Board denies damage blame

Press, 18 July 1980, Page 4

Board denies damage blame

.The Christchurch Drainage Board should deny responsibility for flood damage on n property in' Huxley .Street, Sydenham, its works committee decided yesterday. Drainage at?. 54 Huxley Strete, traversed by a- .covered section pf Jackson's Creek, was investigated after flooding /last November, rind in January, and after the sinking of piles under. ; the house. . The board received a letter from the solicitors for the property owner, Mr S. C. Anderson, asking what proposals-jt had for repairing! the damage? , .. The letter , said the laying of a new : drain? and other work ip Huxley.-Street seemed to have’ caused the covered drain to break and escaping water to undermine the house. A report by the board’s

chief engineer (Mr P, J. ' McWilliam) said there ap- | peared to have been “no real damage" to the house. . The board had acquired a deed of easement along the ! line of Jacksons Creek when it was covered by the property owner.? in 193(5, he. said. ’ ’. ■ - - • • Measurements had now shown that the. house ’ had , been built partially over the ] easement, contrary to the previous agreement with the | board. ‘The watercourse was i covered by the then owners of the property' to enable the 1 house to be built and it is . difficult to see how Hie board could be held respon- ! sible for any damage the . house might suffer.” he said, 1 Mr McWilliam said Mr Anderson should have been aware of the easement and as the present owner; he was :

responsible for- the house’s being built partially over it. > One small Crack, had ; been found in the drain’s concrete lining and had been repaired by the board; Settlement of the piles had probably been due to sinking of the fill on which the house was built. TMr ‘.JdcWilham said , tb? flooding on Mr Anderson s property, i resulted ; .from heavy rain on .both occasions; in November this was probably accompanied, by the partial blockage of a culvert, possibly associated With construction of a manhole in Huxley Street over Jacksons. Creek. ■ >He?-sai& ; there W>s also a blockage of the grill on Jacksons Creek at Austin Street during . the January storm. Saturation of the fill and the washing of some of it into the drain were possible

causes?' of- the settlement under the house, he said. . The board’s chairman (Mr M. R. Carter) said it should be made clear the damage was no fault of board staff..' “Without negligence on anybody’s part, mistakes have been made,” said •Mr H. W. Thompson. Many property owners “if something goes wrong, turn and blame ? the board, .whereas they-had primary responsibility themselves, said Mr Thompson. The committee adopted recommendations to spend $6OO-. on., bpilding. a. new sumft in'Huxley Street to be connected to the manhole and To ' ensure . that- where watercourses ’"were covered in future, easements- , are created of sufficient width to exclude building which would prevent “normal maintenance or replacement to be carried out.”