SWIFT RISE IN RIVER

Press, Volume LXXXVI, Issue 26124, 29 May 1950, Page 6

SWIFT RISE IN RIVER

Houses Surrounded By Water EVACUATIONS NECESSARY The Waimakariri river rose at an unprecedented rate on Friday afternoon and evening and, reaching a peak level in the lower reaches near the Main North road traffic bridge in the early hours of Saturday morning, it broke its banks at a number of points inundating manv acres of surrounding low-lying country. Where the flooding was worst houses were surrounded up to window-sill level, and in one case to the level of the eaves for a time. Later in the day the river began to fall steadily, and by yesterday morning the flood waters had receded considerably. Later in the day they rose again, but it was anticipated that with the cessation of rain in the headwaters the flood levels would begin to fall in the early hours of this morning. The system of flood warnings developed by the North Canterbury Catchment Board gave settlers a chance to prepare by shifting stock to higher land, but even then the full danger of the river was not realised. When the river gouged holes out of the stop banks and spilt over surrounding farm lands the water rose a foot about nearby homes in a matter of minutes, and these had to be hurriedly evacuated, the• occupants having to leave almost all their belongings behind. White’s Bridge Area One of the focal points of the flood I was White's bridge. Here the river ' broke through the south bank near | the little settlement about 6 a.m. on | Saturday, and in a few minutes the ! water rose about the homes of Messrs ! D. Bruce. L. Wright, and J. M. Gimson. ’•We had word from the Catchment ' Board on Friday night that the river i would rise eight feet, but we did not ' expect a major flood.” Mr Gimson told I a reporter of “The Press'’ on Satur- ’ day afternoon. “My father-in-law, | Mr L. Wright, warned us of the dan- , ger and when the river broke through | the bank nearby the water came up round our house about a foot in two | or three minutes. We had to get out immediately and leave everything be- ! hind.” Mr Gimson’s cottage is only 18 months old, is newly furnished, and a arden had only recently been laid out. At the peak of the flood the water reached up to the eaves of the house. “I shudder to think what things will be like when we go back.’’ said Mr Gimson. who added that his motor-car was also a “write-off” as a result of water damage. On Saturday afternoon the three houses were up to their window sills in a sea of water. Horses were grazing on a stop bank, the only handy piece of dry ; land. Anxiety Felt For some time anxiety was felt for the safety of Mr Wright. He went out to tend to a flock of 400 to 500 ewes and a herd of 34 cows and did not return. Using a motor-boat, police officers were looking for him when he turned up on horse-back. In places he had had to swim his horse, he said. He got his sheep on to the road and his cattle on to high ground, but he was still’ uncertain about their safety. Yesterday he brought his sheep out to safety.

Water flowed over the decking of White’s bridge during the morning. The chief engineer to the North Canterbury Catchment Board (Mr H. W. Harris) ordered the evacuation of 30 to 40 baches along the cast side of the old south branch near White’s bridge, in case the water building up behind the stop bank broke through on top of them. Efforts were made yesterday to plug the gap in the main river bank but with the river tending to rise again during the day the job had to be abandoned with men working up to their armpits in water. On Coutts Island Another break in the banks in the early morning further up the river at Dobbie’s inundated low-lying areas of Coutts Island and homes had to be hastily evacuated. Mr T. Mundy and his family had an unenviable experience. When the water rose suddenly about his home about 7 a.m., he put his wife and three children, the youngest aged three, into his car intending to tow them to safety with his tractor. The force of the water flowing across the road, however, overturned the car and swept it sideways into a deep drain. The occupants of the car were thrown on to the floor and two feet of water swirled in on top of them. They were swiftly rescued and taken to safety.

The main road to Coutts Island leaving the Main North road at the Belfast Hotel was only negotiable by motorcar for a distance of about 100 yards on Saturday afternoon. Earlier tractors had been used to bring out marooned families, and when the Mundy’s notified that they were in danger, a brother of Mr Mundy. Mr C. Mundy, of Belfast, secured a motorboat, which was subsequently used by the police and other rescuers.

The hole in the bank at Dobbie’s was sealed yesterday by employees of the Catchment Board and local farmers. Mr Harris said that the farmers had done good work in starting to patch the breach on Saturday on their own accprd. Baches Invaded At Stewart’s Gully a number of baches along the low river frontage were flooded early on Saturday morning to a depth of two or three feet. The water soon receded, however. All baches on a higher level were unharmed. When a reporter called on Mr M. Miller, who lives permanently on the river frontage with his wife and three children, he was busy hosing silt from

his home. When it became apparent that his residence would be flooded he moved his goods to higher ground and he spoke appreciatively of the help given him by other more fortunate residents. Othdr baches, which are occupied only at week-ends, did not fare so well.

The Main North Road was under a foot or more of water for about a quarter of a mile from the service station just north of the main bridge. The road branching off to Oxford and Waimakariri Gorge at the same point was also under water for some distance. On the main road part of a culvert just north of the service station was washed out by the pressure of water sweeping across the road. On Saturday the Main North road was closed to traffic. The water had so far subsided yesterday, however, that the road was again quite dry and normal traffic has resumed. ■Breaks in North Bank Two breaks occurred in the north bank of the Waimakariri about a quarter of a mile up from the main road between 6 and 7 o’clock on Saturday morning and water gradually spread out over the surrounding country. Ey midday the first break was about 45 feet across and a torrent of water was sweeping out. Mr and Mrs H. Barnard’s relatively new bungalow was inundated up to its window sills. Ducks were floating unconcernedly about it. This house had to be evacuated after only a few minutes’ notice. The service station just over the bridge also had to be evacuated by Mr A. Titheridge and his family. Yesterday the occupants were back to their home getting rid of silt deposited on the floor. They were fortunate in that most of their household goods were out of harm’s way. Last evening, however, they had again to get out of their home as the flood waters rose. So swiftly did the river rise early on Saturday morning that employees at the stone crushing plant of the Waimakariri Shingle and Sand, Ltd, in the riverbed had only time to remove several motor lorries and a car. Though the water flowed through the company’s area gouging out a channel and undermining the foundations of two petrol pumps and an office building and damaging two pump motors, it did little serious damage and the delay until the plant is working again is not expected to be long. One house, two boatsheds, four or five yachts, and about two chains of road were swept away at Kairaki