High St blaze

A FIRE broke out yesterday afternoon about 4 o’clock in a house at 220 High street, formerly occupied by Dr Sidney Allen as a residence, but latterly by Mrs Isabella Thompson as a boardinghouse. The City Fire

Brigade received a summons at 3.53, and on proceeding to the house found the first floor blazing from end to end. The building, which contained 20 rooms, was an old weatherboard structure and very dry, so that it burnt like matchwood. However, three leads of water were soon secured and as the pressure of water was good the

firemen were able to do excellent work, with the result that the fire was confined entirely to the first floor, which, with the roof, was practically destroyed. The boarders on this flat lost all their belongings, but those on the ground floor had time to recover most of their property, and some of the furniture was saved. That which had to be left in the house was much damaged by smoke and water.