The Pacific commercial advertiser. [volume] (Honolulu, Hawaiian Islands) 1885-1921, 1905-12-24
BLAZE On
WATERFRONT
Davies Warehouse On
Fire But Loss
Was Small.

might have been a confagration but
for the good work of the department.
The Davies warehouse at Kekuanaoa
and HaIekauwila streets somehow lg-
nited and burned on three sides. For
contents it had, among other things,
boiled oil, tar in barrels. kerosene and
excelsior packing. Shingles, lath and
railroad ties were piled against the
gear of the building, material belonging
ITO a big lumber yard near by.
s The building which caught fire was
about 2O0x2O0 feet in dimensions The
lumber yard in the rear, running down
to Allen street was the property OF
Levers & Cooke. The building con-
tanned besides the things already listed
crockery packed in bales of excelsior
an assortment of hardware, mostly
cooking utensils, and the supplies OF
Davies paint department.
The structure was practically de-
stroyed on the Waikiki side next TO
Davies big brick warehouse, but the
Eva side next to Kekuanaoa street IS
not badly damaged. 1t was here that
the oil was stored. The building and
contents We're fully insured, said Mr.
Swanzy of Davies & Co, last night.
The value of either the building or
contents could not be ascertained as
everybody was out enjoying Christ
mas eve, but the warehouse is est1-
mated to have been worth about $1,000
and the loss on the contents is said
to be nominal.
County Sheriff Brown, whose men re-
sponded as promptly as did the fire.
men and stretched their fire ropes i'm
mediately, last night spoke in the
highest terms of the work of the fire
department. 'It was a chance for a
big fire. said he, land they got it un-
der control in short order. Hono1ulu's
fire department can always be depend
ed upon to control any fire we have
here as long as the water does not
give out on Them
At 6:52 the alarm of fire was turned
in from box IS corner of Fort and
Queen streets and the entire Central
station responded at once. The Buford
had just docked and the street was full
of hacks and automobiles from the
Buford and Christmas shoppers. The
sight of the fire wagons coming down
the street at full tilt looked very me-
tropoIitan to the Buford passengers.
Two steamers and a chemical ma
chine came in from the Central sta
tion and also two hose wagons. Later
the chief turned in two call to Pa
lama and the Palama hose wagon came
in on the jump. The other steamers
and hose wagons were not needed and it
seemed as though the department was
hardly at work before the one whis-
tie meaning fire under control sound
ed out on the Christmas laden air.
much to the relief of the merry towns
folk
The fire started in the mauka end of
the building, probably from spontane-
Gus combustion of the oil. 1t quick
ly spread 20 the excelsior crates in
which crockery was packed and in al
most no time at all the whole interior
OF the building was in flames and the
corrugated iron sides We're red and in
places at white heat. Axes were put
into immediate use Two lines of hose
were turned into the front and two
more into the back. The chemical hose
worked on the leanto on the Waikiki
side.
There were two sources of danger.
One the lumber yard in the rear which
caught fire almost Immediately and the
other the kerosene oil, of which it is
said quite a large quantity was stored
in the building. Without regard for
their lives, the firemen faced the
flames, dared an explosion of oil and
in fifteen minutes the night was black
again, the fire being under control.
Ax-;yo ip6 in q
air by the force of the water played on
them. These, with 1ath and railroad
ties were piled right against the iron
building and it was a Hurculean task
to remove the upper ones, tie by tie,
and bundle by bundle, to get at the
flames below. But it was done almost
before the people knew it.
Willing hands helped the firemen
handle the hose when they called for
''rnore slack and men of all grades,
high and low. merchants and wharf
loafers. grabbed the canvas pipes car
rying safety to the town. Into the
building the firemen went, the hose so
stiff from the pressure that 1t threw the
men almost off their feet. Finally, just
in the nick of time, assistant Chlef
Deering heard a noise and looking up
beheld the roof about to collapse he
just had time to warn the men when
with a crash the iron roof fell TO the
floor, but fortunately no one was hurt'
At nine fifty the steamers We're all
sent back to the station and from that
time the hose was attached to the n.y.
drants direct. At ten forty the last
Yestige of the fire was put out and the
firemen returned to get well earned
sleep. AS a precaution, however, one
line of hose was left attached to the
hydrant for the use of the special
policeman on watch in case of neces-
sity.