STEADY RAIN

Press, Volume LXX, Issue 21245, 17 August 1934, Page 19

STEADY RAIN

. END ;' ; OF "NOR'-WEST >' .'." "'CONDITIONS ' FORECAST OP COLDER (' WEATHER i Steady, continuous rain settled over the city shortly after half past seven last evening and continued , through the night. A high gale from the nor'-west early in the morning brought a sharp shower when five points of rain fell. The rest of the day was warm and overcast with a maximum temperature of 62.6 degrees. The outlook for the week-end. is not good. The forecast from the Dominion Observatory at Wellington is for cold and rainy weather over the Dominion, with snow on the ranges and some parts of the flat in the South Island. The latter part of this war; fulfilled in some respects yesterday, as in the back-country a severe storm was experienced, and from the plains it seemed that snow must have fallen on the ranges. Most of the Canterbury province experienced the same weather as the city. The early morning rain started in the Sheffield district about three o'clock and in the next hour two or three heavy showers fell. The afternoon storm broke about 5.30 o'clock and heavy rain fell throughout the evening. The strong nor'-west wind which had been blowing all day dropped when the rain appeared and as there was hardly a breeze in the evening the chances. of the weather clearing were small. Hororata felt the first spots of rain four hours after Sheffield, and though of short duration the falls were heavy while they lasted. Warm overcast weather, with the wind in the nor'-west, settled in for the day, though shortly after five o'clock light rain began to fall and lasted through the evening. Nor'-west showers brought half an inch of rain to Methven during the night, and though there were a few scattered showers during the day, the weather was for the most part fine. In the evening the rain increased in force and the light breeze from the nor'-west showed signs of turning to the south with more rain. As it has been dry for the last week or two the fall has been of value to the farmers. Oxford reported that the heavy rain that had fallen since 5.30 was expected to clear off as the weather was warm, with only a slight drift from the nor'-west. The wind had been from that quarter all day and though there had been fierce gusts in the early morning with scattered falls the rest of the day had been warm and sultry. [WELLINGTON STREETS FLOODED TRAM SERVICES HELD UP (IT.K3S ASSOCIATION TELEGRAM.) WELLINGTON, August 16. Such heavy rain fell this morning lor half an hour, from 10 to 10.30 o'clock, that Wellington's storrpwater system was unable to cope with the situation. Several portions oi.,..thc streets" were badly flooded, the worst places being at the Government Buildings and the Basin Reserve, where the water spouted up from below and considerable areas of wood blocking were lifted. The tram services were held up at tiie.se spots, and the service was thus disorganised for more than 20 minutes - . Between 9 and 11 o'clock no les3 than 0.95 in of rain fell, and of this o.Bsinr was between 9 and 10.30 o'cljjk. About 10 o'clock the rain was falling almost in a soli 1 sheet, the heaviest experienced for many years. Lumbtou Quay and Ballance street were Hooded right across and pedestrian traffic was hel.i up on the footpaths, persons who felt under the necessity of proceeding on their way taking to i the street and walking along the tramlines, although even they were covered with water. The vicinity of the Public Trust was another bad spot and entrance and egress from this r*»d other buildings were cut off. Willis street, at the Windsor Hotel, was also flooded right across, and the vicinity of the Public Library was equally bad. An incident here was a telegraph messenger's falling from his bicycle to receive a thorough ducking. Water in Basements Cars parked in the neighbourhood had water half-way up their wheels. Water found its way into many basements and considerable damage is reported from these places. One shop in Lambton Quay, a chemist's, had a river flowing through from the back to the front, and some other shops were Hooded to a less extent. Remarkably enough, the wafer disappeared almost as suddenly as it had appcare:! and, except for a certain amount of muddiness in isolated places, there was no sign of the deluge very shortly afterwards. The day has now \urned from rain to sunshine. BABY AFLOAT IN COT ■"RESIDENTS VACATE THEIR HOMES WELLINGTON, August 16. Scenes without parallel in Wellington's recent history were provided during the storm to-day, when a great Volume of water collected from the flooded surfaces of lower Newtown, swept down Adelaide road, and poured into Alfred street, the lowest _ lying •area, in the vicinity of the Basin Reserve. The flood waters invaded the premises of the National Hat Mills, and forced residents further down the street to vacate their homes. Women and children were carried through water which at places was well over two feet deep. . , To find a cot in which her infant was sleeping floating round in nearly ■ two feet of water in one of the bedrooms was the experience of one woman. The sudden rise of the water had caught her unawares; but the child was carried to safety, receiving no more harm than a thorough wetting. Jn efforts to rescue household goods, . both inside and outside dwellings, many women were often in water above their waists. The cessation of rain checked the rising waters, and in an hour from the time the houses were vacated, City Council employees had freed the channels of debris, and the water was getting away fast. GREYMOUTH SHIPPING DELAYED GREPMOUTH, August 10. Atrocious weather conditions were experienced to-day in Greymouth, and exceptionally heavy showers fell at frequent intervals. The weather made the bar rough, and all shipping was delayed, including the Kaimiro. which has been- ready to sail for more than a week, after the settlement of the dispute, -