WEEK OF EARTHQUAKES.

Auckland Star, Volume LVII, Issue 135, 9 June 1926, Page 6

WEEK OF EARTHQUAKES.

SOLOMON ISLANDS SHAKEN.

JTERVE-BACKING EXPERIENCE

MISSIONER'S GRAPHIC STORY.

An interesting report of recent earthquakes in the Solomon Islands reaches us from the general secretary of the Melanesian Mission, Major H. 3. Robin, son, who is at present visiting these Pacific Islands. The writer of the report is the Rev. Dr. Fox, of the Mela" nesia Mission station at Pawa, on the island of Ugi. Dr. Fox states: "The earthquake started on Monday April 12, and continued for ten day's! During the first seven days there were 35 brief shocks and many tremors bu* , none were so terrible as the first' one" The awful violence of that 15 seconds is beyond words. I was thrown clean out. It was a dark night, and rainimj There was a great roaring, the houses danced like dervishes, the nut tree oil the top of the hill was thrown to the bottom, and my house was instantly in flames. At Pawa all the tanks, brimful of water, were thrown to the ground and completely smashed, the back verandah collapsed to matchwood, and the side of the bvck room, was wrenched out. Martin was down there with the work, boys, and, on running out, they were all thrown to the ground. Inside the big bookcase and the large table met and scrapped in the middle of the floor, and cupboards and cases- played battledore and shuttlecock. In the hospital four boys were on beds, and were ail thrown to the middle of the room and there met the medicine cupboard. Everything breakable broke. Then came quiet, and we put out the fire in my house with wet sacks. All night the Island quivered, and earthquakes came every three or four minutes till 2 a.m. Tuesday they came at longer intervals, and so till Thursday at. when the .next big one arrived; This upset everyone, and the teachers and boys all went to their gardens for the niglit, and I was left alone on Taesara. No house was safe, so I spread my cape on the grass, and lay there smoking all night. Big shakes came up every halfhour with a roar —you could see the hills swinging as you swing your arm, and could~hear the hillsides falling. The hill by Abel's Garden fell into the gully. Great fissures opened everywhere. Some of the boys vomited. Butchart's house turned over at an angle of 45 degrees. My own place came through unhurt, thanks to your good wiring. In some houses main posts were wrenched' out. A fissure. opened across the floor of George's house. Some of these fissures ! are 50 yards long. Fissures opened on the reef on both sides of the point. Many native houses fell, and the etone church at Tawarodo.

"At Bio there was a huge wave, leaving lots of fish. At Langaula the tanks fell, but the houses stood, although the native houses went- right over. At Three Sisters it was worse. The house was lifted up and dropped on to the posts, which went right through the floor. On San Cristoval it was milder. At Waiai and after the great shock there were only tremors, not the week of horror we had. On Friday I went down and slept in Rudgard's house, and that night there v.ere only six earthquakes, and, though the rocking of the house awoke mc, I did not have to leave the building. It was my 'first short sleep for that week. From 'the lie of the fissures I am of opinion that the shocks came from the north-east, and am confirmed in this by the more extensive damage done at the Three Sisters Islands.

"The long-drawn-out waiting, always expecting a worse shock, tried all our nerves badly. At the big shake I did think that Ugi was going, and all of us with it. All through it all I would have given much for a companion."