FIRE BRIGADES OF THE DOMINION (REPORT ON THE) BY THE INSPECTOR OF FIRE BRIGADES

Appendix to the Journals of the House of Representatives, 1948 Session I, H-12

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1948 NEW ZEALAND

FIRE BRIGADES OF THE DOMINION (REPORT ON THE) BY THE INSPECTOR OF FIRE BRIGADES

Presented to both Houses of the General Assembly by Command of His Excellency

The Inspector of Fire Brigades to the Hon. the Minister op Internal Affairs. Office of the Inspector of Fire Brigades, Wellington, 26th October, 1948. Sir,— I have the honour to submit the thirty-sixth annual report on the working of the Fire Brigades Act, 1926, for the year ending 31st March, 1948. ADMINISTRATION The North Shore Fire Board was created during the year following an investigation by the Local Government Commission into the fire-protection conditions in the urban area on the northern side of Auckland Harbour. The district consists of the Boroughs of Devonport, Takapuna, Northcote, and Birkenhead, together with a small portion of Waitemata County.- Birkenhead was previously a fire district, so that the number of districts in existence remains at sixty. DOMINION FIRE WASTE The insured fire loss for 1946, the latest year for which national figures have been prepared, was £764,392, an increase of £125,030 over the previous year. The national loss estimated in the usual way by adding one-eighth to the insured loss was £859,941. This figure confirms the indication given in my last report that we were entering a high fire-loss cycle. The fire loss for the year 1947-48 of £992,207 in fire districts shown in the attached statistical table has only been exceeded once —last year —in the forty-one years covered by these reports. LOSS IN LARGE FIRES The major part of the fire loss for the year is as usual caused by large fires. The following table shows the losses in fires in which the loss exceeded £5,000.

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Table 1. — Fires with Loss exceeding £5,000

FIRE-PREVENTI©N Attention must again be directed to the serious increase in both the number of fire calls and of fires involving loss of property shown in the attached statistics. The average figures for the past three years are fire calls 7,517, property fires 1,798, as compared with the average of the three years' preceding the war of 4,064 calls and 859 property fires. This increase is too large to be accounted for by the increase of urban population. It is evident that, if the high fire-loss cycle is to be checked, some fire-prevention activity on the lines recommended in my last report must be undertaken. It is worthy of comment here that if this fire-prevention work is to be effective the publicity must reach the business man, the office and factory worker, the householder, and the school-children. Experience has shown that organization on a national basis is necessary, but the effort must be in the main a local one in each centre. LOSS OF LIFE IN FIRES In addition to the forty-one lives lost in Ballantyne's fire, referred to below, four other persons were burned to death in a fire at the Franz Josef Glacier Hotel in July, 1947. Throughout the year there were also fifteen isolated cases of death resulting directly from fire. Two of these involved shock from burns, and thirteen were caused by fires in dwellings. The fatalities included two infants, and in one case particular attention was drawn by the Coroner to the danger of leaving young children alone in a building. CHRISTCHURCH FIRE DISASTER The heaviest loss of life by fire in New Zealand history, and one of the most serious property losses, occurred in the departmental store of Messrs. J. Ballantyne and Co., Ltd., in Christchurch, at about 3.30 p.m. on 18th November, 1947. In all, forty-one lives were lost and the fire-insurance pay-out was £317,640. The circumstances of the fire and the reasons for the loss of life were investigated by a Royal Commission in an inquiry lasting more than six months. A very full report has been issued, but a brief description will be of interest to those to whom the report is not available. The premises consisted of seven adjoining brick buildings mainly of three or four stories, with wooden interior construction. They had been converted for store purposes

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Locality. 1 Day and Date. ! Time. i Occupation of Premises in which Fire occurred. Cause of Fire. 1 Loss. Auckland Thursday, 7/8/47 . . 1.0 a.m. Engineers . . ' .. Oil in contact with hot furnace Unknown .. £ 37,000 Sunday, 14/12/47 .. 9.18 p.m. Confectionery-manufacturers 10,100 S) • • Monday, 15/3/48 .. 5.31 p.m. ,, ,, .. 168,500 Christchurch .. Thursday, 21/8/47 .. 7.12 p.m. Motor-body builders' factory ,. .. 11,619 >> Saturday, 20/9/47 .. 11.10 a.m. Electrical warehouse Spark from furnace . . Unknown .. 28,365 Tuesday, 18/11/47 .. 3.46 p.m. Departmental store 317,640 Dannevirke .. Tuesday, 20/6/48 .. 6.9 a.m. Shops and offices ,, 17,000 Dunedin Friday, 20/6/47 12.5 p.m. Picture-theatre Stage curtain in contact with electric lamp 5,389 Greymouth .. Friday, 18/7/47 5.55 a.m. Municipal buildings Unknown .. 19,040 Hamilton Tuesday, 18/11/47 .. 5.9 p.m. Shops and offices ,, 8,424 Invercargill .. Wednesday, 10/12/47 10.7 p.m. Store, warehouse, shops, and offices Shops and flats .. ... „ 43,418 Pahiatua Wednesday, 29/10/47 12.45 a.m. 23,143 Palmerston N. Friday, 9/1/48 9.5 a.m. Felmongery and wool-store .. ,, .. 7,000 Petone Thursday, 21/8/47 .. 12.40 p.m. Motor-body builders' factory ., 5,829 Wellington .. Friday, 31/10/47 .. 5.30 a.m. Radio-factory ,, ,. 21,439 Tuesday, 11/11/47 .. 3.33 a.m. Slipper and shoe factory Xot established (possibly lighted cigarette in clothing in men's lockerroom) Mot established (pos5,000 Friday, 14/11/47 .. 5.59 p.m. Furniture-factory 10,100 sibly spark from flocking-machine in contact with teased flock) Thursday, 20/11/47.. 2 a.m. Printing-works Not established (supposed printers' ink in contact with cotton waste in locker) Total 9,090 748,096

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by cutting large openings between the buildings on the ground and first floors. Smaller openings had also been made between the cellars under three of the buildings. Stairways and lifts were unprotected, and only two of the lateral openings (on ground floor) were protected by substandard fire doors ; soft-board linings were used extensively throughout the premises. The sales area was confined to the ground and first floors, and the upper floors were used for office, factory, and staff cafeteria purposes. There was no automatic alarm or sprinkler system, and the only first-aid fire-protection consisted of some sixty chemical fire-extinguishers distributed through the premises. The fire started in the cellar in the building at the south end of the block. It had free air-supply through the cellars under two adjoining buildings and free discharge of products of combustion through an open stairway to ground and first floor and, through cellar and ground floor, to the lift and stairway in the adjoining building. Lateral travel was temporarily blocked by fire-doors on the ground floor of the adjoining building and by a temporary soft-board screen covering an opening on first floor of building in which fire started. There was no access from first to second floor of this building. These factors resulted in a rapid development of the fire, but the extent of this was not evident either in the more distant buildings or in the street owing to a large proportion of the heat and smoke being diverted to a light-well at the back of the building by the temporary •closing of the first-floor opening. The call to the fire brigade was delayed for at least ten minutes owing to a misunderstanding. When the brigade did arrive the smoke conditions inside the building on fire were bad, and about ten minutes were spent in an unsuccessful attempt at entry to the cellar. The fire then flashed through to the first floor and spread laterally through that floor with extreme rapidity, cutting off from escape the persons still on the upper floors of the two adjoining buildings along the same street frontage. In a very few minutes the buildings were alight from end to end and on all floors. An emergency call was put in, and with an excellent response of city and suburban units, and by good work in the later stages, the fire was substantially confined to five of the seven buildings. RECOMMENDATION OF THE ROYAL COMMISSION The report of the Royal Commission condemns as inadequate the existing regulations and by-laws governing means of egress from buildings as applying in Christchurch. It recommends that the model code of by-laws prepared by the Standards Institute with respect to building construction, means of egress, and fire-prevention should be amended in certain respects and made of universal application throughout New Zealand to both new and existing buildings. It recognizes that the full provisions of the codes cannot be applied to many existing buildings, but recommends that certain principles such as protection of lateral and vertical openings, limitation of floor areas, and fire loading and restriction of hazardous occupancies, should be applied wherever practicable. It recommends that the administering authority should have power to require in default of full compliance such protective devices as first-aid fire-fighting appliances, and thermostatic alarms or sprinkler systems. It has also suggested that the by-laws should be drawn so as to require the owner of an existing building to supply immediately, in form to be determined, a report on the building, indicating its relative fire hazard and deficiencies in means of egress. The Commission finds that the work of the brigade was seriously defective in the •early stages of the fire. It expresses the opinion that there is serious lack of organization, leadership, and command, and that the officers failed to appreciate their responsibilities. It contends that this failure is due not so much to the deficiencies of the individual officers as to inherent weakness of the existing system of wholly decentralized control of brigades. It commented that there is no system of officer training or of classification for interbrigade promotion, and that promotion is normally based on service only and from within the local brigade. The Commission recommended that the existing system of local control be scrapped and that the whole fire service be controlled by three paid Commissioners having a knowledge of the subject, of whom one should be thoroughly •experienced in fire-fighting. Attached (Table 2) are statistical returns covering the year under review. I have, &c, R. GIRLING-BUTCHER, Inspector of Fire Brigades.

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Table 2. — Miscellaneous Statistics for Fire Districts

Approximate Cost of Paper. —Preparation, not given ; printing (1878 copies), £l5

By Authority: E. V. Paul, Government Printer, Wellington.—l94B. Price 3d.]

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43 1 . a ■3 >> « a m 0 ai S3 "in Fire District. WOO 03 •* OJ o - <52 OS |> 03 <-H 03 £ O 03 V surance Compan Premium Income Year ended 3 December, 1947. 8 O S3 If fi a a II ■d a 5 a-3 1—. as* 0 .8 orized Expendii Year ending 3 rch, 1949. 3 ej g la pi "3 H rue! Ph 8 £ £ h-1 a p < & £ £ £ £ £ £ Auckland Metro245,830 83,179,550 402,348 1,721 395 4,792,169 180,578 89,916 270,494 95,624 politan Balclutha 2,330 410,115 2,393 * * * * * * 740 Birkenheadt 4,140 844.911 17 4 750 78 285 363 Cambridge 2,760 813,605 4^602 8 2 5,371 70 70 1^125 Carterton 2,010 553,571 3,805 17 5 5,220 2, 490 70 2,560 890 Christchurch 123,900 35,248.952 166,696 984 327 2,550,020 382;386 2,618 385,004 45,040 Dannevirke 4,550 1,507;249 7,352 12 1 17,000 13,000 4,000 17,000 1,092 Dargaville 2,500 713,447 4,362 9 5 5,950 1,434 32 1,466 741 Dunedin Metropolitan Eltham 83,340 27,643,698 119,788 1,051 198 699,095 30,148 4,610 34,758 38,100 1,950 428,320 2,301 15 5 5,400 1.155 1,155 548 Feilding 5,280 1,433,830 7,659 20 4 9,300 157 157 910 Foxton 1,820 347,977 2,647 36 5 17,665 1,651 1,651 395 Gisbome 16,150 4,620,083 30,842 47 14 21,510 2,339 "281 2,620 3,482 Greymouth 8,880 1,882,705 10,728 25 17 31,090 17,197 3,560 20,757 1,375 Hamilton 24,500 9,768,246 35,608 222 43 54.734 11,836 1,832 13.668 11,000 Hastings 16,450 4,690,202 26,322 49 20 207,174 4,197 4; 197 3,675 Hawera 5,100 1,618,571 10,236 53 13 24,165 271 28 299 2,402 Hikurangi 1,060 128,430 990 3 450 Hokitika 2,890 534,835 4,552 8 7 ''2,250 775 ' '465 l"240 815 Invercargill 25.800 7,566,735 37,157 293 76 778.412 50,803 910 51,713 17,042 Kaiapoi i;900 382,925 3,122 4 2 '450 165 80 245 708 Kaitangata 1,370 153,360 1,126 10 1 550 4 4 450 Lawrence 580 59,543 645 4 220 Levin 3,660 1,428.380 6,854 9 1 25 25 536 Lower Hutt 38,500 11,320,705 50,587 401 59 283,487 4,894 1,693 6,587 10,248 Masterton 10.400 2,901,186 15,900 101 29 69,113 5,628 505 6,133 4,929 Milton 1,540 296,340 2,827 11 3 2,665 426 10 436 565 Morrinsville 2,380 663,847 4,679 12 4 1,127 87 87 580 Napier Nelson 18,900 5,332,172 39,087 112 43 143,765 3,866 3,354 7,220 7,816 14,400 3,682,424 25,205 90 33 84,250 2,798 3 2,801 4,085 New Plymouth .. 20,400 6,251,288 27.405 132 34 114,925 8,200 2,195 10,395 6,900 North Shore? .. .. 33,890 11,200 Oamaru 7,950 2,168,099 11,177 "43 6 i,3,227 "582 "650 l"232 1,875 Obakune 1,490 136,469 1,701 9 4 3.885 200 200 467 Opotiki 1,720 611,815 3,619 16 2 600 10 10 716 Otaki 2,250 382,679 3,174 10 3 7,345 3,950 "l75 4,125 440Pahiatua 1.850 495,639 4,104 18 5 41,407 14,384 9,711 24,095 550 Palmerston North 27,900 8,682,804 44,490 230 70 199,920 8,349 1,986 10,335 15,400 Patea United .. 1,660 386,876 4,812 16 3 143,950 3,346 125 3,471 1,050 Petone 11,600 3,558,613 23,711 55 35 820,860 15,034 1,510 16,544 5,565 Port Chalmers .. 2,690 407,649 2,515 10 6 20,930 1,050 1,050 450 Pukekohe 3,610 1,109,181 4.646 15 1 "l50 150 950 Kotorua 9,050 3,331,036 13,867 58 9 74,820 iJ758 40 1,798 3,566 Stratford 4.080 1,109,381 6,478 16 10 8,475 1,782 1,782 826 Taihape 2i 290 454,591 4,247 18 635 Taumarunui 2,850 692,251 4,494 10 4 900 20 "740 "760 1,050 Tauranga 5,750 1,901,302 9,941 26 9 22,190 2,772 2,772 905 Te Aroha 2,570 484,092 5,338 7 3 12,000 10 10 498 Te Awamutu 3,300 1,144,575 5.601 31 5 9,155 65 "320 385 732 Timaru 19,850 5,647,750 23;450 120 29 16,515 3,298 43 3,341 7,100 Upper Hutt 6,220 1,294,784 6,352 97 5 2,410 84 25 109 2,785 Waihi 3,920 355,241 4,857 32 4 23,030 93 93 625 Waipukurau 2,220 546,831 4,297 25 7 5,150 900 "l50 1,050 670 Wairoa 3,070 768,025 4,611 11 4 2,265 697 200 897 735"VVaitara 2.540 597,015 4,960 12 3 55 55 321 Wanganui 25,400 8,939,778 46,815 299 47 123,030 2,'808 565 3,373 17,900 Wellington 134.610 50,896,494 248,690 1,655 300 3,183,245 63,972 4,961 68,933 73,250 Westport 5.050 899,488 6,388 14 5 35,010 50 50 1,151 Whakatane 3,080 719,651 4,398 15 3 400 96 "220 316 960 Whangarei 10,350 4.843,600 14,621 23 8 4,673 1,816 350 2,166 2,100 Woodville 1,170 221,836 2,228 2 382 Totals 1,005,420 319,458,653 1,617,297 8,369 1,940 1,470,001 853,689 138,518 992,207 417,937 Protected areas outside fire districts — Christchurch .. 28 23 230,537 2,880 230 3,110 ♦Returns not rece ived. f Forms part 3f North She re Fire ] Board fi •oro 1st April, 194 J Comtiti ited 1st A] Wfl, 1943.