Flood Damaged Bridge Isolates State Mines

Press, Volume C, Issue 29674, 18 November 1961, Page 10

Flood Damaged Bridge Isolates State Mines

(From Our Own Reporter)

GREYMOUTH, Nov. 17. Another flooding in the Grey river on Thursday night has resulted in further damage to the Blackball bridge, and has partially isolated the township. The workers in the two State mines in the area. Blackball and Roa, are facing a crisis and the prospects of their families and themselves enjoying a Christmas on a par with former years appear to be remote.

Railways Department gangs had worked hard throughout the week in an effort to have the bridge Open for traffic on Monday next, and just as this appeared to be an accomplished fact the latest flood has caused a bigger setback than ever. The bridge now will be closed for a month to pedestrians as well as vehicular traffic.

The rapid rise of the river on Thursday has damaged two more piers of the bridge, and had it not been for the fact that a temporary span had been erected part of the bridge structure would probably have been carried away. The resident engineer for the Railways Department in Greymouth (Mr L. J. Bentley) said today that No. 4 pier had taken a bad knock during Thursday night, and it will have to be repaired before reconstruction on Pier 5, the one damaged last week, can be begun. He added that the bridge would be out of commission for a month, and reopening then could depend upon circumstances. In the event of another flood the damaged piers and a span of the bridge could be lost. Crisis at Mines

Neither the Blackball nor Roa mines was working yesterday, and the position is causing some concern to State Coal Mines officials Tlie District Manager (Mr J Glendenndng) said that the department was endeavouring to make arrangements for temporary measures. Mr Glendenning added that the bins at the Blackball mine were almost full, while those at the Roa mine were full. If any coal was to be produced at Roa, the equivalent amount would have to be taken from the bins.

The secretary of the Blackball Miners’ Union (Mr D. McFadyen) said that the further damage to the bridge had intensified the crisis facing the two mines. “I simply don’t know whai we are going to do. The Minister of Mines (Mr Shand) has announced that he would not authorise any stockpiling of Roa coal once the bins at the mines were at capacity level" he said. Transport Suspension

During the last week residents of Blackball who work in Greymouth have been conveyed in buses to that side of the bridge and have then walked across it to the Ngahere side where they have been picked up by other buses and taken on to their employment This service is now no longer available, and as buses are unable to use the back road from Greymouth to Blackball, through Taylorville, because of the narrow bends and small bridges, workers will be compelled to rely upon private cars for their transport. The Blackball miners who were earlier transferred to Rewanui, and who travelled by a special bus service are affected by the petition. So. too, are secondary school pupils who, without a bus to Greymouth, were compelled to remain at their Blackball homes yesterday.

Emergency measures were taken, however, to get School Certificate candidates to the examination centres in Greymouth. They arrived by car after travelling over the back road.

A transport problem for residents in the Atarau area was solved yesterday morn-

ing when repairs were carried out by the Inangahua County Council to an approach to the Rough river bridge, which was washed out the previous afternoon. Flood Warnings Flood warnings were issued at frequent intervals on Thursday night by the Westland Catchment Board, but the engineer (Mr J. A. MacDonald) said yesterday morning that the flood had not been a big one. The Ahaura river had risen quickly and, at its peak, was less than six inches from the highest level reached last week. Other rivers had been further off their peak heights. The Ikamatua river was about 18 inches short of the height reached last week.

There had been no big flood in the Grey river which was 3ft Bin below the danger level of last week when the water was lapping the decking of the wharf, said Mr MacDonald.