HEAVY DOWNPOURS

Evening Post, Volume XCV, Issue 69, 21 March 1918, Page 7

HEAVY DOWNPOURS

PHENOMENAL TIDES

SOME MINOR DAMAGE DONE.

Remarkably high tides—the highest experienced for very many years—have prevailed in Wellington during the past few days. High tides-are not usual at this time of the year, and there has been some speculation as to the cause. With a, view to ascertaining the reason of the phenomena, a Post reporter this morning approached the Government Meteorologist (Mr. D. C. Bates), who said that there were two reasons. Every inch decrease in the barometer meant a foot.in-, creaee in'the tide. The barometer had'been considerably depressed, of, late,. hence the extremely high tides. * The wind rushing into the harbour also had. a great influence on the tide.

The tidb was particularly high last night and early this morning, ihe y*rious bays suffering to some extent. ' ' The heavy swell caused a great deal of damage in Karaka and Worser Bays. The launch Swan, belonging to Mr. M. Goldsborough, was dragged from its moorings on to the beach. Fortunately, no serious damage was sustained except the cracking of one of the upper planks and the straining of her keel. Three or four dinghies were smashed,, and the rods damaged. At places the water rushed right across the road into the gutters, bringing with it a collection of sand and stones. The metal in front of the new breastwork at Seatoun has been carried away to a certain extent, but nothing very serious haa been done. The sea has never been so high since 1910, when the Arahura almost foundered. ■

■Something in the nature of a tidal wave struck iPetone last evening. Generally, the highest tides reach only to the foot of the Esplanade wall, recently erected/ and even when the strongest southerlies blow only spray finds its way over the wall; but last, night the tide rose to such a height that in manyplaces it.poured not only-over the wall, some two or three feet high, but right over the grassed promenade, and on to the road—a distance of some twelve yards. The wall stood the test well,, and was undamaged. The caretaker reports that, apart from the washing away of a couple of sets of wooden steps leading down the wall, no damage was done, except some slight washouts behind the wall, which can be repaired by a few hours' work. -

The parade at Lyall Bay (writes a correspondent) presented a'most unusual spectacle about midnight last night during the height of the storm. The tide was at the full, and the strong southerly gale blowing caused it to rise Nto an abnormal extent,, the seas .. constantly breaking over the Parade on to the footpath. To the spectators the scene waß one of grandeur, as, standing on. the Parade leaning into the gale, they watched, the tumbling foam-covered waves, gleaming in the. light,,of the.many. tramway track lights, as they rushedshoreward, swirling a-mass of foamj seaweed, and sea-wrack around the.. many piles supporting-, the shelter shede, leaving thorn like so many islands in the 'midst of a trouble wave-tossed sea, and finally dashing their half-spent force up .the inclined Parade wall, to be dashed into foam that was -carried far inland by the wind. !An early, visitor to the beach this morning,. on-.picking up a, tobacco tin, discovered that it contained an order, for a tailor-made skirt, to be claimed from the. secretary::., "before "'.'s p.m."' Evidently the 'sea-.'had .uncovered' an "undiscovered "treasure" buried for the last treasure.hunt at the bay*;"...-.'