Captain Shaw returned with new relays of men to assist those on the spot; and during the night and all the next day the force was busily at work. On the Monday night two firemen were so overcome by the smoke that they had to be removed, being nearly suffocated; but happily they recovered, and no life was lost during the fire. The streams of melted grease flowed from the burning warehouse into the quay, and thence to the dock basin, where by-and-by they cooled and solidified, looking something like snow on a frozen lake. Thirteen steam fire-engines and one float continued to throw immense quantities of water on the burning building; but the fire was not really subdued until the morning of January 3rd.
A few engines remained on the Wednesday and the Thursday, and threw water on the heated ruins, to cool them down and quench any latent fire; while on January 4th, men were busy skimming the dock basin,—which was thickly covered with the solid tallow and oil,—and loading the mass into barges.
After the conflagration, engines were employed in pumping water out of the vaults where it had collected, and as much jute was found injured by water as destroyed by fire. No doubt, it was the jute and the tallow and oil which rendered the conflagration so obstinate; but it was also found that while water collected to a great extent in some parts, yet it did not penetrate to other parts of even the same floor—a result which, perhaps, was due to the method of packing the jute.
In the end, about three-parts of the block of warehouses was burned. The amount of tallow in the four burning buildings was calculated to range between two and three thousand casks, some of which appear to have been saved; but several hundred barrels of cocoanut oil and palm oil were lost as well, and the coir fibre, flax, and jute burnt reached to a very large quantity, the total pecuniary loss being estimated at over £200,000.
This great fire proved a terrible object-lesson. For about two days and nights the engines and appliances of the brigade, with some two-thirds of the men, were engaged at this one conflagration. What if another great fire had broken out in those dark January days? The situation was fraught with the gravest peril.
No doubt, voluntary aid at fires used often to be relied upon, and in 1861 payment was given to assistants. But the Metropolitan Board now had the means of strengthening the brigade, and they proceeded to use it. In marked contrast to the 130 men and 20 stations of the Fire Establishment of 1863, were the 591 firemen and 55 land fire-engine stations of the brigade in 1889, when it passed over to the London County Council—figures which show a notable development.
SIR EYRE M. SHAW, K.C.B.