LAUNCH WRECKED.

Auckland Star, Volume LXVII, Issue 104, 4 May 1936, Page 9

LAUNCH WRECKED.

WELLINGTON STORM.

DAMAGE AT HOSPITAL PATIENTS' LUCKY ESCAPE. • (By Telegraph.—Press Association.) WELLINGTON, Sunday. One of the worst southerly storms ever experienced swept over Wellington on Saturday. Temperatures dropped and gales of extremely high velocity were recorded at many places. The principal damage in Wellington was the wreck of a fishing launch at Island Bay and the unroofing of a house in the same suburb. The wrecked launch was the San Marco, which, with the tackle aboard, was valued at £750. Messrs. J. Mouat and P. Tait purchased the craft a month ago. The owners salvaged the engine and a little of the tackle, but otherwise she is a total loss. She was driven ashore on the rocks at the eastern point of the bay, and a great wave lifted her over 100 ft further inshore and left her on the top of a reef, where the seas continued to damage her broken hull. While the launch was grounding a house in an exposed place high on the hill on the opposite side of the bav was unroofed. The roof was lifted off all at once, and parts of it were carried 150 yards, landing on some other houses and damaging them. Kept Prisoners By Wind. Mrs. L. H. Thomas, the wife of the occupier, and their two children were inside at the. time of the accident, but were una-ble to leave immediately after because of the high wind roaring round the building. The front of the Island Bay Surf Club's building was broken in and floors of two rooms filled with sand to the depth of about 2ft. Many rowing boats on the coast south of Wellington were washed into the sea and in some cases lost, while some of the boathouses and shacks on the beaches were undermined and collapsed. At all places along Queen's Drive the road was strewn with shingle, sand and seaweed, while near Ohiro Bay the bitumen pavement was completely buried for hundreds of yards under debris.

The brick chimney in the Victoria ward at the Wellington Public Hospital was blown down,- the debris hurtling through the tile roof, of which a large section was torn away, littering the floor with debris. The falling bricks also broke a pipe on the steam-heating service, and water was soon running all over the ward. Thirty-four women patients were in the ward at the time, and over two hours were occupied in moving them to another ward, several having to be carried down the stairs, as there is no lift from the ground to the first floor.

Nurses united in helping to move the patients. Three patients were struck by falling debris, but the hospital authorities stated to-day that they were not badly injured, the main trouble being shock and discomfort caused the inmates.

The storm interfered with shipping, the Maori not leaving Wellington for Lyttelton until 11 o'clock on Saturday night, instead of 7.45. The departure of the Matangi for Nelson was delayed from Saturday night until midnight to-night.

The anemometer chart at the Rongotai aerodrome recorded maximum guests of 88.5 miles and 87 miles an hour.