THUNDERBOLT HITS SCHOOL

Press, Volume LXXIII, Issue 22111, 5 June 1937, Page 14

THUNDERBOLT HITS SCHOOL

* big hole torn in ROOF PUPILS ALL AWAY FROM BUILDING STAFF CONFUSED AND DEAFENED (PRESS ASSOCIATION TELEGRAM.) AUCKLAND, June 4. A thunderbolt at Pukekohe at 3.30 this afternoon struck the new wing of the Pukekohe High School, tearing a large hole in the roof an scattering tiles for some distance round the building. Fortunately the children who attend the school had left for home a few minutes earlier and no one was injured. The headmaster, Mr W. F. J. Munro, and. members of the staff were m the school when the building was struck and for a few moments were thrown into a state of confusion. “We did not know whether we were coming or going for a minute or two,” Mr Munro stated subsequently. “We were deafened by the noise and confused by the flash, me telephone wires were damaged and the fuses blown.” Dm-ing a severe storm which swept the Pukekohe district early on May 6 a farm at Helvetia, about one mile from Pukekohe, was struck by a thunderbolt and four fat cows, valued at from £3O to £35, were killed. The cattle, which were the property of Mr John Schlaeffer, were grazing in one of his paddocks and were fully 200 yards apart. The thunderbolt struck the ground near one of the cows and tore a huge hole in the ground, many feet deep, and resembling a shell hole. SEVERE THUNDERSTORM AT WELLINGTON TRANSFORMER STRUCK BY LIGHTNING (PRESS ASSOCIATION , TELEGRAM.) WELLINGTON, June 4. A very severe thunderstorm broke over Wellington and the surrounding districts this morning, causing flooding in the streets of Lower Hutt and Petone. One of the heavy transformers at the Government electric sub-station at Melling was struck by lightning and the power was cut off for about half an hour.