THE
HONGKONG
PENINSULA HOTEL:
HONGKONG HOTEL: REPULSE BAY HOTELA
PLAK HOTEL
and
SHANGHAI
ASTOR HOUSE: PALACE HOTEL:
HOTELS
LIMITED.
in association with the Grand Hotel Das Wagons Lits, Peking.
PALACE HOTEL.
Telephone 67008
Telegraphic Ardross "Palace," A First Class Eosidential & Tourist Hotel Under Entirely European Management High Class Wines & Spirits Steel Coulson's Beer On Draught. Four Full Sized Billiard Tables Billiards, Snooker,
or Skiltler.
MRS. J. H. OXBERRY,
Penang
Proprietress.
The Scenic Gem of Malaya
first class
Hotel
Modern throughout and beautifully Situated
Kunnymede Hotel
Malaya's Premier Hotel
Food and Winos especially good
AFTER-DINNER DANCE
Every Wednesday & Saturday, Orchestra Daily
CABLES "RUNNYMEDE"
THE
RUNNYMEDE HOTEL, LTD. Geope Goldrock, Manager.
EUROPE HOTEL,
SINGAPORE.
+1
"RENOWNED BY RECOMMENDATION
After Dinner every Tuesday, Thurs-
day and Saturday.
DANCING:
MUSIC:
On the VERANDAH- Monday to Friday- 7.45 pm to 8.30
p.m. Saturdays-12.30 p.m. to 1.30 p.m.
and 8.00 p.m. to 8.30 p.m. Sunday Concerts-9.15 p.m. to 11 p,m.
Robert Drescher's Famous Viennese Orchestra Plays During Tiffin and Dinner Every Day.
GRILL:
Telephone. 5341 (8 lines) Cables "EUROPE " Singapore.
THE EUROPE HOTEL, Ltd.
Arthur E. Odell Managing Director.
Personal Accident
Insurance
For Particulars and Ratos Apply--
CHINA UNDERWRITERS, LTD.
Phone 23191.
Hongkong Bank Ballding.
HONGKONG
TELEGRAPH TUESDAY, NOVEMBER 24, 1931.
POTTINGER STREET FIRE DISASTER.
INQUIRY INTO FATAL BLAZE.
at the outset,
Two
Ing houses on, either alde jata from hoscs connected up with hydrants were alternatively used to check the fire, while other bonta were being laid down to hydrants and motor pumps. At the height of the attack, six jets were brought into play-two from the street, two from the houses across the way and one each from the roofs of the adjoining houses,
Casualties Reported.
a
A coroner's Inquiry into the cir- cumstances of the recent fro at 42, Pottinger Street whore nix liven were lost, was conducted by Mr. Schofield at the Central Police
The ground floor and the stair- Court yesterday with the alatanse case lending to the fret floor had of a jury composed of Messrs. Jalrendy collapsed on his arrival and 11. Davy (foreman), L.. S. Silva and the space between the basement Fung Un.
and the rat floor was like The Coroner,
furnace. About eight minutes pointed out to the jury that the inlater, the first floor collapsed quiry was being held to consider ontirely, as well as the rear portion the circumstances- under which the second floor, the latter pro- Chan Lin-fai, one of the victims, bably caused by the collapse of a living at 42, Pottinger Street, met portion of the roof there. his death. The house was burnt and six lives lost. The points for the jury to consider were (1) How did the fire originate? (2) Did the Police and Fire Bilgade do all that could have been done under the circumstances (3) Does any blame, direct or indirect, rest with anyone and (4) What were the reasons for the loss of life?
Dr. G. II. Thomas, Merliest Of
ex-
The fire war sufficiently tinguished by 4.43 a.m. to permit of the "stop" signal being sent back to the various Stations. At this stage the Brigade were informed that three persons had been burnt and sent to Hospital. No information was received from the Police of any persons killed or missing until 8.30 in the morni
morning. At this time, Mr. Fitzhenry had returned to the lieving others who had been left behind to extinguish amouklering debris.
ver of the Government Civil Hos-cene with a party of Aremen. re- pital, stated that of three persons who were admitted on the morning of Noyember 8, n amall boy, Chan Lin-fal, died that same day from'; extensive burns, death being due to shock following the burns.
Sub Inspector D. W. Barnett, of the Central Police Station, aromed by this blowing of palice whistles and fron his bedroom
Looking down through an open- ing in the roof over the kitchen. measuring only 9 ft, by 4 they could er a number of bodies huddled to- kitchen In hetween the was gether.
and the main portion of the floor is an air-shaft, bridged by a short passage, but looking for doors shutters he could find none to oplags provided which could used to shut out the fire,
Have
4
to
any rate sufficiently long table the inantea to get out of the kitchen thresh the trap door and on to, the mal. The condition of
the satbreak. He rushed down and found people running out 480, 42 and 45, Pattinger Street short distance from his which i a quarters. The middle one of that three houses was alight, and ness went to the first floor to warn the people bit found that they had already
vated the premises, building at the time Witness Shouting out that the place was on
inspected it was such as to make a | fire and advising the inmates
total collapse imminent, and Ta leave,
witness then went to No. 40 other way could be found to reach and later to No. 4d but on each occasion found that the occupants had already left.
Rescue Work.
Witness went to the small roof at the rear of No. 14 and saw
Sergeant Williamson with eight or
nine Chinese on the main roof. They were taken down to the small roof and told to leave the place. Sergeant Williamson shosted that there was a boy somewhere, and thon disappeared behind the flames.
110
bodies than by lowering a rope. The bodian of six persons taken out, four of adults and two of children,
Originated in Basemeat. There was every evidence, wit- Hess continued, to show that the that which had served as a stair- Gire originated in the basement. Of
case, there were only traces. bottom had fallen into the busa- ment.
The
Of the wooden ladder lead- ing to the opening in the roof and serving the purposes
of a fire escape, there remained only two
fire
On gaining the main roof wit-wooden stumps. The provision of nean found the flames had developed to such an extent that he had to leave. The fire brigade had ar rived when witness went to the streets below and, finding that he could do nothing else, returned to his quarters.
In reply to Mr. Davy, witness said that it took him about two minutes to arrive on the scene from the time he had heard the Police whistles. He did not wait to dress but rushed out in his pyjamas. He thought that the fire brigade had arrived whilst he was in one of the The firemen must have been on the scene about two or three minutes after wilnest,
houses.
Brigade Activities. Mr. H. T. Brooks, Fire Brigade
that Superintendent, said
they received the call over a direct line from the Central Police Station at 3.46 um. Within one minute the first appliance went out, followed at equal intervals by two others, These three appliances had a total personnel of 22 fremen, with Mr. Smith in charge.
Looking from his quarters on the Afth floor of the Fire Station Building, witness saw that the fire was well alight, in the direction of Pottinger Street. He sent what was technically known as the "die- trict call," which released five nd ditional
appliances
from the various stations on the island for the work. Within four minutes of receiving the call, witness, and an- other officer, Mr. Fitzhenry, loft for the scene.
On arrival be found that the building involved, was one of three storeys with a basement, and was a mass of flames. The flames were shooting across the narrow
a suitable door to the kitchen and shutters to the windows would have shut out the flames for a while and probably given the Inmates a chance to escape, or for the firemen to effect a rescue, on their attention being called.
Of the two jets employed in the first instance,
one had to be alternatively played into an arms store next door which contained ammunition.
Replying to a question by the foreman, witness spoke of the SuccnVtes of the Brigade being restricted by sloping, greasy and narrow streets in the vicinity of the outbreak, but added that there was very little delay,
When the Foreman suggested "remedies for the future", witness anid concrete staircases should be built. It so happened that these old-type houses went hand-in-hand
with narrow streeta and were
at the same time also densely inhabited. In the present instance,
persons were living in the same building-13 on the ground floor
the remainder on the upper. The enquiry was adjourned.
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