Lautoka firemen on Thursday September 19, 1991 battled tirelessly to control a fire which destroyed a furniture making factory, causing damage estimated at more than $200,000.
The fire which began at about 1.30pm razed Topik Furniture and Joinery’s corrugated iron and timber building on Leonidas St.
This was published in The Fiji Times on Friday September 20, 1991.
The fire started when the motor of an exhaust filler heated up and exploded, igniting a 44-gallon drum filled with thinner and polish.
A spray polisher alerted the rest of the 30 staff who rushed out of the building.
Nothing was saved.
Topik Furniture owner, Vinod Kumar was away in Sigatoka and rushed to Lautoka when he heard of the fire.
He said all furniture making machinery and office equipment was destroyed in the blaze.
A spokesman for the Lautoka Fire Brigade said they received a call at 1:32pm and a fire tender with a fire officer and five firemen was sent.
A second fire tender followed minutes later with three firemen.
The firemen and residents battled the blaze.
Fireman said they did their best to control the blaze but were helpless because there was little water in the fire hydrant.
“After two calls to the Water Supply Department no changes were made to the supply in the hydrant and we had to connect our hoses to a fire hydrant in Sukanaivalu Rd, about 250 metres from the scene,” a fireman said.
“The fire was big and because it was a tin building and in an enclosed area the fire spread quickly,” he said.
He said that had there been a good supply of water from the fire hydrant close to the scene, some items could have been saved.
