FLOOD AFTERMATH

Dominion, Volume 31, Issue 104, 27 January 1938, Page 10

FLOOD AFTERMATH

Hawke’s Bay Rivers Fall Rapidly SURVEY OF DAMAGE Live Stock Losses Believed Considerable Dominion Special Service. Hastings, January 26. With a rapid dropping in the levels of flooded rivers to-day, all danger of further flood damage in Hawke’s Bay has now passed. Although surface water is slowly getting away, there were still large areas to-day covered with water, particularly in the I’akowhai orchard area. The Pakowhai Road is still impassable. The NapierWairoa road was opened for traffic late this afternoon, but the NapierTaupo road is still blocked by slips and damaged bridges. Following an inspection of the damage to the Napier-Taupo road to-day, Mr. R. Puflett, Hawke’s Bay County engineer, said to-night that traffic would be able to get through by way of a detour to-morrow, probably in the afternoon. Traffic from Napier would proceed by way of Taradale, Puketapu, Apley and Glengarry, joining the main Tauro road at the spot known as Stoddart’s Corner. Extreme caution and very careful driving will be necessary on this detour, said Mr, Puflett. There was a good deal of damage to roads, bridges and culverts in the Hawke’s Bay County area, said Mr. Puflett. Some settlers were still blocked in, but complete restoration of communications was expected within a few days. Several roads which were blocked yesterday had been reopened to-day, including the roads to Kereru, Rissington, Waimarama and Maraetotara. Live Stock Losses. It is still impossible to give any accurate estimate of live stock losses, but, judging by the number of dead sheep and other animals which have come ashore in the bay, they are considerable. The Napier Borough Council, in the interests of health, to-day commenced the removal of the carcases. . , Several settlers luckily rescued sheep and other stock before they were overwhelmed by flood-waters. In one case a large number of sheep were saved from drowning by the cutting of a hole in a fence, allowing them to escape to higher ground before the flood-waters caught them. Mr. A. J. Masters, Twyford, lost about 140 head of sheep, and Mr. P. Drummond, Puketapu, lost approximately 200 wethers which had been grazing on a rivtjj;bed. Smart rescue work by a party headed by a Hastings stock auctioneer saved from drowning practically the whole line of 500 lambs which was grazing in a paddock alongside the. Pakowhai Bridge. Yesterday, when the danger to the lambs was realised, five large lorries rushed out, but, because of the depth of the water, only one lorry got through. A surf boat from Whakatu was then rushed to the scene on a motor-lorry. The surf boat was very difficult to handle in the swift-running waters, and the party experienced considerable difficulty in getting lambs aboard. It was only after strenuous efforts that the majority of the lambs were removed to safer ground. Although orchardists generally did not suffer severely from the storm and good waters, those in the Pakowhai area were not so fortunate. Flood waters spread over a considerable area at Pakowhai and, in addition, many trees were uprooted by wind- Although the flood waters in this area have now dropped considerably, there still remain a good deal'of water and debris. The flood waters at Pakowhai reached up as far as Mr. Melting's property on the main road and continued dowp Hodgson’s Road as far as Mr. Russell’s orchard. Some 15 orchards in all were inundated. In these orchards the chief damage is the loss of ground crops. Between trees and fruit, the losses are not as severe as it was feared would be the case. A certain quantity of Gravenstein apples and some stone fruit have been lost, but on the whole growers agree they had a lucky escape. Trains Delayed. The subsidences on the railway line between Napier and Hastings were responsible for the Wellington-Napier express being held up at Whakatu last evening. One hundred and sixty passengers, mails and luggage were transhipped to buses and lorries and conveyed to Napier. Repairs were effected during the night, and this morning’s express for Wellington got through, although it was. about 20 minutes late arriving at Hastings. Because of numerous slips and washouts, there will be no trains running on the East Coast line for several days. The worst wash-outs are between Eskdale and Waipunga. The spectacle of the flood waters rushing down the Tutaekuri River and through the outlet at Waitangi to the sea proved fascinating, and last evening and this morning there was a constant crowd of sightseers near the Waitangi Bridge. The view that fuller weather forecasts were necessary for Hawke’s Bay was expressed to-day by the Hon. W. E. Barnard, who said that as a result of the district’s experience this week he intended to take action to this end. “The weather report on Monday indicated that some flooding was/probable, but there was nothing to indicate the tremendous fall .of rain and wholesale flooding which ensued on Monday night and Tuesday morning," Mr. Barnard said. “I propose to have the matter investigated with a view to obtaining fuller reports in the future." He added that in a district where flood waters were likely to descend overnight, as was the case in Hawke’s Bay, more adequate warning for the farming community was essential in order that they might prepare against stock and property losses.