexpected assistance arrived in two long-boats from the German man- ■ n'-war Oormoran, which put off at i first sight of the fire. The crow ( carried a full fireman's outfit of ropes, buckets,' 'hatches, smoke jackets and ' helmets, ancl 'attacked the dangerous shivK with such goodwill thiit everything was soon in oonmarativo safety. Had it not been for their iirmnpt action in extinguishing the fire, which spread to workshop, half a dozen houses which acijoin each other in an easterly direr!: ioii would probably harp b?.on destroyed. i\fi- Yeri'an estimates the damage at , 02000. The premises wore injured, I hut the amount of cover cannot be ascertained. J The body of .McLean wJasf found : by Constable McGilp. The head and ! i limbs had been consumed by the fire, i