Wet, Cold Weather Through Province

Press, Volume CIX, Issue 31982, 8 May 1969, Page 1

Wet, Cold Weather Through Province

South-westerly winds brought rain and a drop in temperature for most of Canterbury yesterday. Farmers were Aappy to have the rain but it was generally considered that it would not be of great benefit for pasture growth unless it was followed by warm weather.

A maximum gust of 55 miles an hour was recorded by the Weather Office at Harewood at 4.20 p.m. yesterday. The wind was strong from Tuesday evening but it increased late yesterday afternoon, said a Weather Office spokesman.

Christchurch had a rainfall of only 29 points from Tuesday evening to 6 p.m. yesterday, but Culverden had 60 points and Rangiora had 41 points. Up to an inch of rain fell in the Cheviot County in 24 hours to 8 p.m. yesterday, but as in other parts conditions were too cold to encourage pasture growth.

The temperature in Christchurch reached a maximum of 49 degrees at 9 a.m. but for most of the rest of the day it was 43 degrees. At Rangiora the highest temperature was 47 degrees. Mid and South Canterbury had showers all day and cold, south-west winds became stronger later in the day. Snow was well down on the foothills at Oxford and snow was reported to be falling in the Arthur’s Pass and Lewis Pass areas but the roads were not affected late last evening. COLLISION IN SNOW Two men injured in a collision between their utility vehicle and a tour bus during a blinding snowstorm on the Mount Cook road yesterday morning are in the Timaru Hospital, according to the Press Association. David Anthony Saxton, aged 23, a hunter, employed by the Fiordland Venison Company, Ltd, of Te Anau, wljo was driving the utility vehicle suffered face and leg injuries. His passenger, Raymond Matthias Miller, aged 25, of San Diego, California, suffered head injuries. None of the passengers on the bus, run by Midland Motorways Services, Ltd, or the driver, . Robert William Revell, of 14A Havelock Street, Linwood, were injured. Yesterday’s collision happened at 10.30 a.m. when a thick snowfall had virtually eliminated visibility on the road about 23 miles north of Lake Pukaki. The vehicles met head-on, but at slow speed. The Landrover was extensively damaged, and the bus also , received some damage. The injured men were , taken by a passing motorist to the hotel at Lake Pukaki < where they were given aid , before being taken by an , ambulance from Fairlie to , Timaru. The whole of the Mackenzie

Country is covered by snow after the first major fall of the winter on Tuesday night. Low cloud at Wellington Airport affected several National Airways Corporation flights from Christchurch yesterday. The first flight to Wellington at 8.50 a.m. in a Boeing 737 had to be cancelled. Passengers were transferred to a Viscount which left 39 minutes later. The Viscount was used because Boeings cannot land at Palmerston North, the diversion airport for Wellington. ‘ The first Boeing 737 flight from Auckland to Christchurch by way of Wellington was also cancelled. A Viscount flight from Dunedin to Wellington was diverted to Christchurch to pick up some of the passengers from the cancelled 8.50 a.m. flight. The first Boeing 737 to leave Christchurch for Wellington departed at 10.10 a.m., 30 minutes late, because it had to await weather reports from Wellington. For the rest of the day

most flights were 15 to 30 minutes late except for a Viscount from Christchurch to Dunedin and Invercargill which was an hour and a half behind schedule.

Christchurch airport was not closed yesterday.