HEAVY RAIN IN ALPS

Press, Volume CI, Issue 29714, 6 January 1962, Page 10

HEAVY RAIN IN ALPS

Southerly In Canterbury Heavy rain from the northwest fell in the Southern Alps yesterday and last night and two low-pressure areas moving over Canterbury are bringing a southerly change. By 10 p.m. nearly 4Viin of rain had fallen at Arthur’s Pass. The Waimakariri and Rakaia rivers are rising. The rain came in showers from the north-north-west during the day and last evening it was raining steadily in the Alps and the wind was strong. One depression drew a southerly airstream over South Canterbury yesterday afternoon. This followed very high temperatures. Soon after midday at Temuka the temperature was 88deg in the shade. At Ashburton it rose to 84.3 deg yesterday and it was 83.2 deg at Christchurch Airport the warmest day this year. Rain In Plains About 5 p.m. rain began to fall at Waimate. As the cold front worked north it brought rain to the plains, which have been parched for weeks except for the good tall last Monday night. By 5.30 p.m. it was raining at Geraldine and an estimate from the foothills about 20 miles to the west was that about half an inch had fallen by 9 p.m. There was a preliminary shower at Ashburton about 6 p.m. and later light rain set in. A little rain fell as far north as Christchurch by 7 p.m. A more important depression, the one which brought the downpour over the mountains, was moving across the island last night from the west. This was expected to bring the southerly to the rest of Canterbury today. Waimakariri Rising A rise in the Waimakariri was predicted for this morning and the two to threefoot flood is expected to reach the Main North road bridge by 4.30 p.m. today. The North Canterbury Catchment Board’s engineer (Mr H. M. Reid) warned last night that campers in or near the riverbed should keep to safe ground to avoid being cut off by rising water. An Arthur’s Pass National Park ranger said that he did not know how many trampers there might be in the hills, but he thought some might be cut off- after the rain. Streams are running high. Motorists Warned The Automobile Association warned motorists of possible washouts on the Arthur’s Pass road and at 10 p.m. a report from the pass said that while cars could still travel between there and the Bealey, it was impossible to get through the Otira Gorge Flying over the South ' Island was not affected by ■ the weather except that a scenic flight to Milford Sound had to be cancelled But at Wellington the northwest wind caused some piston-engined aircraft of the National Airways Corporation to be diverted from Rongotai to Paraparaumu.