FALL IN NORTH CANTERBURY

Press, Volume LXXXI, Issue 24619, 16 July 1945, Page 6

FALL IN NORTH CANTERBURY

POWER RESTORED LAST EVENING About 15 inches of snow fell at Rangiora from 12.45 a.m. to 6 a.m. on Saturday. The gale which preceded the storm an Friday had already caused extensive damage to telegraphic and electric wires throughout North Canterbury, and although the effect of the snowfall cannot be accurately estimated yet, it is expected to be several days before the service Is fully restored. Altogether, 400 subscribers were cut off from the Rangiora telephone exchange, but these lines cannot be attended to until communication has been established with outside exchanges. Toll communication was made with Christchurch yesterday morning, and an attempt was made by the Rangiora line foreman to reach Oxford in the afternoon on a tractor go as to make a start on restoring the Oxford-Rangiora service. . The railway line between Christchurch and Rangiora was blocked until late on Saturday afternoon, when i the first train came through. A bus which reached Rangiora at 11 a.m. on Saturday morning was the first link t_he borough had by road from Christ* Ch ]t bus driver estimated the depth of snow in Cust at about 2ft 6in, and as it was over the running boards it was impossible to proceed further on the road toward Oxford. Dr. A. P- Cotter and Dr. L. M. King, medical practitioners in the borough, were taken by tractor early on Saturday morning to the Rangiora Maternity Hospital, about a mile outside the *°Power was restored in the North Canterbury Electric Power Boards area on Sunday afternoon at 3 o’clock. A few minutes later power was available at the Southbrook substation, the Kaiapoi borough, and the Kaiapoi freezing works By 4 o clock power was restored as far north as Waipara, and last night Woodend, Waikuku, Sefton, Ashley, Ohoka, and Cust were connected. Power board gangs have been working continuously ' throughout the district to restore order. , Work in clearing the roads was done by the Rangiora County Council road grader, which travelled from the borough to the Woodend Hotel on the Main North road. On the Oxford road a clearance was made as far as Bennetts. There was 15 inches of snow at Culverden on Saturday morning with snow still falling. There was no electric power and telephone communications were disrupted. Many lines and poles were down, Hanmcr Springs had 10 to 13 inches of snow and many wires were brought down. NO SNOW DAMAGE AT INVERCARGILL (P.Aj INVERCARGILL, July 15. On Saturday morning Invercargill was blanketed under one of the heaviest falls of snow experienced in the city for several years. Some snow fell on Friday, but the heaviest fall was between 7 and 9.30 on Saturday morning, the ground being covered to a depth of two to three inches. There was no interference with public services in Southland. Train, bus, telephone. telegraph, and electric power services were all functioning normally. DEPTH AT DUNEDIN (P.A.) DUNEDIN, July 15. After light flurries of snow on Saturday night, a fairly heavy fall occurred in Dunedin early this morning, and by daylight, when the sky had cleared, the city lay under snow that ranged from one inch to three inches , in depth. No essential services in the city were affected.