STORMS IN EUROPE

Hawera Star, Volume XLVII, 31 December 1927, Page 5

STORMS IN EUROPE

FOOD BY AEROPLANE.

ROUGH TIME AT SEA. ALL SERVICES' INTERRUPTED HY CABLE — TRESS ASSOCIATION—COPYRIGHT LONDON, Dec. 29.

Delayed railway and motor traffic is holding up London’s supplies of milk and vegetables from the farms. Two aeroplanes front London carried food to Westerliam, Kent, which was isolated lor four days by 14 feet drifts. For the fourth day in succession the ,Icreshare at Sandwich Pay is coveted with millions of starfish and innumerable lobsters, due to the gale scouring the breeding ground. As they are thrown up the fish become frozen and they are fit for food. In view of the terrible storm in the Channel, even the huge liner Aquitania had to spend the night in the roadstead and abandon all attempts -to enter Cherbourg harbour. Arrangements were made to feed and house 60Q waiting passengers. Among the passengers on the wea-ther-bound vessels’ at Channel ports are the whole of the Or vie to’s overland passengers. There is still a risk of their missing the steamer. The owners have induced the Southern Railway to make a special effort to get the, passengers through with tonight’s mail train to reach Toulon by Saturday. Paris has received London newspapers for the finst time since Saturday, but and telegraphio communication between (London and Paris has been much delayed since Monday, though the wireless is world ing excellently

CONDITIONS IN ENGLAND' IMPROVING. FOOD SHORTAGE! THREATENED. (British Official Wireless.) RIOGBY, Dec. 29; The upper Medway River invaded Maidstone yesterday and the tramway and electric lighting services were suspended owing to the generating station being Hooded. The position ;i.s now reported to improving. The gale in tire English Channel .i-s still blowing. The wind l is ot almost hurricane force, and for 'be fourth day in succession the steamer services’ from Dover were' cancelled to-day. On the railways the conditions have rapidly improved and the services on most lines are now normal.

The latest weather forecast affords hope that milder conditions will relieve the plight of the inhabitants of towns and villages which are still snowbound and in many of which real hardships are being endured owing to short ago of fuel and food supplies. Reports from all quarters tell of men struggling for miles on foot or horseback across fields deep in snow to take food supplies to remote districts, and of gallant efforts made by doctors to reach patients in isolated places. ! The work of clearing the roads of snowdrifts has been rendered even more difficult Iby severe frosts, which have turned the drifts into masses ol' ice.

Even London has ibeen threatened with a shortage of fuel and food supplies. The coal merchants have been getting supplies of coal satisfactorily by train, but have ibeen unable to deliver to liouselboldens owing to the icebound streets. In Govent Garden supplies of vegetables are short, as these come only by road. Milk supplies have been considerably affected hut are now being delivered nearly normally. A large number otf French people who were held up in England through the accident to the Channel steamer Ehgadine, made a fresh start for Paris today by the Newinaven-Dieppe route. Others waited at Folkestone- for the Maid of Orleans, which, left Boulogne for Folkestone at midday with 838 passengers aboard and was afterwards leaving for Boulogne again. It was hoped this morning that the French boat would he available for passengers wishing to cross from Dover to Calais, but at midday it was announced that there would be no Dover-Ca.la.is sailing to-day: The Newliaven-Dieppe and Southampton-Havre services are normal.

When the Cunard liner Aquitania arrived at Cherbourg last evening en route from New York her commander, Sir James Charles, decided that the high wind and heavy seas made it too hazardous to go into the harbour. The liner had to cruise round outside tho harbour all night. She managed to enter ait nine o’clock this morning, after being held up for over twelve hours.