YESTERDAY'S GALE.

Auckland Star, Volume XLIX, Issue 41, 16 February 1918, Page 6

YESTERDAY'S GALE.

MORE DETAILS OF DAMAGE. WEATHER MO"DESAZfi»G. The violent easterly gale which prevailed yesterday had moderated considerably to-day, and owners of damaged boats and. property on fcho waterfront were enabled to accomplish some salvage •work. In addition -to the damage detailed yesterday, a good, deal of havoc twas worked on Cheltenham Beach and at Orakei and Judge's Bay. Tjhe tea kiosk at Cheltenham wae partly undermined by the -waves, anct the concrete steps and breastwork, were smashed by the force of the water. Five macro-t-'urpa trees were blown down and thrown across the retaining wall, which was •.'broken in several places. Persons camping in wlmrea under the cliff at Orakrn found themselves cut off during tUe he\;ht of the gale, and were in considerable peril for a while. Hopes were let down , from the, top of the cliff in due courst', and several women and chi'idreu were enabled to climb up by this nwans. Three .boatshede in Judge's Bay, teboniing to Messrs. E. A. Edgeaim'be, .1. J. Bcatty, and Saunders, -ivere comp/ctely demolished, and a number more were damaged. Fruit cr.ops throughout the* province have suffered severely from tl ie rain and wind, applet toeing affected (nost owing to the fact that the bulk erf the stone fruit had been gathered. _ In exposed localities treea were blown d own. Tomatoes and gardun crops also iiurtored. At Xgungiini a raft of 'fOO logs, containing 200,000 ft of timber, was blown on to the mangroves and br< ;ken up. The timber will take a considerable time to Collect again.

There wore very high lad<>s and heavy seas at AVhakatanc, and. tt. was feared ftt one that the pJant used for improving the harnoiur elitrauce would be destroyed. Parts of fb/e road between Opotiki and Ohiwa were -covered by the tide. Telegraphic •eoTUmunication 'between Taurajiga and 'VvTiakatane was interrupted £or some, time. Shipping ie to be still sheltering at various points on the coast, and no vessels «ntr.jrcd or left the port of Auckland t-his morning. The Monowai arrived from Gisborne at 10 o'clock last night, after a. roujyn piissage, about four hours behind time.

The high tioes occasioned damage to the stone hrp-astwork facing of the bridge connecting Birkenhead and Xorthcote, the being w<ol covered by the tides. The "YVaitemata. bowling green in the vicinii:y was aleo inundated with the sea. The Little Shoal Bay Reserve. ComMittee (comprising members of the Krikenhead and Xorthcote Councils) meet "this afUrnboti to consider t>l6 •tendcrrs Tecfeivdi for the construction of a voodt>n breastwwk at the Xorthcote «nd of the reserve at the head of the bay between the two districts. It is pw>bable that fresh -tenders will be called, as the specifications will require tn lie reviewed, the experience of the big tides Tieceseitating a higher wall, ■while the stone wall "will n.ten have to be increased in height, about two feet to effectually stem back the exceptionally high tides from the footpath and reserve. On the -eastern beach the footuatbs and roads have suffered considerably by the inroads of the sea, while the bathing-shed erected iby the Council was damyigcd. It ie stated that the tidemark, was fully eight inches over last year's cyclonic tiae level on Sulphur Beach. A Prves Association telegram from Opotiki Teeeivcd last night stated that a. storm of exceptional severity was raging on the coast, accompanied by titles of record lieight. The sea covered parts of the road between Opotiki and Oliiwa. washing up logs, which were obstructinar the traffic. Several yardft of the right bank of tihe Ohiwa Harlmur, used for traffic to the wliarf, were washed away. Th»: steamers Xgatiawa anfl Tasman were sheltering high up the Ohiwa Harbour.

MR YVTIAGGE'S JfORECAST.

Mr Cletncnt Wraggo supplied the fol lowing r.veafhcr report at f).30 tins morn

"During the night tlu° tropical disturbance named 'Zaphon , acquired a more southerly cotirsp titan was probable yesterday, and the main part of the depreseJon Iβ now in the vicinity of Cook .Strait. Conditions over the Auckland province should thns steadily become finer, and, owing to the present course of the disturbance, the ivinds will back towards the west and southward. Seas will moderate and tides become less high. The ttotal rainfall litider the storm whs 0.067 inch at Birkenhead. There is a vast disturbed area in full play in the eun exceeding a hundred thousand miles loner and containing seven centres of energy."