HURUNUI CUTS ROAD

Press, Volume XCVI, Issue 28471, 28 December 1957, Page 8

HURUNUI CUTS ROAD

(Jumpers Warned i To Leave rie road to Lake Sumner was in two places by the flooding Hurunui river and traffic could pass only as far as the seaward br]dge, about two miles below the south branch bridge.

Weather permitting, an attempt will be made to put through a temporary track tomorrow, the engineer of the Waipara County Council (Mr A. M. Pryor) said yesterday. but if the river level remained high, it was not expected that the track would last long. +he flooded river bit into the Sehward Flat cutting the road and at Horseshoe Creek leaving on|y four feet of its width. If the temporary track across the flat was washed out it would be a job to construct a deviation as the road would then have to |be taken across the hillside, Mr Pryor said. The river was the highest he had seen in his five yeArs in the district. At about 3 p.m. yesterday, the river in the gorge had fallen more than 6ft from its peak. If. was reported that 4.5 in of rain fell at “The Lakes” station near Lake Sumner on Thursday night and 2.5 in at “Eskhead” station on thd south Hurunui. More than 30in of Vain had fallen at “The Lakes” duijing the last two months and winh the ground already saturated theie was a heavy run-off. dampers and holiday makers haq been warned to vacate the area of Lakes Sumner, Taylor and Shepherd because of the danger to }the road but some are known to be isolated in the area having failed to heed the warning. ’ Lewis Pass Conditions

T;he Hope river beside the Lewis pass route to the .West Coast was in | high flood early yesterday mopning. Some water flowed over the road east of the new Hope river bridge. It 4/as not enough to block traffic and; caused no damage to the highway. The river was over the decking of "Jhe old wooden bridge at about 4.3(1 a.m., but subsided three feet by )9 a.m,. Al works camp of several huts beside the new bridge was under wader and a motor-car which had beep parked in the camp was submerged to its window level. There were minor slips and fallen rocks on the pass road itself but'these were cleared by graders of (he Ministry of Works by 9 o’clock. Rain in the area lasted several hours; heaviest at the summit of the |pass. j North-West Gales • At Wellington

WELLINGTON, December 27. Wellington was buffeted thrqughout the night by strong nordh-westerly gales. The maximuih velocity recorded at the Kellburn Weather Office was 73 an hour at 12.15 a.m.