AFTER THE FLOODS

Evening Star, Issue 23448, 13 December 1939, Page 3

AFTER THE FLOODS

DESOLATION OF SILT AND SHINGLE GOLF COURSES BADLY DAMAGED COLLAPSE OF CONCRETE BRIDGES [Pee United Peess Association.] WELLINGTON, December 12. Receding to-day as rapidly as it had risen, the Hutt River left many hundreds of acres in the upper part of the valley covered with shingle, silt, and driftwood. An accurate estimate of the damage is not possible, but it will run into thousands of pounds. Golf clubs, in particular, have suffered severely. Farmers have lost , muck stock, and valuable feed has been de- ' stroyed. •• The Hutt River began to fall after reaching its peak at 5.30 p.m. on Monday, when it was 14ft above normal, and continued to fall steadily all today. By 8 o'clock to-night it had gone down about Bft. The secretary of the Hutt River Board said to-night that if there was no further heavy rain, the river might be back to normal by to-morrow evening. The Manor Park golf links presented a desolate scene this afternoon. A! large area at the northern end of the, course was covered to a depth of about Ift with shingle, boulders, and silt, and driftwood was everywhere. The floor of the clubhouse was covered with an inch of silt, and a window had been broken by a log thrown against it by the raging water. The course is to be closed for the next two weeks, and after then only nine holes will be in,., use. The damage is worse than in 1931, and it is'doubtful whether the full 18 holes will be ready for play again by next winter. The Whakatiki links at Upper Hutt also suffered severely, and will not be playable for. a long time. The Hutt links and tha Wellington Club’s links at Heretaunga were also flooded, 'but not so seriously. The Deep Creek and Flux’s road- . bridges have been washed away, and Colley’s Creek bridge, a big concrete structure, lias been left high and dry, as the creek has changed its course .and washed away 15 chains of fence. Farmers at Mangaroa, which is an important source of Wellington’s milk supply, clubbed together to-day and got the milk over the creeks in carts, and all the milk reached Wellington. Serious erosion occurred in the Taita Gorge, where the Public Works Department built a huge groyne a few years ago. The river apparently got* under the stone groyne, which collapsed. Once the groyne had gone, there was nothing to protect the road, and at two places the river has cut several feet into the road for about 20yds. The road was open for a time to-day, but was closed again. Water '■ flowing over the road on the northern approach to the Silverstream bridge d;d some damage, scouring the bitumen in several places, but traffic was able to get through from early this morning. The mam road route from Wellington, to the Wairarapa has been closed for heavy vehicles and for motor cars at night. Because of the collapse of the Ta Marua bridge over the Mangaroa River, the Taita Gorge also remains closed, but the other main routes are open. The concrete Te Mama bridge having collapsed, it is quite impassable, but, between 7 a.m. and 7 ip.m.. cars are being allowed across the Black bridge wooden structure, which carried the highway across the Mangaroa River before the concrete bridge was erected about eight years ago. Slips on tha RTmutaka Hill have been cleared sufficiently to allow cars to pass, but care is needed. The Akatarawa road connecting the Upper Hutt with Waikanae wilt be closed until further _ notice. Tha Moonshine road connecting Trenthaia with Pahautanui is blocked. '

DISORGANISED RAIL SERVICES Apart from work trains, no regular services were operated between Cross Creek and the tipper Hutt on the Wairarapa line to-day, and it was stated to-night that no indication could bo given when the line would again ba open for traffic. A series of slips ,and washouts on the Wellington side of the Rimutaka incline occurred during the height of the rainstorm on Monday and caused serious damage to the permanentway. , . * The major blockade is north of Mangaroa, where the approach to the bridge was completely washed away by the flood waters. At this point the track is impassable, and, since Monday, alii available men have been engaged, linesmen were also working to-day on * wash-out between Kaitoke and the Summit, where further damage occurred.. Traffic on the Wairarapa. line was again dislocated to-day, and the express from Woodville to Wellington did not travel beyond Gross Creek., Passenger and freight traffic between Wellington and the Wairarapa was diverted to the Manawatu Jine, and many people who intended leaving Wellington on Monday when the Wairaraipn services were cancelled, left Wellington at 8.30 a.m. to-day for Palmerston North, where a connection with tha train from Woodville to Cross Creek was arranged. . The Railway Department advised tonight ythat no further trouble had occurred on the Hutt Valley lines, and normal services were operated between! Wellington and the Upper Hutt to-day..