CAUSE OF DEATHS

Grey River Argus, 10 February 1931, Page 5

CAUSE OF DEATHS

Jerry-Built Structures AND WEAK MADE-UP GROUND. (By Telegraph.) (From Mr Jas. O’Brien, M.P.) NAPIER, February 9. The weather is remaining fine, and that is a blessing to all of the sufferThe Marist Seminary at Greekimeadows suffered severely with the earthquake. Their new ferro-concrete house has been wrecked. The chapel has completely collapsed. Huge blocks of bricks and of mortar fell here, crushing several of the' students they rushed from the crumbling chapel outsyle the door. There were two West Coasters among those fatally crushed. However, all have now’ been accounted for, and blasting is being resorted to in order to bring the remaining dangerous porfiions of the chapel down. HILLS AND RECLAIMED GROUND CRUMBLE. The hills behind -the Marist Seminary have crackej and crumbled, showing the unstable nature of the ground there. The same cracks and crumbling arc nbticeabl-e wherever there are small hills, and particularly at the Hospital, Nurses' Home, the Isolation Ward, and the Old People’s Home; but where the road was cut round the Bluff to the wharves the greatest slips have occur.-ed. Here the cliff was left with almost a perpendicular face, and ir\ came down along the whole length of the road light to the wharf, bringing with it the houses built close to the cliff. This road was always busy with motor vehicles at the hour when the earthquake took place, and as there is now no sign of any motors or of a’ny pas‘ : enge;s where the road is known to have existed the loss of life on this road remains problematical. The unstable nature of the hills and of the made-up ground, as also of the fillcd-in swamps and the flats, which were once swamps, but which were fill-

ed fa by rivers, is revealed by the quake in no uncertain way. The wrecked buildings thereon would have been otherwise stable. As it is both hills and flats have subsided alike. LESSON OF CALAMITY. The lesson of the Hawke’s Bay earthquake must not be forgotten, because in the. midst of all the desolation and the ruin, there still stand the Foresters’ Hall and also Dalgety’s place, without eve’n a crack on them. Their buildings were we’l-designed and made of ferro-concrete. Critics may pdint to ebrta’in- ferCo-conerete buildings which were wrecked, but an examination of these has shown that there was weakness somewhere. Mostly it was in a skimping of the iron in the uprights, ifad this particularly where the bottom walls of two or three stories buildings were weakened with large windows. It is safe to say that the earthquake itself killed no one, but that faultily-designed and jerry-built buildings were solely responsible for the death roll.

There were single-brick walls, bound with mortar that would crumble in one’s fingers, and these wore deathtraps. Even Ai the more imposing buildings, some of the mortar used, judging by the way that it crumbles now, must have had the same effect as sand and mud, judging by its binding qualities J For the future, the local bodies and Legislature should see to it that nothing but specially-designed earthquakeproof buildings are allowed to be erected. In the future, let us hope, the awful lesson of Hawke’s Bay will not be lost. ALL WOODEN PLACES REPAIRABLE,

It is - difficult to ascertain the position of the large> station properties, but the wooden houses should not be damaged beyond repair between'the railway and coast. Even fa Napier there is no wooden structure which has been destroyed, but those on the hillsides in some cases have slipped, and become badly strained. The condition of Mr T. 11. Lowry’s place is reported to be iairly-goQd.