Strong winds expected to continue

Press, 14 August 1980, Page 2

Strong winds expected to continue

Canterbury can expect another day or two of the north-westerly winds which buffeted the province yesterday, according to the Weather Office.

The winds disrupted flights at Christchurch Airport yesterday morning, and brought sleet, hail, and snow to the mountain passes. Motorists, particularly those towing caravans, had been urged by the Automobile Association to take extreme care on State highway I north of Christchurch. Drivers apparently heeded the warnings, and the Minis-

try of Transport received no | report of an accident caused : by the wind. > The first Air New Zealand flight from Christchurch to Dunedin yesterday morning t was delayed for almost two s hours by winds gusting to 37 knots. . , . 1 A Qantas 747 jumbo jet was forced to use the subsidiary runway at Christchurch Airport, and took ‘ only half the length of the , runway to become airborne. The warm north-westerly | front melted ice and caused a rock-fall which closed I State highway 73 at Candy’s Comer in the Otira Gorge on Tuesday evening. A repair gang worked through ; the night to clear the fall, and the road was reopened ; about 8 a.m. yesterday. Chains were still essential on Arthur's Pass last evening, however. . The Mount Hutt ski-field ! was closed for the day yesterday because of snow and high winds. About 500 skiers had been stranded on the mountain from 11 a.m. to 6 p.m. on Tuesday after the ski-field access road was closed as a safety precaution. A spokesman for the Weather Office at Christchurch Airport said the conditions were the result of a strong north-westerly air flow, .and a deep depression passing to the south of New Zealand. In spite of north-westerly winds which were strong enough to wake many, MidCanterbury suffered little damage on Tuesday night. The Ashburton County Council engineer (Mr B. G. Dowrick) said he had had no report of damage. The Power Board engineer (Mr E. D.

Weir) said only a few minor problems had occurred. Radio Ashburton was off the air until 7.50 a.m. yesterday because of a transmitter fault at Winchmore. Rangiora had one of its wannest August days on Monday, when the temperature rose to 21deg. This temperature had been exceeded only once or twice in August in recent years, said Mr G. C. Beattie, who takes the , official weather readings in the town.