SERIOUS INUNDATIONS

Dominion, Volume 22, Issue 34, 3 November 1928, Page 11

SERIOUS INUNDATIONS

WHOLE PROVINCE AFFECTED WAIRARAPA SETTLERS SUFFER MANAWATU ROADS BLOCKED The flooding which commenced on Wednesday had assumed serious proportions by yesterday morning, and large areas in both the Manawatu and Wairarapa districts were under water. A slip in the Manawatu Gorge disorganised railway traffic there, and road communication between Palmerston North and districts to the south was prevented by the roads being submerged.' Stock in the Wairarapa has been suffering from lack of food and from exposure,. while settlers, 'many of whom were marooned, were prevented from, or had difficulty in, getting their cream to factories. After being undermined the Kokotau bridge collapsed,. while further south on the Rimutaka Hill road a shp had to be cleared for The Dominion to reach the Wairarapa in the early morning. Latest reports indicate an improved position.

WIDESPREAD DAMAGE WAIRARAPA SETTLERS ISOLATED BRIDGE COLLAPSES OUTLOOK NOW BRIGHTER Dominion Special Service. Mastertoll, November 2. To-day there began the fourth successive day of rain in the Lower Valley. Dawn revealed a grave position with the rivers still in flood and water spreading further afield. Time passed with no \sign of the weather breaking and countless acres were under water, augmented by the overflow from the broken rivers find creeks. Sheep, huddled on the high ground, were growing weak from exposure and lack of feed, and farmers took an early opportunity to remove their stock to places where feed was obtainable. Kokotau Bridge Collapses. The Ruamahunga River, which .reached its highest level for twenty ■years, Including the flood at Kourarau in 1924, continued to carry a large body of water and showed little sign of subsiding. It fell this morning and then rose again. At its height it tore great piece? out of the banks, and at noon succeeded in its work of destruction on , the - Kokotau bridge. This structure, weakened through its piles being washed away yesterday, collapsed today and became totally wrecked, the forty-foot span and twenty feet of roadway being swept away. Settlers Marooned. Many settlers, particularly at Ahiaruhe soldier settlement, are marooned, where water has made, islands of their homes. In not a few cases the water has actually entered houses, and with some of the settlers food supplies are running short, although neighbours are endeavouring to reach them with provisions. One settler, Mr. H. R. Renall, of Kokotau, is unable to reach the factory with the milk from his herd- of nearly a hundred 'cows, although he has to separate the yield night and morning. The site from which he recently .shifted his house has now been swept away by the river. Dairy Farmers’ Difficulties. Conditions were ever worse to-day in the Kahutara and Tuhitarata districts, where country formerly immune to' flooding has been inundated by the river overflowing the stop banks. Arrangements have been made among dairy factories of the district to take over supplies from those settlers unable to reach their own factories. Throughout the Wairarapa generally to-day .workmen were engaged in relieving isolated settlers by clearing the slips that were cutting them off. By midday the rain began to lift, and by the afternoon it had cleared, although without bringing any noticeable change in conditions existing. At a late hour, however, the Ruiimahunga River had dropped four feet, and so long as no more rain falls it is anticipated that the water will gradually subside and allow the land to drain.

Communication With Martinborough.

Communication with Mal’tinborough, which was isolated yesterday, was established again to-day via Gladstone. Blackwater and Gladstone bridges now/ being clear. With regard to Kokotau bridge, which is on the main highway connecting Kokotau with Ponatahi, an inspection is . to be made to-morrow by the Wairarapa South County Council to determine what steps are to be

taken- immediately. School children at Kokotau will be carried over the river by a cradle on a cable. Slips are still causing trouble in Masterton county. A gang of county workmen is engaged in clearing the slip on the Masterton-Tinui highway and succeeded in opening the road at 10.30 a.m, to-day for light. traffic, and by to-morrow the road will be clear for all traffic. At the slip on Blairlogie Road a tractor is being used, and it is hoped to have the road open for light traffic-to-morrow. A fall of debris blocked the Bluff to Rangitumau Road, but this has since been cleared. A slip has come down on Ngahape Road and settlers of Ngahape district are totally c:t off. Efforts are being made to remove this slip tnd some of the settlers themselves are taking a hand in the work. No trouble is being experienced on the Masterton-Mauriceville road. The land in Mauriceville County is mostly on a high level and has been little effected. - Slip on Rimutaka Hill. A slip of considerable size on .the Rimutaka Hill blocked the main road to Wellington this morning and some of the debris had to be cleared and blasted away before a car carrying the “Dominion”, to Masterton could get through at an early hour this morning. Castlepoint County appears to have escaped lightly so far as losses of stock are concerned, although road communications are considerably affected. .' The road from Carswell was blocked by a slip but it is now open again. The roads from Tinui to Whakataki at Big Saddle, and from Tinui to.Annedale. respectively, are blocked with slips, and it is expected that several days will be required to clear them. Spring Hill road also is impassable. Wairarapa Railways Clear. The large slip which came down on the railway line; yesterday at Mangamahoe, north of; Masterton, was cleared this morning in time to allow the first train through at 9 a.m, The.down mail train to Wellington this after-, noon was again delayed about three hours, but that was i)ie in this case, not to the slip, but to a flelay at Woodville owing to the trouble in the Manawatu Gorge. No further hold ups have occurred to-day on the Wairarapa liife. FLOODS IN THE SOUTH POWER SUPPLY DISABLED Dominion Special Service. 'Christchurch, November 2. Floods in the Waiau district have done considerable damage to the roads, and workmen and settlers have suffered. The Rogerson River' became flooded and washed away the water supply pipe-line for Hanmer. This water plays an important part in generating the electricity supply for the township, which is now without electric light and its regular water supply. A repair gang has gone out to effect repairs on the Glynnwye Road, six miles this side of Hanmer, where 25 unemployed men are encamped. The creeks have been very high and have cut. off transport. Arrangements were made to-day to convey food to the men. Roads have been blocked by flood water, and camps and houses have had to be abandoned in the Waiau district. The Kaikoura road has not been passable. A mail car sank in the shingle of the Conway and had to be hauled out. After being abandoned for a night at the new Lyndon bridge, a horse-grader was washed 300 yards down the Mason River. The workmen’s camps were flooded, while low-lying country in part of the Lyndon No. 2 settlements are under water. The settlers have had to use horses, to get from their properties on the WaiauParnassus road, and stores had to be delivered to the workmen's camps on horseback. The weather, is fine now and the creeks and rivers are falling.

FLOOD MENACES MANAWATU RANGIOTU AND SHANNON AREAS INUNDATED RAILWAYS DISORGANISED Dominion Special Service. Palmerston North, November 2. A continuation of heavy rain during the night and early' morning resulted in the low-lying lands in the vicinity of Rangiotu being badly flooded, and in some places conditions are quite as bad as those caused by the famous 1926 flood. Several of the settlers in that district had to leave their homes early this morning, and it is a matter for conjecture when .they .will be able to get back again. ’ Stock was removed early, and there has been no loss in this respect. The Palmerston NorthFoxtou railway service had to be discontinued owing to flood waters being over the rails in several places. Shannon-Palmerston Road Under Water. At Shannon there was also serious flooding, the flax areas near Makerua being under water for about a mile and a half, while several of the roads leading from Shannon are inundated. The main road from Shannon to Palmerston North through Makerua was blocked about midday, cars . being pulled through the water. ... In this area the flooding was due to the Manawatu River overflowing near Koputaroa and the Poplar Mill. At 1 p.m. th<> water was still coming through, but there was every likelihood of its ceasing, the weather having cleared and no rain having fallen since early morning. The level of the river at the Fitzherbert Bridge at 7 a.m. was 14 feet, and at 1 p.m. the reading sliowed that the river had fallen one foot, though this was an approximation, as the river carried the flood reading board at the bridge away when the 14-foot level was reached. Slips in Gorge. Disorganisation of the railway traffic through the Manawatu Gorge was caused by a slip coming down in’the early hours of the morning, although quick work on the part of gangs hurried to the spot enabled the line to be clear, again at 11 o’clock, when the goods train leaving’for Hawke’s Bay at 5.15 a.m., and the mixed train for the Wairarapa leaving at 6.51 a.m., were dispatched from Palmerston North. The Wairarapa train usually leaving from Palmerston North about 11 a.m. was cancelled. v Unfortunately, about midday, another large fall came down over tlie line, completely blocking it again, and gangs are working feverishly to clear, it. There were indications of slides coming down on the railway side of the gorge last night, and several passing motorists had the unenviable experience of seeing small slides of rocks come down on various parts of the road. Rivers Falling. The danger of the flood reaching very serious dimensions is still imminent, as the sky is dull and overcast, promising more rain. During the day, however, there have been only one or two slight showers, thus giving the flood waters a chance to: recede. The Manawatu River is falling steadily, and the Orona River, which has caused, most of the trouble at Rangiotu, and which has overflowed its banks in several places, also appears to be receding. The settlers in all districts had plenty of warning of impending flood conditions, and all stock was removed in time. LOWER MANAWATU DISTRICTS FOXTON-LEVIN ROAD BLOCKED Dominion Special Service. .Foxton, November 2, The prospect of the flood receding in the Moutoa and Whiroklno districts quickly waned on Thursday afternoon when reports from up country showed that the Oroua and Manawatu rivers were rising again as a result of tlie continued heavy rain. As the afternoon drew on the flood waters again commenced to inundate the Moutoa and covered a small portion of the Wliirokino road for about a chain witli eighteen inches of water. The farmers, fortunately, had plenty, of warning of the approaching flood and were in all cases, able to remove their stock to places of safety. The mills being closed as a result of the recent flaxmilling dispute, the swamps were free of workers and the mills/will not be hampered.as a result of the flood. The evening train into Foxton from Palmerston North just managed to get. through after having to negotiate about half a mile of flooded line.

This morning the Foxton-Levin road was completely blocked to traffic at about nine o’clock, the water extending for some miles on the northern side of the river and covering the road for a mile. It is expected that there will

be many wash-outs on this highway when the flood waters recede. Fine weather is now being experienced, but it will be some days before the roads at present under water are clear. LATER REPORTS OUTLOOK IMPROVED Dominion Special Service. Palmerston North, November 2. Late iii the afternoon reports from Rangiotu stated that the flood waters were still rising, and developments were being anxiously awaited. Many of the houses in the vicinity were completely isolated, and in one case a lady had to be rescued from a water-sur-rounded house by means of a Maori canoe. The reading of the height of the Manawatu River at Fitzherbert bridge at 7 p.m. indicated that the river had fallen a further 2 feet 6 inches, and was going down rapidly. It seems fairly certain that unless further heavy rain is experienced, which appears to be unlikely, the flood waters will rapidly recede, and at 8 p.m. it was reported at Rangiotu that there were indications that the flood position in that vicinity was improving. Reports from the Manawatu Gorge were to the effect that the work of clearing the slips was proceeding apace, but the railway authorities could give no indication as to when the line would again be clear. Only two trains transhipped passengers to the Woodville side of the slip to-day, including the north-bound Napier express, and railway traffic to Hawke’s Bay has suffered serious disorganisation. SHIPPING DELAYED AT WANGANUI. Dominion Special Service. Wanganui, .November 2. A southerly gale of unusual severity was felt at Wanganui yesterday, making conditions out of doors most unpleasant. During the afternoon the gale developed to a degree of blizzard strength, heavy downpours of rain falling intermittently. The storm raised a considerable sea in the roadstead, and shipping was delayed. The first day of summer was certainly a dismal failure as far as the weather w’as concerned.