NOR'-WEST GALE.

Press, Volume LIV, Issue 16363, 7 November 1918, Page 2

NOR'-WEST GALE.

DAMAGE DONE IN COUNTRY DISTRICTS. A strong nor'-west wind set in in Chri6tchurch on Tuesday night, and continued all day yesterday. Some damage - was done in gardens and orchards, but nothing of any great consoquence v . A terrific nor'-west gale set m atTemuka about 9.45 p.m. on Tuesday, and continued throughout the night, doing a considerable amount of damage to buildings. In one instance a wooden building was blown into the road, and in another tho roof of a large shed was blown off and carried a considerable distance. The top of the spire of the Presbyterian Church was blown off, and a large plate glass window at Mr Nottingham's, King street, was blown in ana smashed. Many trees were blown down, and it is feared that considerable damage has been done to the fruit crop. . . One of the -fiercest nor'-west winds experienced in North Canterbury for sometime, sprang up on Tuesday evening, and during thejjight increased to almost hurricane force, ahd continued with moro or less severity throughout yesterday. Considerable damage was done to the earlier stone fruits, and to plantations. Over 100 trees woro blown down in the drive leading up to Mr G. Rutherford's homestead, Springbank At Loburn, a shed used as a chaffhousc, was blown down, and on another farm the roof of a largo barn was lifted off and carried a considerable distance. In Rangiora one of the back walls of the Farmers' Co-op. buildings recently gutted by lire, foil, causing some damage to the sheds, at the back. Much inconvenience was caused to telephone 6ubscril<crs, through tho wires becoming entangled. A fierce nor'-west gale raged in Ashburton throughout Tuesday night, and a lot of damage was done to fruit trees and crardeiis and orchards pronerally. A large plate-glass window in a glnzier's shop in Ea:t street, was blown in, and smashed, and rijmerous panes of glass in a number of houses in different parts of the town were broken. The gale was exceptionally severo in tho Mount Somers and'Springburn districts, where there was a Is'J heavy showers of- rain. Telephone' and . telegraph communications were interrupted, in many parts of the county. At Hainpstead the roof of a glasshouse was lifted bodily and carried a distance of about 20 yards. The iron roof of a cow shed in'the same district, measuring 25 foat long, was carried fulfy five chains. The County Council's leservee also suffered, many trees being uprooted. In the Ashburton Domain soveral trees were. blown down.

The strong nor'-wester which blew all day at Rakaia on Tuesday increased at night to a very violent storm, and in tho early hours of Wednesday morning a great deal of damage was done. Hay and other stacks wero plentifully distributed 1 over the countryside," and numerous trees were blown down, blocking roads and breaking telegraph wires. Many lines not broken were strangely mixed, and the Rakaia postmaster was notified of a large number of"faults." One polo on the Methven route was held up only by the wires, and the amount of work on hand will keep the available linesmen busy for some rftime. Tlie effect of the wind eeems to have been felt particularly in the Mitcham. district and at tho iioad. At the latter place there is little to break the full force of the wind as it sweeps down the ltakaia river, and All' T. J. Watt& was an unfortunate euf-. ferer. At about 2 a.m. the whole roof of his house was blown off in sections and deposited some distance away. SOUTH CANTERBURY SUFFERS. (SPECIAL 10 '"THE TRESS.") TIMAitUj 6. The demerits ran. not in Hmutu and througnout aoutu O-anteibuiy on Tuesday liigut aim this morning,wuen a gaie oi unusual seventy piovuiieu, and cud much damage., . xt was a uortnwest wind, ana sprang up about 10 o'clock on Tuesday nigut. All night it blew with hurricane iorce, and dm not spend itself till about noon to-day. The wind piaved havoc in gardens and orchards, uprooted trees, fitted, the roofs off houses, snook big buildings as 'an earthquake' might si take tiiem, and caused some loss of "lile among stock, where stacks were blown over and cattle smothered in the straw. In Timaru the gale was not 60 severe as it was in tne country," though there was a good deal of damage done about the town through, fruit being thrashed off in orchards, and fences ana sheds blown over or smashed about.. A large pinus insignus tree in tho Timaru pars. was uprooted and flung into tiio public hospital grounds, carrying away the electric lines leading into the hospital. At the emu pens in the park another tree fell on top of one-of- the emus, and the injuries it received necessitated its destruction. ' Private dwellings suffered in some eases, windows being blown in, fences levelled,. and trees and shrubs knocked about. In Waimate County the "gale was still more severe than in Timaru. In the Otaio district, the roofs of some houses were lifted clean off, others were partially lifted, and the roof of the big woolshed at Mr Teschc-maker's old homestead, which has withstood all the winds of the past twenty-tivo years, was blown off. In Waimate township the front brick wall of tho Premier Motor Garage, 50ft in length, was blown down, and tho roof of Mr White's workshop, at the corner of Queen and Leonard streets, fell in by reason of the fact that the brick parapet was blown on to it. At the Show Grounds, which were m perfect order for the show this month, practically all tho horse and cattle stalls (about sixty) wero so torn about that thoy will require a lot of repairs. The wind was also very severe at Pareo*-a and At the lattor place a fcrro-concreto. house, in courso of erection, had its roof lifted clean off and deposited in an adjoining field.