Leeds warehouse fire.
Leeds Fire Brigade was occupied for more than an hour last night at a fire which destroyed a large quantity of electrical goods in the basement of a warehouse occupied by the Eveready Co. Ltd., Neville Street, Leeds. A large quantity of flash lamps, high and low tension batteries, wireless apparatus and other electrical appliances were damaged.
Bradford Observer, 13th September 1938.
Leeds Firemen Get Electric Shocks.
Five outbreaks in same premises.
Leeds firemen experienced slight electric shocks when they tackled a blaze at the premises of Ever Ready Co. (G.B.), Ltd., Neville Street, Leeds, yesterday. The flooded basement became “alive” being charged with current from wireless and electric batteries. Firemen and staff felt slight shocks as they walked through the water and when they handled racks in the basement.
There have been five outbreaks of fire at these premises in four days – three of them occuring yesterday. Since Monday night, when the first outbreak occurred, the firm had members of their staff standing by in case of further trouble. On Wednesday night, thick smoke from the basement necessitated another call being made to the Fire Brigade. Yesterday on one occasion the fumes and smoke from the pitch in the batteries were so dense that firemen had to wear breathing apparatus.
Employees cheered as they saw their workmates swing down from 80ft-high windows.
Yorkshire Post and Leeds Intelligencer, 16th September 1938.
Baffling series of fires in a Leeds building.
39 outbreaks in a few days.
Desks that become hot. Letters found charred. Employees tell of weird happenings.
Firemen inspecting today the damage at the carpet warehouse of Brinton’s Ltd., Neville Street, Leeds, where they put out a fire last night. The warehouse adjoins premises occupied by the Ever Ready (Great Britain) Co., Ltd., manufacturers of electric lamps and batteries, where there have been six fires necessitating the attendance of the brigade in the past week.
A mysterious series of fires, during the past week, at premises in Neville Street, Leeds, is engaging the attention of Leeds C.I.D. Workpeople in the building declare that the outbreaks occur with astounding spontaneity, and the action of a chemical gas, combusting for unexplained reasons, is suggested. Among the puzzling happenings alleged to occur without apparent cause are:
Maps on the wall suddenly starting to char and smoke at the edges. Desks and partitions becoming hot to the touch. The contents of closed drawers and showcases breaking into flames, and Letters left on a desk being subsequently found partly charred.
Unfortunately these mysterious phenomena refuse to occur in the presence of members of the Fire Brigade, who are consequently a little sceptical about them, while admitting that they find the repeated outbreaks baffling. “I have never experienced anything like it before,” an official of the Brigade told a “Yorkshire Evening Post” reporter today, “and we do not know what is causing it. I cannot understand it.”
Electric batteries stored in the basement of the building were involved in the first outbreak, a week ago, and the Fire Brigade official spoke of the possibility of these batteries, as they dried, giving off fumes which settled on paper or other material and ignited spontaneously; but he confessed that the cause of the outbreaks was beyond the Brigade at present. A fire assessor, who has had to visit the building to revise claim estimates almost daily, told our reporter that in all his experience he had never known anything so astounding. The evidence of the work-people withe regard to the spontaneous outbreaks was so widespread and consistent that he felt bound to accept some of it, at least. They spoke too, of a mysterious and hardly-to-be-described smell which preceded outbreaks, and he himself was aware at times of a smell which he had never before encountered at fires. The firemen could not detect this smell.
Altogether, the workpeople say there have been 39 outbreaks. The first occurred last Monday, among the batteries of the Ever Ready (G.B.) Co. Ltd. Since then, the fire engine has been called to the building four times, and firemen have been on duty on various occasions. “The occupants kept ringing about renewed outbreaks” said a Brigade official, “and we sent someone down to see what could be made of it, but there was never anything to see when we got there.”
Last night one of the most puzzling outbreaks happened, and the circumstances attending it were vouched for, to our reporter by three men – Richard Little, of Carr Holm Drive, Bernard Daly, of Leysholme Crescent, and Wilfred Storey, of Trentham Avenue. These men are employed by firms in the building and, with two others, were appointed to keep watch throughout last night for renewed outbreaks. “The first thing that happened last night was that a box of waste paper, standing in the middle of the concrete floor of one of the landings, burst into flames. We extinguished it, as we have extinguished many such little outbreaks, and continued patrolling the building,” said Mr Little.
“Shortly before nine o’clock we inspected Brinton’s carpet warehouse on the first floor. We switched on the lights, walked from one end of the room to the other, and found everything apparently all right. We went upstairs to the stockroom above and examined it similarly. Just as we returned to the door of the stockroom we smelled burning, but couldn’t locate the fire until we saw smoke coming up the lift-shaft from below. A roll of paper, in the room below that we had just quitted, was blazing. We got the paper outside on to the stone staircase and extinguished it. By this time we were feeling nervous. Happenings such as that shake one’s nerve. People won’t believe us when we speak of them. You have to see them to believe them. We decided to ring the Fire Brigade and ask them to post a man with a hose.
“While I was telephoning from an office in the building, on the same floor, Daly opened the door of an adjoining office and flashed his electric torch inside. He found a small pile of burned paper and a stack of letters, partly charred, on a desk where they had been left a few hours earlier by the manager of Lever’s Optical Co. As I was telephoning there was another outbreak on the floor above. We dashed upstairs and found the stockroom a blazing furnace. It seemed incredible that a fire should have spread so far, let alone started from nothing, in the few minutes since we had left this room. The whole series of events happened within 10 minutes.”
These three men all talk of the mysterious smell which precedes an outbreak. They say they can detect the difference between the “fire” and the “all clear” smell. They may have an idea that an outbreak is going to occur, but cannot tell where, until something starts to smoulder. Among the articles which, they claim, have burst into spontaneous combustion, are typewriter rollers, umbrellas, and clips of papers hanging on the wall.
Yorkshire Evening Post, 20th September 1938.
Mystery Fires in Leeds.
The Neville Street Puzzle.
By a “Mercury” Reporter.
Firemen remained on duty last night at premises occupied by several firms in Neville Street, Leeds, after a series of mysterious fires there. The fires have occurred over a period of eight days, and, according to one estimate, have caused damage totalling between £10,000 and £15,000. Superintendent J. Craig, head of Leeds C.I.D., visited the premises yesterday, but both police and fire brigade officials have been unable to offer any explanation of a series of happenings unparalleled in their experience.
The occupiers of the premises are equally baffled; the last of the four outbreaks to which the fire brigade have been called occurred during Monday night, when representatives of the various firms were actually patrolling the premises.
Workmen have told of incidents such as a map on a wall starting to smoulder, and papers left on a desk becoming charred. The main fires have affected two firms, and a third firm was affected by a minor incident of charred papers. Apart from those to which the fire brigade have been called, there have been a number of other outbreaks, but all trifling in character. One occurred yesterday afternoon – a piece of cardboard covering for a box was found smouldering slightly in premises across a yard from those previously concerned.
On Monday night, an employee of one of the firms told me yesterday, arrangements were made by which a man from each firm remained behind to look after the premises. One of the men said that during the evening a box of paper standing on one of th elandings was found on fire. They put it out. Later, after looking through one floor, they proceeded to another overhead. While they were there they saw smoke coming up the lift well, and, running downstairs again to the floor they had not long left, they found a large roll of paper and a carpet on fire. Paper and carpet were thrown out of the building, but while one of the workmen was telephoning to an official of the firm, another and bigger outbreak occurred on the floor above.
Up to a late hour last night no further outbreak was reported. Officers of Leeds City Police and Leeds Fire Brigade were posted at the premises throughout the night.
Leeds Mercury, 21st September 1938.
Spooklike Leeds Fires.
Scientific experts baffled by mystery outbreak.
A scientific expert has been called into consultation to help to solve the mystery of a series of fires which is baffling Leeds C.I.D. and Fire Brigade officers. The damage done by the fires is estimated at between £10,000 and £15,000, an assessor told “The Yorkshire Observer” last night.
A week ago last Monday the Leeds Brigade was called to a fire at premises occupied by an electric battery manufacturing firm in Neville Street. The fire appears to have been completely extinguished, but since then the brigade have been summoned to the same block of buildings on four occasions, and employees in the building say that during the period more than 40 small sporadic outbursts have occurred.
Employees to whom a “Yorkshire Observer” reporter spoke yesterday tell of strange happenings. They say that since the first fire occurred, more than a week ago, papers left lying on desks, or hung on walls, have been found partially charred, the contents of drawers have begun to smoulder, desks and wooden partitions have become heated, and even the insulation of electric flex has begun to burn. And all without any apparent cause.
Apart from those attended by the brigade, all the outbreaks have been minor ones and easily dealt with by members of the staffs. The building houses a number of firms, and arrangements have been made for a watch to be kept in various parts of the premises. Various theories have been put forward. One suggestion is that gases have been given off from certain substances which, in contact with combustible material, and at certain temperatures, have caused spontaneous combustion.
A fire assessor, with 36 years’ experience, agreed yesterday that he had never experienced a similar series of fires, and confessed that he was at a loss to understand the cause.
The latest serious outbreak occurred late one Monday night, in a carpet warehouse in the same block, where extensive damage was done. No satisfactory cause could be found for this blaze. Firemen are remeaining on duty, keeping a close watch on the buildings and stock, but in spite of their vigilance the beginnings of more small fires were discovered yesterday.
A “Yorkshire Observer” reporter was shown a piece of corrugated cardboard with a hole burned through it. This cardboard was found burning on top of a new consignment of electric batteries, which arrived only yesterday and which had been placed in a shed away from the main block. In another case an overcoat, which had been thrown lightly over a wireless set, was smouldering when picked up.
Superintendent McKinlay and Chief INspector Taylor, of the Leeds Brigade, each with 30 years’ experience of fire-fighting, say they have known nothing like this before, and are unable to offer any satisfactory explanation. Detective-Superintendent Craig, who has charge of the investigations, said last night: “The matter is still a mystery. I have been in consultation with an expert analyst, and he has no scientific explanation to offer. I find it difficult to accept the theory that the fires are caused by gases, either given off from materials in the building or from extraneous sources. There seems to be no precedent for it. There have been no explosions such as one usually finds when gases ignite.” Superintendent Craig added that the same type of batteries as those involved in the original fire had been stored at the premises for years without trouble.
Throughout last night small detachments of firemen stood by in relays ready to deal with any further outbreaks.
Bradford Observer, 21st September 1938.
Building’s 48 fires in 8 days.
Police and firemen are keeping a day and night watch on a four-storey block of buildings in Neville Street, Leeds, in which 48 outbreaks of fire have occurred in the last eight days. Theories that a fire maniac is at work or that inflammable gases may have been released by the combustion of radio batteries which caught fire in the basement have been investigated and rejected. Here are some of the strange happenings:
Calendars hanging on walls have burst into flames; writing desks have become too hot to touch and the drawers when opened have burst into flames; maps on the wall have started to burn at the edges; a typewriter roller has been found scorched; fancy paper trimmings in one window have suddenly smouldered to ashes. Telephones have become electrified and have been useable only by employees wearing rubber shoes. Letters and papers lying on desks have been found burnt to ashes; rolls of paper and even umbrellas have been found in flames.
One of the nightly watchers told the “News Chronicle”: “It is uncanny to go about the building at the dead of night, not knowing where the next fire may start. In one night alone we dealt with 18 small outbreaks. The watchers have all noticed an unusual smell before the fires, as if some strange gas were present in the building, but after the flames have been extinguished the smell disappears.
Daily News (London), 21st September 1938.
No more Leeds ‘mystery’ fires.
No recurrence was detected yesterday of the outbreaks of fire in a block of buildings in Neville Street, Leeds, which have baffled the police and scientific experts.
Bradford Observer, 22nd September 1938.
Mystery Fires. No outbreak for two days in Leeds Building.
For almost two days there has been no further fire at the premises in Neville Street, Leeds, which have been subjected to a prolonged series of outbreaks in the last 10 days. Two policemen and two firemen have been on duty at the place continuously since Tuesday, up to which time there had been 39 outbreaks. Most were trifling fires, easily extinguished by people on the spot, but half-a-dozen were major outbreaks dealt with by the Fire Brigade, and causing, it is stated, thousands of pounds damage. The first was in a basement where batteries belonging to the Ever Ready Co (G.B.) Ltd. were stored, and a theory has been put forward, based on reports of paper and other fabrics bursting into fire for no apparent reason, of a gas generated from the damaged batteries causing spontaneous combustion.
It is now almost a week since these batteries were removed and scrapped, and the basement which contained them has been ventilated and dried. It is suggested that, if there is anything in the gas theory, the last of the gas may by now have cleared away, which would account for the absence of fires in the last couple of days. A chemist has made investigations on the spot and some articles have been sent for laboratory examination. Police and firemen continued their watch at the premises today.
Yorkshire Evening Post, 22nd September 1938.
“Electric fire ghost” hunt.
Baffled in their efforts to solve the mystery of a series of fires at a large block of buildings in Neville-street, Leeds, the police yesterday called in Professor Chadwick, of Leicester, an authority on electricity. There were thirty-nine outbreaks of fire in eight days. Most of them appeared to be due to spontaneous combustion. Watchers on the premises have been more than once amazed to discover material alight in rooms which five minutes before were intact.
Mr J. Firth, an analytical chemist, believes that the fires may be caused by electro-statically charged vapours. Now Professor Chadwick has been called in to test this theory. He began yesterday a series of tests with sensitive apparatus.
Daily Mirror, 24th September 1938.
Mystery fires solved by city expert.
A Leicester expert has solved the mystery of the 49 unexplained fires which occurred within eight days in a block of buildings in Neville-street, Leeds. At first it was thought that the fires had a malicious origin, but after the Leeds Fire Brigade and police had kept careful watch on the buildings, the outbreaks were still occurring. It was then thought that the fires might have been caused through local circumstances, particularly electrical conditions.
Mr C.R. Chadfield, an electrical expert from the Leicester College of Technology, was consulted, and since his investigation there has not been another outbreak. In some of the fires, new wireless dry batteries caught alight, telephone cords became hot, paper began to smoulder and maps on the walls to smoke. Mr Chadfield, it is understood, has investigated thoroughly the local conditions and is preparing a report which will be of interest to fire authorities throughout the country. In his laboratory tests at Leicester, Mr Chadfield is believed to have made a miniature fire with unusual heat and light conditions in the way it is thought the Leeds fires started.
Leicester Evening Mail, 30th September 1938.
Fire mystery believed solved.
Leicester expert’s success.
Since certain steps were taken on the advice of Mr C.R. Chadfield, an electrical expert from the Leicester College of Technology, there has not been a single outbreak in the block of buildings in Neville-street, Leeds, where in eight days 49 sudden fires had occurred. The mystery is thus believed to have been practically solved, but today Mr Chadfield is conducting final tests on the spot in the presence of Detective-Superintendent James Craig, head of the Leeds C.I.D., with a view to proving that the fires had not been wilfully caused, but were due to local circumstances, probably associated with electrical conditions.
“The experiments on the spot will prove whether my laboratory theories are right or not,” said Mr Chadfield. “I am confident that what has happened has not been due to any incendiarism. It would in fact be most difficult for anyone to have staged such a remarkable succession of outbreaks.” In some of the Neville-street outbreaks new wireless dry batteries burst into flames, telephone cords became too hot to hold, tissue paper on a desk began to char at the edges, and wall maps began to smoke. It is understood that in his laboratory tests at Leicester Mr Chadfield created a miniature fire with unusual light and heat conditions in the same way in which, it is believed, the Leeds fires arose. These experiments may help to solve similar problems that have faced fire-fighting authorities in the past.
Leicester Daily Mercury, 30th September 1938.