THE HUTT VALLEY

Evening Post, Volume CXVII, Issue 55, 6 March 1934, Page 8

THE HUTT VALLEY

SHOP STOCKS DAMAGED

POWER SUPPLY CUT-OFF

In Lower Ilutt a considerable amount of minor damage was done, the neighbourhood of Railway Avenue probably suffering most severely. In Aglionby Street several chimneys are down, and the chimney stack of a timber company is cracked. Tho Railway Hotel and also a boarding-house in the neighbourhood have chimneys down. Another boarding-house in Knight's Road has one. of its chimneys shifted out of alignment. Several chimneys in the older buildings" of Lower Hutt will need considerable repair. A common trouble was the wrenching of tanks which supply tho hot water services, caxising them to leak in many cases into the houses. A grocery shop window in Lower Hutt was broken. Each oi: the crockery stores reports about £5 of damage. Grocery stocks, especially window displays, suffered. The power supply in part of Lower Hutt, Upper Hutt, and Mungaroa was cut off for twenty-ono minutes owing to the action of the automatic earthquake protection of transformers at MelHng coming into action. The sway of the transformers causes a break in the current and saves the transformers from damage. Mr. E. F. Hollands, engineer and general manager of the Hutt. Valley Electric Power Board, pays a tribute to his assistants and staff for the speedy remedying of the break. Although tho transformers have not been carefully examined, it is believed that they have shifted slightly, as in order to make the new connectipn a length of wire had to be used. A transformer at Silver-stream was damaged, and so far'reports of sixteen house services out of action have been made. ■ CRACK IN BUILDING. A considerable amount of damage was done in Petone to stocks in shops in Jackson Street. Articles were displaced, and in some cases broken, in the windows and premises of grocers and chemists. Stores with largo stocks of china suffered damage to the' extent of about £5 each. In one dairy about £5 worth of damage was done by the earthquake, and stock suffered in other dairies. A number of chimneys came down. The window of Mr. C. T. Bennett's sports depot in Jackson Street was broken, and a window was broken in the Radio Supplies Store. In Campbell's drapery shop a plate-glass window fell out of position, but passersby pushed it back again. The other plate-glass window of this shop was broken at tho bottom. A largo plateglass window in the "Chronicle" Office fell out, not a particle of glass remaining in the window. A serious crack has appeared in the "Chronicle" building well up above the front entrance, and the-part of the building affected by the crack will have to be replaced. Cracks have appeared in one or two other buildings, but it is not known how serious they are. Considerable damage was dono to crockery in private homes. Well over £200 worth of damage has been done in Petone alone. No damage .was done to tho "as supply or reticulation, or to the water systems in the Hutt Valley. Upper Hutt and Eastbourne escaped with very minor damage.