Chaos in the Sydney CBD as a historic building goes up in flames - 14 January 1975

On 14 January 1975, in the heart of Sydney CBD, the former Angus and Robertson building on Castlereagh Street, opposite David Jones, was gutted by fire. Firefighters described it as the most difficult and hazardous commercial property fire they had fought in many years. The four-storey historic building had been occupied by various commercial businesses since Angus and Robertson vacated the premises in 1972. It contained a labyrinth of basement cellars and was crammed with soft merchandise. Luckily, the adjacent modern buildings, which included Centre Point, had been constructed of fire-resistant materials, which proved helpful in stopping the spread of fire.

Firefighters wearing breathing apparatus at the old Angus and Robertson building fire on Castlereagh Street, Sydney, 14 January 1975 [Museum of Fire Collection; courtesy of Bauer Media]

The first triple zero call was received at Headquarters at 11:27 am where it was reported that heavy smoke was rising from the basement area of the building. Then, just one minute later, Headquarters received a full code on the automatic alarm installation. Headquarters immediately sent their Flyer and Salvage with an additional appliance from The Rocks. The Headquarters Runner and an appliance from Darlinghurst were then sent on for further support. On arrival, District Officer R. Freeman (Salvage) confirmed that a fire was burning in the basement and that extinguishment would be difficult due to the lack of access. At this early stage, the seat of the fire was unable to be observed as it was occurring directly under the footpath and foyer, where a huge volume of blinding acrid smoke was issuing from. The intense heat and smoke from the fire were also preventing crews from taking up effective suppression measures, however, this did not stop firefighters from donning breathing apparatus and attempting to gain access to the basement with hose lines with no luck. Since firefighters could not access the fire's seat through the building, they smashed open the pavement where, through swirling, suffocating smoke, they could get water onto the fire.

Turntable ladder at work at the fire in the old Angus and Robertson Building on Castlereagh Street, Sydney, 14 January 1975 [Museum of Fire Collection; courtesy of Bauer Media]

Due to the potential spread of the fire to adjoining buildings, brigades from Glebe and Pyrmont were called in for assistance as evacuations were conducted in the Centre Point Complex and the nearby David Jones building. To access the building’s basement, firefighters entered through a parking basement on Pitt Street, went up stairways, and through a delivery hatch before moving along narrow subterranean corridors to attack the fire. Unfortunately, the fire continued to spread towards the property above them, so an immediate withdrawal was ordered. Turntable ladders were then positioned along Castlereagh and Pitt Street where they flooded the roof and upper storeys of the former Angus and Robertson building and hosed down the walls of the adjacent buildings. Internal hydrants were also utilised in the Centre Point complex as thousands of litres of water were used to battle the fire.

People watch on at the fire in the old Angus and Robertson Building on Castlereagh Street, Sydney, 14 January 1975 [Museum of Fire Collection; courtesy of Bauer Media]

At 2:00pm the fire broke through the basement and ground floor levels and, within minutes spread throughout the building. With firefighters concerned about the potential explosion of superheated gases within the building that would shower burning debris across Castlereagh Street, they pushed forward to extinguish the fire from its source. An hour later at 3:00pm, A Platoon received assistance from B Platoon but it wouldn’t be until 8:30pm that the battle against this monster of a fire would come to an end.

-Story by the Museum of Fire Heritage Team